Pharoahs and the Afterlife: The Art of Ancient Egypt  
       
  The Land Of The Nile :: The Predynastic And Early Dynastic :: The Old Kingdom :: The Middle Kingdom :: The New Kingdom :: The Late Period   Images courtesy of
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  THE OLD KINGDOM

Architecture

Pyramids and the Sun God:

At Gizeh, the tree Great Pyramids were built in the course of 75 years. They are symbols of the sun.		    
       
  3-8: Great Pyramids, Gizeh, Egypt, Dynasty IV. From left: Pyramids of Menkaure, ca. 2490-2472 BCE; Khafre, ca. 2520-2494 BCE; and Khufu, ca. 2551-2528 BCE.
  1. Great Pyramids
  2. Great Pyramids
  3. Great Pyramids
  4. Great Pyramids
3-9: Section of the Pyramid of Khufu, Gizeh, Egypt.
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Khafre and the Sprinx:

The funerary complex at the Pyramid of Khafre at Gizeh included the pyramid itself with the pharaoh's burial chamber, the mortuary temple, the causeway, and the valley temple. According to one theory, the complex served not only as the king's tomb and temple, but also as his palace in the afterlife.

3-10: Model of the pyramid complex, Gizeh, Egypt. Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Semitic Museum. 1. Pyramid of Menkaure, 2. Pyramid of Khafre, 3. Mortuary temple of Khafre, 4. Causeway, 5. Great Sphinx, 6. Valley temple of Khafre, 7. Pyramid of Khufu, 8. Pyramids of the royal
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  3-11: Great Sphinx (with Pyramid of Khafre in the background at left), Gizeh, Egypt, Dynasty IV, ca. 2520-2494 BCE. Sandstone, approx. 65' high, 240' long.
  1. Great Sphinx
  2. Great Sphinx
  3. Great Sphinx
  4. Great Sphinx
Sculpture

Statues for eternity:

As already noted, in Egyptian tombs statues fulfilled an important function. Sculptures created images of the deceased to serve as abodes for the ka should the mummies be destroyed. The primary material for funerary objects was stone.		  
       
  3-12: Khafre, from Gizeh, Egypt, Dynasty IV, ca. 2520-2494 BCE. Diorite, approx. 5' 6 high. Egyptian Museum, Cairo.
  1. Khafre
  2. Khafre
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An emotionless embrace:

The seated statue is one of only a small number of basic formulaic types the sculptors of the Old Kingdom employed to represent the human figure.

3-13: Menkaure and Khamerernebty (?), from Gizeh, Egypt, Dynasty IV, ca. 2490-2472 BCE. Graywacke, approx. 4' 6 1/2 high. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
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Egyptian realism:

The timeless quality of the portraits of Khafre, Menkaure, and Khamerernebty is enhanced by the absence of any color but that of the dark natural stone selected for the statues.		  

       
  3-14: Seated scribe (Kay?), from his mastaba at Saqqara, Egypt, Dynasty V, ca. 2450-2350 BCE. Painted limestone, approx. 1' 9 high. Louvre, Paris.
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A portrait in wood:

A second portrait illustrating this rule of relaxed formality and increased realism is the Fifth Dynasty wooden statue of an official named Ka-Aper.

3-15: Ka-Aper, from his mastaba at Saqqara, Egypt, Dynasty V, ca. 2450-2350 BCE. Wood, approx. 3' 7 high. Egyptian Museum, Cairo.
  1. Ka-Aper
  2. Ka-Aper
  3. Ka-Aper
  4. Ka-Aper
Hunting in the afterlife:

In Egyptian tombs, the deceased were not represented exclusively in freestanding statuary.

3-16: Ti watching a hippopotamus hunt, relief in the mastaba of Ti, Saqqara, Egypt, Dynasty V, ca. 2450-2350 BCE. Painted limestone, hunting scene approx. 4' high.
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3-17: Goats treading seed and cattle fording a canal, reliefs in the mastaba of Ti, Saqqara, Egypt, Dynasty V, ca. 2450-2350 BCE. Painted limestone.
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  The Land Of The Nile :: The Predynastic And Early Dynastic :: The Old Kingdom :: The Middle Kingdom :: The New Kingdom :: The Late Period