Joseph Mccauley's Ancient egypt

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This user gallery has been created by an independent third party and may not represent the views of the institutions whose collections include the featured works or of Google Arts & Culture.

The theme that I have chosen for my exhibition project is ancient Egypt. Ancient Egyptian art began developing about five thousand years ago. The artwork began taking shape in early civilizations amongst the Nile Valley. Ancient Egyptians expressed their art in paintings and in sculptures. The art was known for being very symbolic and fascinating. The Egyptian artwork revolved around the past and was intended to keep record of history. Ancient Egyptian art is some of the oldest works of art, and it is still regarded as some of the greatest works of art in all of history. Egyptian art was split into 6 different time periods that encompass well over a thousand years. There is the Predynastic period, the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, the New Kingdom, the Amarna Period, and the Ptolemaic period. The Predynastic art stretches all the way back into the Neolithic period. It is believed that Egypt was split into an Upper and Lower part during this time. The art and culture of Upper Egypt began to spread and eventually dominated Lower Egypt as well. The Old kingdom was the period when the Egyptians began constructing buildings for day-to-day activities. Little of this now survives, but the art that has survived very well from this era are the tombs. The afterlife was a very important matter in the Egyptian culture, and the Egyptians made sure that everything was done properly in order to preserve the body well after death so that the soul could have a place to live after death. Another part of the Old kingdom that is still very popular in art history today, and is considered some of the greatest architecture in all of history, are the pyramids at Giza as well as the Great Sphinx. The next period that took place was the Middle Kingdom. The Middle kingdom strongly emphasized reasserting ancient Egyptian traditional art. As well as an emphasis on tradition, the Middle kingdom also began to highlight the use of jewelry. The next period was the New kingdom. The New kingdom was a time of a lot of territorial expansion for Egypt, and thus they began constructing tremendous architectural projects. Another aspect of the New Kingdom that took on transformation was the royal burial practices. Instead of constructing pyramids for the dead, the Egyptians began excavating tombs out of the rock face in the Valley of the Kings. Throughout this flourishing period many things were constructed as well as several temples of worship. The next period of time was the Amarna period. During the Amarna period tradition was broken as King Akhenaten began to radically sway from tradition in several aspects including making a colossal sized figure of himself. This break in tradition continued until the young boy king, King Tutankhamun, returned the ancient tradition back into the culture. Therefore, the Ptolemaic period was again, a revival of the past tradition of ancient Egypt. Ancient Egyptian art is some of the oldest works of art, and it is still regarded as some of the greatest works of art in all of history. I have chosen to highlight several works that spread throughout the long time range of Egyptian art. In my project I will be looking at Tutankhamun’s Golden Death Mask, the Throne of Tutankhamun, the Statue of Cleopatra VII Philopator, the Nefertiti Bust, and Narmer’s Palette. I believe that each one of these works highlights a unique aspect of the broader Egyptian culture and further shows the fascination that can be found in its art.

Sculpture, probably of Cleopatra VII, unknown, 47-30 BC if of Cleopatra VII, From the collection of: Royal Ontario Museum

The Statue of Cleopatra VII Philopator is an astounding piece of work that represents a very important historical figure. Cleopatra VII Philopatar was the last person to rule in Egypt before it was taken over as a Roman Province. Cleopatra was unlike many other Egyptian rulers that came before her as she was a part of the Ptolemaic dynasty. This meant that she was a descendant of one of the generals of Alexander the Great. Most Ptolemeis spoke Greek and not Egyptian, but Cleopatra learned Egyptian and represented herself as an Egyptian goddess. The statue of Cleopatra VII Philopator is one of the most pristine images of her. The black basalt statue reveals the influence of ancient Greek art during the 1st Century BC. As was previously mentioned, Cleopatra had a great interest for ancient Egyptian culture. This affinity with her ancient culture can be seen quite prominently in the statue as she was represented as a reincarnation of an Egyptian goddess in this statue. Cleopatra is also holding the ankh in her hand. The ankh is the ancient hieroglyph that means life. Cleopatra is also wearing a headdress that is adorned with royal snakes. On top of these things, Cleopatra was also believed to be the first ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty to learn Egyptian. It is believed that the goddess represented in Cleopatra’s statue Isis. During her reign, Isis was her patron goddess and it was believed that Cleopatra was the reincarnation and embodiment of Isis, the goddess of Wisdom. After Cleopatra’s death, Caesar ordered that Cleopatra’s statue be kept and not destroyed as were many others. The Statue of Cleopatra VII Philopator stands 41 inches tall and remains one of the great works of Egyptian art.

Cul Afri Egypt Stbles Stelae Palette Of Narmer Gebel El Arrk Knife Hunters, From the collection of: LIFE Photo Collection

The Narmer Palette is a precisely decorated plate of schist that stands approximately 64 cm high. The Narmer Palette was discovered in excavations of Hierakonpolis in 1897/1898. Hierakonpolis was a Predynastic capital located in the South of Egypt. The fact that the palette is decorated on both sides, as well as the size and weight contribute to the fact that it was used ceremonially and not cosmetically for daily use. The Narmer Palette is a key piece in the identification of Menes, who is the legendary first King who supposedly ruled over the whole of Egypt. The top of the palette is decorated similarly on both sides of the palette. The name of the king is inscribed between two heads. The animal heads are described as cow heads, which is usually interpreted to a reference of cow-goddess. The back of the palette is a scene of the king about to strike down a foe. The bottom of the back of the palette is two more enemies that are overthrown and naked. On the Front of the Palette, King Narmer is pictured holding a mace with his right arm over his chest. A long-haired person is pictured in front of Narmer holding an emblem. In front of the person is pictured four bearers. Ten dead corpses are pictured to the right of them all. This possibly resembles the conquered region of wherever they may be. The central aspect of the front of the palatte pictures two animals being tied together. At the bottom of the front of the palette resembles the conquering of a foe as a bull stands over a fallen enemy. The central theme of the palette seems to be the king’s recurring victory over his enemies. King Narmer is also shown wearing two different crowns that are believed to represent the uniting of Upper and Lower Egypt.

Throne, 1901/1999, From the collection of: Salar Jung Museum

-The Golden Throne of Tutankhamen is one of the articles that was discovered by Howard Carter from his excavations in November, 1922. The throne, although it is called the golden throne, is actually made primarily of wood. The wooden chair is overlaid in sheet gold and silver along with other semi-precious stones. At the center of the seat we can see a depiction of the sun god, Aten. This is very fitting, bcecause the throne follows a very Amarna artistic tradition, and Aten was very poplular during the Amarna art time period. The one place on the throne where there is nothing but pure gold is the representation of Aten. This is common with Egyptian culture as gold was seen as the flesh of the gods. King Tut’s throne is not only a beautiful masterpiece; it also allows us to look into the position of the Pharaoh. One piece of the throne that allows us to look into this detail more is the chair’s legs. Firstly, the throne sits on spacers above the floor. This was seen as symbolizing Pharaoh’s sovereignty over the earth. Although he ruled over the earth, he was not of the earth. Another aspect of the legs that is interesting is the footstool. Not only does this further symbolize the pharaoh’s superiority; the footstool is adorned on all four sides with images of their enemies. So Pharaoh is seen as superior over the earth and superior over his enemies. As it stands 70 cm wide and 102 cm tall, the throne is believed to be an auxiliary royal seat for King Tut. Dating back to the 14th century BC, King Tut’s throne is a truly remarkable artifact.

Eliot Elisofon, 1956-11, From the collection of: LIFE Photo Collection

The Bust of Queen Nefertiti is still today regarded as one of the greatest works of Egyptian art. The Bust of Queen Nefertiti was discovered in 1912 during the excavation of the city of Amarna. The Bust of Queen Nefertiti is from the New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, around 1340 BC. The Bust of Queen Nefertiti is comprised of limestone, gypsum, crystal, and wax. The bust also stands 50 cm tall. The Bust of Queen Nefertiti served as a model for others producing portraits of the queen. The face of the bust has been preserved incredibly well and the color and fine modeling of the face are incredibly precise. Queen Nefertiti was the wife of Akhenaten. The bust was created by the artist, Thutmose, and the bust is also thought to represent the culmination of the Amarna Period art. Little is known about Nefertiti, yet the bust has made her one of the most iconic figures of Anncient Egypt and of antiquity as a whole. The name Nefertiti means: “the beautiful one has come.” It is quite evident that Thutmose made the bust very resembling of her name. There are several aspects of the Bust of Queen Nefertiti that resemble the ancient Egyptian culture. Firstly, Queen Nefertiti has a very long neck. The long neck was a common expression of a woman in Egyptian culture. Another aspect that is very Egyptian is her headdress. The Queen is pictured with a tall headdress with symbols on it, and this is also very characteristic of Egyptian culture. The Bust of Queen Nefertiti currently resides in Berlin amidst heavy controversy. The Bust of Queen Nefertiti was discovered by the Germans in the early 1900’s, yet the Egyptian authorities have been demanding its return ever since its placement in Germany.

Por Tutankhamun, From the collection of: LIFE Photo Collection

Tutankhamun’s Golden Death Mask is a very unique and symbolic work of art. The mask was not a simple decoration to ornate the pharaoh, but rather it was symbolic to the culture in which it came from. In ancient Egypt, death and life after death were very important. One part of life after death that was essential to the ancient Egyptian culture was the preservation of the body. Egyptians believed that the soul had to have a place to dwell after death. Because of this, Egyptians would use the process of mummification and masks. Masks served two purposes in Egyptian culture, but death masks were used specifically for preserving the body after death. The death mask that we see here is a beautiful piece of work made of solid gold. The mask weighs in at 24 lbs, and it is 21 inches in height and 15 inches wide. The gold mask is also inlaid with semi-precious stones and the eyes are made of obsidian and quartz. The back of the mask also has several spells from the Book of the Dead written on it. The gold on the mask also carries some symbolism. Not only was the gold a sign of the immense fortune of the young boy king; gold was believed to have magical potency. Gold shone bright like the sun. Because the metal was so bright and shiny, it was related to the sun god of the Egyptians. Therefore, gold was thought to possess powers of the sun god, and gold was then referred to as the flesh of the gods. One other symbolic piece on the mask is the crook and flail. The crook and flail were not only symbols of kingship; the crook and flail also represent the god, Osiris, lord of the underworld. These symbols were imitated by the divine pharaoh. Thus this shows another emphasis on the importance of death in Egyptian culture.

Credits: All media

This user gallery has been created by an independent third party and may not represent the views of the institutions whose collections include the featured works or of Google Arts & Culture.

Salar Jung Museum

Royal Ontario Museum

LIFE Photo Collection