Near East and Egypt focused on depicting...
royal figurines and divinities
Art in this region stressed the function of...
funerary and palace complexes
Artists created...
fully developed formal types: sculptures of human figures interacting with gods
Important individuals are set apart by...
hierarchal scale, registers, and significant early examples of historical narratives
The art of ancient Egypt embodied a sense of permanence that extended into eternity to preserve a culture rooted in...
a cycle of rebirth
Elaborate funerary rites and rituals created numerous ___________ to house the life of the deceased after death and into the afterlife
ka statues
Egyptian art incorporates mythological and religious symbolism, often centered around...
the cult of the sun
Egyptians used ________ and _________ to contrast depictions of pharaohs from those in lower classes
hierarchy of scale, idealization
Lower classes were portrayed in smaller scale using _________
naturalism
12. URUK WHITE TEMPLE ZIGGURAT
Modern Warka, Iraq
Sumerian - Urban Capital cities
c. 3500 BCE
Mud brick
What came about due to the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers?
Agricultural Revolution
Temple of the city's god . They house the deity.
Solid rectangular building. Each level gets smaller in size
Ziggurat
Strong message of Ziggurats:
rejoice if you are a resident and fear us if you are an outsider
Functions of Ziggurat:
home for our city's god when he visits + flood protection + security in case of attack (relatively few guards needed on the 3 stairways for protection).
A tangible symbol of their strength, power, and devotion to their gods. The royal guard can defend the
BENT AXIS:
style, lined staircase that change the way they face.
inner room at the top of a temple for the elite few (royal family and high priests), at least according to the ancient historian, Herodotus
CELLA
14. SUMERIAN VOTIVE FIGURINES
Square Temple, Eshnunna (modern Tell Asmar, Iraq)
Sumerian
c. 2700 BCE
Gypsum inlaid with shell and black limestone
Notes: It's all triangular. Figural. Hierarchy of Scale. The feet are not anatomically proportional to the rest of the body because the art
Statuettes:
carved by the artist from solid cylinders: subtractive process + negative sculptural space
given the job of worshipping the gods 24/7
Supplicants
Monument composed of a single column or shaft typically erected to commemorate an important event and/or person:
Stele
STELE OF THE VULTURES
Notes: Not naturalistic - the people are in profile but the shields are the wrong way. Shock and Awe. The king is right out in front and taller so hierarchal scale. Commemorative/funerary. Corpses under the soldiers. The bottom register shows them after t
CUNEIFORMS:
convey in pictograph writing the details of what they are depicting
VICTORY STELE OF NARAM SIN
Notes: Hierarchy of scale with the man on the top. The King is favored by the gods and the represents both god and man. Strong diagonal lines. Figures are carved on exact tiers within a landscape.
19. THE CODE OF HAMMURABI
Babylon (modern Iraq)
Susan empire
C. 1792-1750 BCE
Basalt
Notes: Moses receiving the Ten Commandments. Hierarchy of scale - the god is as tall as Hammurabi and he's sitting down.
� View because of the thrown
Composite figures because the perspective is t
FORESHORTENING:
diagonals suggest depth
16. STANDARD OF UR
Royal tombs at Ur (modern Tell el-Muqayyar, Iraq)
Sumerian, c. 2600-2400 BCE
Wood inlaid with shell, lapis lazuli, and red limestone
Notes: Funerary. Anatomically impossible with the feet in profile and the body in frontal - non-naturalistic. Shock and Aw
COMPOSITE VIEW:
parts of some human figures in profile with other anatomical areas presented frontally (eye)
the action of asking or begging for something earnestly or humbly:
SUPPLICATION
25. ASSYRIAN LAMASSU
Citadel of Sargon II
Dur Sharrukin (modern Khorsabad, Iraq)
c. 720-705 BCE
Alabaster
Notes: Guardian figure. Subtractive process. Shock and Awe. The strength of the bull, the wings and all seeing power of the eagle represent the all powerful king - Compos
Where are Guardian Figures found?
at the Assyrian palace gates to both ward off evil and symbolize the ruler's supernatural power
OPTICAL VIEW:
Found in nature
WARKA VASE
First vase relief every discovered
Jesus is pictured as the lamb so that is also taken from these people,
BULL-HEADED LYRE
Similar to Standard of Ur. Anthropomorphic - Animals given human characteristics.
CYLINDER SEALS
A royal clerk used the cylinder seals and wore them around their neck. They remove it and roll it onto soft clay and repeat it continuously.
The finished product ends up being bas relief. The cylinder seal uses subtractive process to form.
ENHEDUANNA VOTIVE DISC
Enheduanna is featured on here and she was one of the most famous woman of these ancient times
SEATED GUDEA STATUE
Hands clasped, feet showing, frontal view, throne, wears a crown, the skirt has writing on it. The curses of what would happen if you mess with them are written on the skirt. Naturalistic
QUEEN NAPIR-ASU
Conquerors of this place chopped off the head and the left arm. There's writing on the skirt. Hand may be over the belly to represent fertility.
ISHTAR GATE
Guardian figures.
Crenulation - the arch or gate
Great reception hall
Apadana
DARIUS AND XERXES RECEIVING TRIBUTE
Similar to the Standard of Ur
Hierarchy of scale
Metal hammered into relief from the reverse side
REPOUSSE
HEAD OF A SASSANIAN KING
Silver with Mercury GILDING - thin veneer covering
ENGRAVING AND INCISING
Powerful and arresting royal stare
Symbol of power found in a lot of art
Orb
Bilateral symmetry
the two sides are identical
Where is upper Egypt?
Upper Egypt is closer to the source of the Nile, so it is actually below lower Egypt
The Egyptian God:
Ra
Two progeny male gods:
Osiris and Seth
Notes: Like Cain and Able
Osiris, the legends related, became king of Egypt and took his sister Isis as his wife
He was promptly killed and dismembered by his brother Seth
And then miraculously saved and restored by Isis with the help of h
Osiris and Isis' son
Horus, a force for good, who defeated Seth and ruled the earth
Osiris was usually depicted...
in human form but wrapped as a mummy
Isis, his divine wife, usually is imaged as...
fully human
Horus often appears as...
a falcon or falcon-headed man
Hathor depicted as...
a cow and was the goddess of love and fertility
Thoth
(pictured as an ibis) was the god of writing, science, and law
Maat
(shown as a feather) presided over truth, order, and justice
Anubis
often depicted as a jackal, was the god of embalming and cemeteries
Bastet
(a cat) was the daughter of the chief god, Ra
What does Anubis prepare?
Anubis prepares dead people to pass on to the after life
EGYPTIAN TOMB ART
The objects or glyphs are not written as words but as phenetic sounds
Fresco Seco
to paint on a dry wall surface
__________ was the "master value" of ancient Egypt
Resurrection
Bon Fresco
paint on a wet surface so that when it dries, it locks in the paint
CANOPIC JARS
Anthropomorphic heads
ROSETTA STONE
The Rosetta Stone contained three registers: in hieratic, demotic, and Greek text all saying the same thing
Wrongly seen as pictographs, the were in fact phonetic symbols with each mark depicting a syllable or word
A major deciphering hurdle was that no h
Egyptomania
Europe's astonishment to discover this civilization
EGYPTIAN ANKH
Ancient Egyptian symbol of eternal life
Christians' cross is strongly related to the Egyptian Ankh
Egyptian Art Rules
Egyptian art reflected a static/rigidified world of fixed norms and rules
A grid system of strict ratios, proportions, and sizes was developed that controlled the depiction of body proportions in painting and sculpture
All painters and sculptors of Egypti
Egyptians believed that the afterlife closely resembled:
life here on earth
STELE OF AMENEMHAT
They are presenting an offering
Necklace may be jade
The mother and father are saying goodbye to their dead son. Goddess on the right is welcoming the son to the after life
13. PALETTE OF KING NARMER
Pre-dynastic Egypt
c. 3000-2920 BCE
GREYWACKE
Notes: HIERARCHY OF SCALE. Survived for five millennia in almost perfect condition. The falcon god has a nus in one of the enemy's mouths. Employs bas relief to commemorate the unification of Upper and Lower E
Hippos
for females a strong amulet symbol for fertility
The hippo also symbolized danger, however, in some settings
Egyptologists fall into two basic camps regarding the Palette of Narmer
1) the Palette records factual historical events
2) the Palette establishes a "narrative" that is a "foundation myth" of the origins of Egyptian unification rather than a factual record of actual events
15. SEATED SCRIBE
Saqqara, Egypt
Old Kingdom, 4th Dynasty, c. 2620-2500 BCE
Painted limestone, inlaid with rock crystals
25 inches
Notes: An educated, bureaucratic, skirted functionary in the employ of Pharaoh
Papyrus scroll across the lap conveys his post
Cross-legged pos
KA-APER
Found in his simple brick mastaba at Siqqara
Wood (arm joints)
Face is amazingly alive and unique
Pot belly: Realism
Although he steps forward the sculptor did not intend to convey motion, as such, but rather timelessness and serenity
17. GREAT PYRAMIDS & SPHINX
Giza, Egypt
Old Kingdom, Fourth Dynasty
c. 2550-2490 BCE
Cut limestone
MASTABA: SINGLE STORY TRAPEZOID
Mastabas were the first royal burial tombs and were originally constructed of mud-brick, later versions were veneered with cut stones
"Grandfather" of the Great Pyramids
officials surrounded the royal pyramids and housed the deceased key officials or less
KA STATUE: "LIFE FORCE
A statue for the dead person's life force to abide in for eternity
Functioned as a resting place/abode for the "soul" of the deceased in the afterlife
Egyptians believed the statue housed his "spirit" and "essence" after it left the physical body at the t
An above-ground small rock-sealed room inside a tomb built to house the ka statue.
The deceased's tomb would also be laden with all the items essential to a comfortable life in the next world, as well as amulets to ward off danger and evil
SERDAB
HIPPO FIGURINE: TOMB OF SENBI
Painted the color of the watery blue of its river habitat
Painted with lotus blossoms throughout to give the impression he is standing in the river
Symbol of evil in men's tombs (disruption to fields and Nile boats); of fertility and childbirth in women's
distinctive lustrous glaze
FAIENCE
IMHOTEP'S STEPPED PYRAMID
This stepped pyramid is the earliest work of Egyptian monumental architecture and the immediate Egyptian forerunner of the Great Pyramids
NECROPOLIS
city of the dead
Pharaoh Djoser
lived on after death in his kingdom
Egyptians believed Djoser carried on living as a god within his mortuary complex, engaged in all the pursuits and pleasures that he did during his mortal life
DRUMS:
the individual sections one atop the next that compose a column
FLUTES
the vertical grooves/channels cut into the columns
Stone polished to a smooth finish by Egyptian masons and laborers:
ASHLAR MASONRY
CAPITALS
commonly depicted key plants found along the banks of the Nile
GREAT PYRAMIDS
Solid stone mountains, except for the various shafts and chambers inside
Four-sided pyramid design evolved from Imhotep's stepped pyramid
Four corners align with the cardinal direction points
Egypt's most famous funerary structures
Early pyramids had smoo
PYRAMID OF KHUFU
Oldest and largest of the three
Site carefully planned: his palace in the afterlife
The mummified body was transported to an adjacent funerary temple before formal burial deep inside the pyramid, somewhere in the heart of the masonry to minimize disturban
Mortuary Temple faces where?
As always, it faces east to the rising sun, connecting Pharaoh to the sun god.
THE GREAT SPHINX
A human head and a lion's body carved out of living sandstone (Composite creature)
Faces the rising sun, reinforcing pharaoh's link to Ra
Both the URAEUS (cobra that safeguards Pharaoh) and ritual beard are now largely absent (the beard is currently in th
NEMES
cloth headdress
18. KING MENKAURE & QUEEN
Old Kingdom, Egypt
4th Dynasty,
c. 2490-2472 BCE
Greywacke
Notes: His pose rigid, tight fisted
Assertive left leg more forward BUT NO WEIGHT SHIFT OCCURS
He wears the traditional NEMES and ceremonial beard typical of the Old Kingdom
Queen's right hand aro
PHARAOH DJOSER'S KA STATUE
A block statue
Diorite
Subtractive process
Horus the falcon god perches on the back, conveying an image of godly protection as his wings enfold the king
KING KHAFRE BLOCK STATUE
IDEALIZED: flawless body and face, no matter what the actual age of pharaoh when the statue was created
TIMELESS SERENITY/ETERNAL STILLNESS
STRICT FRONTALITY
SUBTRACTIVE METHOD
Throne conveys important symbolism:
1. Stylized bodies of a two lions (strength) serve as guardian figures
2. Lotus and papyrus plants carved inside the legs of the throne: unified Egypt
20. TEMPLE OF AMUN-RE/ HYPOSTYLE HALL
Karnak, near Luxor, Egypt
New Kingdom, 18th & 19th Dynasties
Temple c. 1550 BCE
Hall c. 1250 BCE
Cut sandstone & mud brick
FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD
The collapse of the Old Kingdom and its series of powerful kings gave way to a 150 year transitional era
A decentralizing era in Egyptian history as the provinces gained power at the expense of the central government
kings strengthened borders and re-invi
ROCK-CUT TOMBS
New form of tomb emerged during the 11th and 12th Dynasties, excavated into the faces of cliffs (NECROPOLIS)
Columns, lintels, niches, false doors, etc. all carved out of solid rock...all often painted
They included an entrance portico, a main hall, and a
THUTMOSE III
The greatest leader of the subsequent period, Thutmose III (r. 1479-1425), was the first to use the term "pharaoh" in a self-referencing manner
The term literally means "great house
PYLON WALL/TEMPLES
The symmetrical and axial plan of these temples included an entrance featuring a tapered and slanting pylon, followed by a semi-public courtyard, that in turn gave way to a hypostyle hall
Ramses II
A sacred lake was added where the pharaoh and top-ranking priests of Amun could undergo ritual cleansing before entering the temple
In the inner sanctuary priests washed the cult statue of Amun every morning with the rising sun, and garbed it in fresh clo
21. HATSHEPSHUT MORTUARY TEMPLE & STATUE
Near Luxor, Egypt
New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty
c. 1473-1458 BCE
Sandstone, partially carved into a cliff
Red granite (statue)
Notes: Her most ambitious architectural undertaking
The mother of Thutmose III and generally considered by scholars the most success
Axial Plan:
raised causeway once lined with sphinxes up to the open space of the first courtyard
HATSHEPSUT: OFFERING JARS
Another example of her represented as male, with the ceremonial beard worn only by pharaoh
Here, as in a number of her statues, her fists are unclenched
Offering jars (possibly beer or wine): LIBATION
22. AKHENATON, NEFERTITI, AND CHILDREN
New Kingdom (Amarna)
18th Dynasty c. 1353-1336 BCE
Limestone
Notes: Here Akhenaten sits with his family in an intimate and informal pose, warmed and lit by the rays of Aten which beam down and end in ANKHS
The images are done in SUNKEN RELIEF
Hierarchy of
AKHEANATON
The most unusual ruler in the entire history of Egypt
Radically transformed the political, spiritual, and social life of Egypt
Founded a new monotheistic religion centered on the worship of the sun through the life-giving deity Aten
MAAT:
truth, harmony, balance, and order
AKHENATON
He holds traditional symbols of royalty: the flail (threshing tool that could also be used for whippings and as a battle weapon) in his right hand and in his left a shepherd's crook (borrowed by Christians much later as the "Good Shepherd)
Some scholars a
NEFERTITI PORTRAIT BUST
Refined features
Long neck
Heavy-lidded eyes
Dramatic use of color: blue headdress and colorful band are repeated in the neck jewelry
23. TUTANKHAMUN'S TOMB (INNERMOST COFFIN)
New Kingdom
18th dynasty c. 1323 BCE
Gold with enamel inlay and semi-precious stones
Notes: Found intact by the 1922 Carter expedition in the Valley of the Kings
The innermost of his three nested coffins featured over 240 pounds of gold
Found with two fet
TUT PAINTED CHEST
Found in his tomb
On the lid he pursues animals into the desert, a clear allegory of his treatment of actual enemies
The Egyptian vulture god, Nekhbet, spreads its protective wings over Tut
Hierarchy of scale in the side panel, again valiant charges into
24. HU-NEFER LAST JUDGMENT
New Kingdom, 19th Dynasty,
c. 1275 BCE
Painted papyrus scroll
New Kingdom era growing belief that only those free from wrongdoing could enjoy the afterlife
Customary for surviving family members to place papyrus scrolls among the mummy wrappings to help t