Construction material of the ancient Egyptians for art. Development of painting in ancient Egypt
Mastabas (tombs) trapezoidal shape, built for Egyptian nobles, not pharaohs) and rock tombs.
The largest temples began to be erected during the New Kingdom. The Theban temples are especially remarkable - Luxor And Karnak– with huge halls and open columned courtyards. The walls of the temples were covered with painted reliefs and hieroglyphic inscriptions.
In ancient Egyptian sculptural art there is a noticeable desire for monumentality. There are often grandiose statues, reaching 20 meters in height, carved from rocks. Such a colossus is, first of all, the Great Sphinx (a statue of a lion with a human head, symbolizing the power and wisdom of the pharaoh), and just as giant statues Ramses II.
Conventionality is often felt in the sculpture and painting of Ancient Egypt. It is especially evident in the depiction of the human figure on a plane (on reliefs and in painting). The face was depicted in a strict profile, but the eye was turned en face. When depicting the chest in profile, the outlines of both shoulders were fully given, although with such a rotation of the figure one of them should have been hidden. The Egyptian artist, following centuries-old traditions, sought to depict what actually exists, and not what he saw, examining the model from one side or another, when much escapes the field of view. If they wanted, Egyptian artists could perfectly accurately convey the appearance of nature both in profile and en face, but they very rarely decided to do this, because they were bound by tradition.
The dependence of the sculptor or painter on established norms when depicting high-ranking officials was especially strong. Pharaohs and nobles had to be depicted in a majestic and motionless pose, with a frozen standard smile on their face. Artists avoided noting any physical defects in them, sometimes giving them excessive a big increase. Simple people (shepherds, farmers) and foreigners were depicted more naturally in ancient Egyptian art. The artist was given complete freedom when depicting fauna. Amazingly accurate and vividly depicted wild cat, geese, ducks, etc.
The sample is ancient Egyptian painting. Weighing the heart of the scribe Hunefer at the afterlife court of the god Osiris
Significant withdrawal artistic traditions occurred in Tel el-Amarna art, that is, during the time of the reformer pharaoh Amenhotep IV (Akhenaton). He himself, his wife, and daughters, not to mention other characters, are portrayed naturalistically, and their shortcomings are even emphasized.
Relief from Amarna, supposedly depicting Akhenaten and Nefertiti, c. 1335 BC
Music and dancing achieved great development in Egypt. There were wind instruments(flutes), percussion (sisters, castanets) and strings (harps, lutes, etc.). Dancers sometimes performed entire complex pantomimes, depicting a pharaoh and a defeated enemy or grass that bends in the breeze. Religious dramas (mysteries) were staged in temples, in which the death and resurrection of Osiris were presented. These were the beginnings of the theater, which was fully developed already in the ancient world.
The achievements of ancient Egyptian culture and art of Egypt significantly influenced their descendants and (largely through the Greeks) came down to us. Herodotus quite rightly considered the Egyptians to be teachers of geometry. Many artistic subjects passed from the Egyptians to other peoples in a modified form. The image of the Sphinx has become classic in European art. Authentic Egyptian obelisks tower in Rome and Paris. Sphinxes made of red granite, brought from Egypt (they date back to the 15th century BC), adorn the Neva embankment in St. Petersburg.
The art of Ancient Egypt is a collective name for works of painting, sculpture, reliefs, architecture, and some decorative crafts created in different periods of Pharaonic Egypt. Big interest represent ostracons (or ostraca), clay shards that served as accessible writing material - ancient Egyptian artists also painted drawings on them.
Conventionally, art can be divided according to the periods of ancient Egyptian civilization: the art of the Ancient, Middle and New Kingdoms. However, despite some stylistic differences between them, there is also continuity, manifested primarily in fidelity religious traditions.
Sculpture and are extremely stylized, symbolic, focused on and idealized world of the dead. At the same time, it is characterized, on the one hand, by strict formalization and canonization, and on the other hand, by a high degree of realism.
Initially, the art of Ancient Egypt was created for religious and magical purposes. Its symbolism shows beliefs and their attempts to understand the world around them. In a religious and social context they played a practical role; this materialism is not easy to understand for a modern viewer. For example, the relief on the walls of the temple depicting the pharaoh offering gifts to the gods and destroying the enemies of Egypt expressed the idea that the pharaoh was fulfilling his main duty - to maintain order in the Universe. The Egyptians believed that images only through their existence contributed to the fact that everything depicted happened in reality.
The same can be said about the sculptural images placed in temples and tombs - they were physical repositories for spirits. With the help of the “opening of the mouth” ceremony, the statues became, as it was believed, living beings capable of breathing, speaking, and accepting offerings. There is evidence that this ritual was performed from the time of the Old Kingdom to the Roman period. The fundamental difference between a man and a statue was that the statue had eternal life. Therefore, the sculpture was made of durable materials - metal, stone, wood.
The art of Ancient Egypt prescribed strict formalism and complex canons of beauty when depicting gods, kings, and people of high social status. These could vary from dynasty to dynasty depending on the prevailing social structures and power relations. Posture of a person or god in human form must be straight. The figure was depicted standing or sitting; the face with an enlarged and dilated eye and legs were depicted in profile, the upper body was facing forward, the hips were turned three-quarters. In the images, men take a step forward with their hands clenched into a fist. Legs female figures are on the same level, arms are open. The skin color of men is reddish brown, while that of women is yellow ocher and therefore much brighter. It is impossible to determine from the images themselves which people are depicted. They were identified only by their written name. For this reason, writing was an integral aspect of art. Creating illustrated signs was actually a creative activity in itself.
Realism in Egyptian art predominates in images of nature, plants, animals, as well as objects related to agricultural and other practical activities(shipping, fishing, hunting).
Especially abstract or full of allegories are illustrations of scenes from the world of the gods, cosmic processes and the afterlife. This iconography is very difficult for the uninitiated viewer to understand, even in the presence of inscriptions, given that sometimes the drawing represents hieroglyphic inscriptions. Despite the fact that all the depicted objects and objects are quite specific, in different combinations they gain new meaning.
In general, the art of the Ancient World is built largely on symbolism, but if you compare ancient Greek drawings with ancient Egyptian ones on the same themes, for example, “Sunrise,” the differences are striking. The Hellenic drawing will most likely depict a chariot drawn by winged horses, in which the god Helios flies into heaven. The rays of his crown (symbolic rays of the sun) golden the sea waters in which young men frolic, joyfully welcoming a new day. If you add an image of another young man or replace them with Nereids, then the meaning of what is depicted will not change. But if you do a similar thing with an ancient Egyptian drawing and replace one image with another, then other images and symbols will appear.
Belyakova O. Yu.
The history and art of Ancient Egypt can be divided into several stages:
Predynastic period - 4 thousand BC. e.
Early Kingdom (31-29 centuries BC). Reign I-II dynasties.
Ancient Kingdom (28-23 centuries BC). Reign of the III-IV dynasties.
Middle Kingdom (21st-18th centuries BC). Reign of the XI-XIII dynasties.
New Kingdom (16-11 centuries BC). The reign of the XVIII-XX dynasties.
Late Kingdom (11th-8th centuries BC). Foreign XXII-XXV dynasties (11-8 centuries BC). The heyday of Egypt during the XXVI Sais dynasty (VII-VI centuries BC)
Conquest of Egypt by the Persians. Egypt as part of the Persian Empire (6-4 centuries BC). Reign of the XXVII - XXX dynasties.
Hellenistic era (332 BC - 1st century BC). Ptolemid Dynasty.
Period of Roman rule (1st century BC - 5th century AD)
Egypt was the cradle of civilization. Already from the very beginning of statehood (the Chalcolithic period), a special view of reality developed in Egyptian art, which led to the formation of a single canon. The peculiarity of the mentality of the ancient Egyptians was that great importance was attached to the afterlife and throughout their entire existence the Egyptian was preparing for the last step on earth - the step into eternity. Almost all works of art known to us filled the tombs of the pharaohs, and monumental paintings were mostly intended for the sacred space of temples or tombs. Like the two banks of the Nile - western and eastern, secular and religious art Ancient Egypt is also separated from each other by a great river, and the main masterpieces that have survived to this day are mainly monuments from the land of the dead, from the uninhabited western bank of the Nile.
Egypt is known not only for its highly original art - the product of an insular civilization. In Christian times, this country became known for its ascetics - hermits. It was in Thebaid - a region in southern Egypt, starting from the 3rd century AD. e., the movement of anchorites was born - the first Christians - ascetics who dedicated their lives to the Lord and left everything worldly. Saints Paul of Thebaid and Anthony gained fame as great desert saints. By the end of the 4th century AD. e. There were already about 24,000 anchorites who began to organize their own colonies - the first monasteries. From the 2nd century BC. e. A new form of art - portraiture - became widely known in Ancient Egypt. Under the influence of Fayum portraits associated with the funeral cult, more late time the first visible images of Christian saints appear. They are made using the encaustic technique ( wax painting) and, unlike the subsequent tradition of icon painting, in some of them the connection with sensuality and naturalism is still too strong artistic language ancient world. The creators of these first images were Egyptians who converted to Christianity, called Copts. They are also the authors of amazing fabrics, where, thanks to virtuosic technique, bright, still lifes, still lifelike in antiquity, full of Christian symbolism, biblical scenes, and the first famous saints are captured.
If you follow Toynbee’s civilizational approach, then Ancient Egypt seems to be a closed civilization: everything new that other cultures bring with them, entering this country, takes on a new life, loses independence and independence, becoming Egyptian. Like the marshes of the delta, Egyptian civilization completely absorbs other cultures without entering into dialogue with them.
The fascination with Egypt led at the beginning of the 19th century to the appearance of " Egyptian style". It originated in France under the influence of the military and at the same time scientific expedition of Napoleon Bonaparte to this country. As a result, architecture, painting and decorative applied arts acquire Egyptian motifs. Some sculptures and small architectural forms, brought from Egypt, began to live a new life in a completely different spatial and temporal context. They are the keepers of the memory of the once glorious past of their country and the eternal sphinxes, denying us the opportunity to learn. ancient culture. These great dissonances reflect the powerlessness of researchers with their modern technology to “animate” Egyptian texts and again “enact” before our eyes those that have sunk into oblivion historical events. The main formative element of the Place de la Concorde was the ancient Egyptian obelisk, and here in Russia the Neva embankment is decorated with ancient sphinxes. They were brought to us during the reign of Empress Anna Ioannovna. The fascination with Egypt became especially widespread in the 20s-30s of the twentieth century, during the formative years of the young Soviet state. The idea of perpetuating the double of the deceased in durable materials - granite, basalt, porphyry belonged to the Egyptians, and therefore the famous granite monuments to Lenin and his entourage are perceived as an organic part of the ancient Egyptian funeral cult. Its apogee of closeness to the ancient Egyptian funeral ritual is achieved in the mummification of the leader and his burial in a granite tomb-pyramid-Mausoleum. This architectural structure should also be considered as an analogue Babylonian ziggurat, but the connection with Egyptian architecture is primary, since in its completed form Lenin’s tomb was supposed to be crowned with a small pyramid - a pyramidion.
Of course, the influence of Egypt on the art of subsequent times cannot, of course, be exaggerated - antiquity was ahead of it in this, but in certain eras, “Egyptian” meant hidden, necessarily colorful, full of omissions and mysteries in its graphic perfection, and, most importantly, opposed to antiquity art. Egyptian art was popular among romantics, freemasons, and in the twenties of the 20th century it became the leitmotif of the Art Deco style and, as already mentioned, influenced the art and rituals of communist Russia.
The distant past of this ancient civilization evokes in our memory strange, kind and at the same time sinister and merciless zoomorphic gods and, at first glance, similar to funny painted pictures and hieroglyphs. Gods and hieroglyphs are present in every work of Egyptian art, turning any of them into a sacred object that only initiates can comprehend.
The Egyptians had great amount gods, and they differed from the deities of other ancient Eastern states, because the features of animals and humans organically coexisted in them. These were people with animal heads. From ordinary people and their animals were distinguished by special headdresses. The number of gods during the reign of Thutmose III was close to 740. This number is explained by the fact that, along with the official cults associated with the reigning dynasty of the pharaohs, there were also local gods revered in each nome (one administrative division Egypt). As for the origin of such a strange image of the gods in the form of half-humans - half-animals, here their role was played by those going back to primitive period totemistic beliefs, when the venerated ancestor of each tribe or tribal union there was a sacred animal (bird, fish). Each center of the nome honored its own supreme god and the sacred animal associated with it. The bull Apis lived in Memphis, the sacred bull of the god Ra Mnevis lived in Heliopolis (On), the ram of Osiris lived in Mendes, the sacred ibis lived in Hermopolis, and the sacred perch Abiju lived in Abydos. In Abydos, the god Ankher-Shu was first revered (in Heliopolis theology, Shu is a cosmogonic deity, the god of air), and then this city became the cradle of the spread of the cult of Osiris, who was depicted as a mummy with a green face - the god of reborn and dying nature, the ruler of the underworld . The main god of Heliopolis (She) was Atum. He stood at the head of the Heliopolis Ennead (nine main gods). Here the so-called solar theology arose, and the main god became the Deity of the daylight sanctuary, while Atum began to be identified with the night sun, which sanctifies in the underworld. In another important city of Ancient Egypt - Thebes - the god Amon, originally widespread only in this place, was revered, who was, perhaps, like the Coptic Min, the god of fertility. During the period of the Middle Kingdom - the era of the rise of Thebes, where the ruling dynasty of pharaohs of the beginning of the New Kingdom came from, Amon unites with the solar god Ra. Amon-Ra becomes the most powerful god of Egypt. Shrines are erected in his honor throughout the country.
It is to him that two grandiose temple complexes are dedicated, which are connected to each other by a two-kilometer alley of sphinxes - the Temple of Amun in Karnak and the Temple of Amun in Luxor. The sanctuaries of Amon-Ra are also known in Syria and Nubia. By order of Ramses III, 65 temples of Amun-Ra were founded in Egypt and neighboring countries. At the head of the Ennead of Memphis - the largest center of Egypt - was the god Ptah (Ptah) - the demiurge who created the first eight gods. In all eras, the cult of Ptah was extremely popular in Egypt. He created all gods, people and crafts. In the city of Elephantine, the ram-headed god Khnum was considered the creator of the world, in Shedit - the crocodile god Sebek. Perhaps the most harmonious and consistent was the Heliopolitan theological system. According to it, at the very beginning only the god Nun existed - the primeval water chaos, containing within itself the germs of all things. From it emerged another god - Atum - the embodiment of the primary firmament. He created the first hill to emerge from the chaos. Later Atum received another name - Ra. Atum-Ra is the creator of the first pair of gods - the god of air Shu and his wife Tefnut (humidity). They, in turn, gave birth to the earth god Heb and the sky goddess Nut, who became the parents of Osiris and Isis, Set and Nephthys. The nine we examined was called the Great Nine or the Great Ennead. In addition to separating the main gods into nines, the priests of Ancient Egypt divided them into small families - triads, which consisted of a father god, a mother goddess and a son god. Osiris, Isis and Horus represented the so-called Abydos triad; Ptah, Sokhmet and Nefertum - Memphis; Amon, Mut and Khonsu - Theban. Despite the desire of the priests to systematize this host of gods, there was no particular clarity in their functions and names, which sometimes coincided (as in the case of Horus), and, perhaps, only two cults became pan-Egyptian, since they were associated with the official cult of the pharaoh. The reigning pharaoh had two natures: divine and human. He was born from an earthly mother and Amun-Ra. During his life, he was, accordingly, the embodiment of the Choir, and after death - the ruler of the underworld - Osiris. The Ossyrian cult, associated with the beliefs of primitive agricultural cultures in resurrection and death, was particularly popular. Each nome, as in pre-civilization times, still had its own theological version and had its own myths.
Ancient Egypt, with its state structure and numerous innovations in culture and art, is one of the most comprehensive sources of information about the life of people in the distant past. It is this state that is considered the founder of many movements in architecture, painting and sculpture. The history of the arts of Ancient Egypt in many cases helps to understand the meaning of the events that took place in those times. Power changed, the geographical boundaries of the state changed - all this was reflected in artistic images left on the walls of buildings and tombs, in miniature images on household items.
The first systematic material on the history of the origin and development of Egyptian art was written by famous historian, anthropologist and archaeologist Mathieu. The art of Ancient Egypt, in his understanding, is the direct ancestor of European artistic creativity. At a time when Rome and Greece were just learning the basics of architecture and sculpture, the Egyptians erected monumental buildings and decorated them with numerous bas-reliefs and paintings.
The culture and art of Ancient Egypt did not undergo significant changes for many millennia. Undoubtedly, in certain periods of time, the artistic, applied or architectural direction have changed somewhat. But the basic dogmas established during the birth cultural traditions, remained unchanged. That is why even the decorative and applied art of Ancient Egypt has features unique to it. One glance at the objects made by the masters of this civilization is enough to determine that they were made in Egypt.
Periodization of the art of Ancient Egypt, its aspects and canons
The development of the art of Ancient Egypt occurred in several stages. All of them coincided in time with the existence of the so-called kingdoms: Ancient (28-23 centuries BC), Middle (22-18 centuries BC) and New (17-11 centuries BC). It was during these times that the formation of the basic principles of ancient Egyptian culture as such took place. The main trends in art were identified: architecture, sculpture, painting, music and applied arts.
At the same time, the fundamental canons were determined. In the art of Ancient Egypt, special attention was paid to their observance. What were they? Firstly, the heroes of the events depicted were always gods, pharaohs and members of their families, as well as priests. The plot necessarily contained sacrifice, burial, interaction between the divine and human principles (gods with pharaohs, gods with priests, etc.). Secondly, artistic composition almost never had a perspective: all the characters and objects were depicted in the same plane. Another feature is the proportions. human bodies regarding their importance and nobility. The more noble the character, the larger he was portrayed.
Ancient Egypt, whose art is not limited only artistic creativity, differed from other states that existed in the same time period, architectural structures. Several dozen centuries BC. e. built in this state majestic buildings, the purpose and layout of which were also strictly canonized.
In order to get a more complete picture of such a state as Ancient Egypt, the art and architecture of which carry information about the past, it is worth considering individual periods of its development.
General characteristics of the art and architecture of the Old Kingdom
The true flowering of ancient Egyptian culture, according to archaeologists, occurs during the period of the Old Kingdom, namely during the reign of the 4th and 5th dynasties of the pharaohs. The art of the Ancient Kingdom of Egypt at this time is represented by tombs and palaces built of stone and baked brick. At that time, the funeral buildings did not yet have a pyramidal shape, but already consisted of two chambers: an underground one, where a sarcophagus with mummified human remains was kept, and an above-ground one, where things that the deceased might need to travel along the river of death were located.
Towards the end of the period, the tombs began to take on other forms due to additional tiers of stone blocks being built above them. The sculptural and visual arts of Ancient Egypt at this time represented scenes from the life of the gods and pharaohs. Statues representing the dead, their servants and troops were also widespread. All of them depicted people in the prime of life.
The main feature of sculpture in this period is monumentality. It was possible to examine the statues only from the front and side, since their backs were turned to the walls of the buildings. They didn't have any personality traits a deceased person or a living ruler. It was possible to identify who was depicted by the corresponding attributes, as well as by the inscriptions at the base of the sculpture.
Middle Kingdom: features of art and architecture
In the initial period of the Middle Kingdom in Egypt, the collapse of the state began. It took two hundred years to unite the disparate state entities into a powerful economic power. Many aspects of culture in the Middle Kingdom were borrowed from the past. Pyramids were also built with burial chambers underground or hollowed out in rock formations. Materials such as granite and limestone are widely used in architecture. Temples and other monumental structures were built using columns. The walls of the buildings were decorated with carvings and reliefs depicting gods and pharaohs, everyday and military scenes.
Features of the art of Ancient Egypt during this period were the use floral ornaments V sculptural compositions and paintings. The frescoes depicted ordinary life Egyptians: hunting, fishing, farmers at work and much more. In short, attention began to be paid not only to the ruling class, but also to ordinary people. Thanks to this, historians have the opportunity to learn how Ancient Egypt developed. The art of sculpture has also undergone changes.
Unlike those made in the previous period, the statues acquired more expressive features. The sculptures of the Middle Kingdom could at least general outline to give scientists an idea of what the depicted person looked like in reality.
Art and architecture of the New Kingdom
The culture and art of Ancient Egypt acquired special monumentality and luxury during the New Kingdom. It is at this time that the power, strength and wealth of the country are most vividly glorified. Temples and other significant buildings are now built not only from granite and limestone blocks, but also carved into the rocks. Their sizes still amaze the imagination. Due to this, construction took a very long time. The rules for internal and external planning of buildings following a single model have become generally accepted.
In the Middle Kingdom, columns became an important part of almost all buildings, which made even colossal structures lighter and airier. It was thanks to them that unique phenomena of the play of light and shadow could be observed inside the buildings. Sculptural images of pharaohs, nobles and gods during this period were decorated with inserts of glass, ceramics and semi-precious metals. Often such inserts enlivened sculptural portraits. Here it is worth remembering the famous head of Queen Nefertiti, which looks very realistic.
The decorative art of Ancient Egypt at this time was enriched by such a branch as painting, or rather, painting. Various scenes from the life of the Egyptians were depicted surrounded by amazingly beautiful ornaments. At the same time, the canons of the image were not rejected human figures, characteristic of the Old Kingdom.
Another innovation that was not noticed in other periods of Ancient Egypt (art as such had not yet been formed) was the production of small-sized figurines and household items: toilet spoons, incense bottles and cosmetics. The materials for them were usually glass and alabaster.
The most famous architectural monuments of Ancient Egypt
One of the brightest examples typical Egyptian architecture - the pyramidal complex at Giza. The pyramids represent Ancient Egypt. The art of constructing these funerary structures was brought to perfection during the reign of Pharaoh Cheops, who, according to historical data, also initiated the creation of the Sphinx.
The most magnificent structure in this complex is the Cheops Pyramid, built from more than two million blocks. Its surface is lined with white Turkish limestone. Inside the grandiose structure there are three burial chambers. The Pyramid of Menkaure is considered the smallest building in Giza. Its value lies in the fact that it has been preserved better than others, since it was the last to be erected.
Without exception, all pyramids are built according to the same model. The patterns of their location on the ground coincide, as well as the complex structures included in them: the lower and mortuary temples, the “road” and, in fact, the pyramid itself.
Another architectural monument Ancient Egypt - the temple of Pharaoh Mentuhotep I in Deir el-Bahri. Pyramid buildings in it amazingly combined with temple and burial premises carved into the rocks, columned halls and bas-reliefs.
The architecture and art of Ancient Egypt in these historically significant places are still studied today. Unfortunately, the houses of ordinary citizens have not survived. They, according to archaeologists, were built from unfired brick, adobe blocks and wood.
Decorative and applied arts in Ancient Egypt
Numerous crafts in Egypt began to develop during the period of the Old Kingdom. Initially, the applied art of Ancient Egypt was a combination of strict and simple features with clear lines. Materials for the manufacture of decorative and household items alabaster, clay, stearite, granite, jasper and other semi-precious stones were used. In more later periods faience and wood, metals (including copper, gold and iron), glass, ivory and porcelain were added to them. Changes and decoration decorative items. Decorations become more complex, geometric and floral motifs predominate.
The most striking works of ancient Egyptian decorative art were discovered in tombs. Funeral urns made of ceramics, decorated with paintings, metal mirrors, axes, wands and daggers - all this is made in the spirit of tradition. Products in the form of animal figurines have a special charm. Moreover, these are not only various figurines, but also vases.
Glassware is also of particular interest to historians. Beads, rings and bottles are made using a very unique technique. For example, a bottle for eye drops in the shape of a fish is decorated with multi-colored bumps that imitate scales. But the most amazing piece now kept in the Louvre is a rather large head of a woman. The face and hair are made of glass of different shades of blue color, which suggests a separate molding of these elements. The method of their connection has not yet been clarified.
The decorative and applied art of Ancient Egypt cannot be imagined without bronze figurines. The figurines of graceful and majestic cats are especially precisely made. A large number of Such products are kept in the French Louvre.
Jewelry of Ancient Egypt
IN world development It was Ancient Egypt that made a great contribution to jewelry craftsmanship. The art of metal processing in this state began to take shape long before the emergence of European civilization. Large workshops at temples and palaces did this here. The main materials for making jewelry were gold, silver and electrum - a unique alloy of several metals, very similar in appearance to platinum.
Jewelry masters in Ancient Egypt had the ability to change the color of metals. Rich yellow or almost orange shades were considered the most popular. Jewelry was inlaid with semiprecious stones, crystal and multi-colored glass.
The Egyptians loved to decorate themselves with items made in the form of sacred animals: snakes, scarab beetles. The Eye of Horus was often depicted on amulets, tiaras and bracelets for arms and legs. The Egyptians put rings on each finger. In those days it was common to wear them on both arms and legs.
Similar jewelry was made for deceased Egyptians. During burial, they were given gold masks, collars in the shape of a kite, necklaces in the shape of multi-row beads, pectorals in the shape of a scarab with open wings, and heart-shaped pendants.
The feet and hands of the deceased were also decorated with gold jewelry. These could be hollow or massive bracelets. Moreover, they were worn not only on the wrists and ankles, but also on the forearms. In addition, many miniature canes, weapons, scepters and divine emblems were placed in the sarcophagus.
The jewelry art of Ancient Egypt is most fully represented, since metal products can be preserved for many years. Some exhibits of this civilization amaze with the grace of their lines and the precision with which they are made.
Artistic creativity: painting, mosaic, reliefs
The Egyptians were among the first to use wall decoration with reliefs, paintings and mosaics in architecture. art Ancient Egypt also obeyed certain canons. For example, the external walls of buildings were decorated with images of the pharaoh. On the interior surfaces of houses, temples and palaces, it was customary to depict scenes of cult origin.
Contemporaries form an idea of Egyptian painting based on the frescoes found in the tombs. The paintings in residential buildings and palaces have not survived to this day. Men in the frescoes were depicted darker than women. The position of body parts in the drawings is also interesting: the head and feet were drawn as if in profile and were turned in one direction, but the arms, shoulders and torso were depicted from a frontal position.
The first “book” pictures performed by artists of Ancient Egypt were drawn in the world-famous “Book of the Dead”. Many of the miniatures in it were copied from the walls of temples and tombs of the pharaohs. One of the most famous illustrations- the court of Osiris. It depicts a god weighing the soul of the deceased on scales.
Music and musical instruments
Images on the walls of Egyptian tombs told historians about another type of art, which, unfortunately, cannot be found in its original form and restored. Many of the murals contain paintings depicting people holding musical instruments. This indicates that music, singing and dancing were not alien to the Egyptians. It is known for certain that the Egyptians knew such instruments as a flute, drum, harp and a kind of wind trumpet. Judging by the images, music sounded during any religious event in the life of the Egyptians. There were military bands that accompanied the pharaoh's troops on campaigns (they became widespread in the New Kingdom).
In Ancient Egypt, there was a concept of cheironomy, which literally means “to move the arms.” Usually people with the appropriate signature were depicted standing in front of the orchestra. This made it possible to make an assumption about the existence of choral singing and orchestral playing under the direction of a conductor.
It is interesting that the paintings dating back to the Old Kingdom are dominated by percussion instruments: tambourines and drums. During the Middle Kingdom musical ensembles depicted with a predominance of wind instruments. In the era of the New Kingdom, plucked instruments were added to them: lutes, harps and lyres.
It is worth noting that music and vocal training in Ancient Egypt were compulsory subjects in schools. Every self-respecting person, especially the wealthy, had to be able to play all types of musical instruments: percussion, wind and plucked instruments. These rules did not bypass the pharaoh and his family members. This is why archaeologists often find miniature musical instruments made of precious metals in tombs.
Sculpture in Ancient Egypt
Sculptural portraits, statues and other monumental stone products were created in Ancient Egypt thanks to the funerary cult. The fact is that the beliefs of the ancient Egyptians ordered them to perpetuate appearance a person so that he can safely return to the world of the living, having gone through all the hardships of the afterlife.
In each tomb, a statue of the deceased was installed, to whose feet relatives brought household items necessary for his journey through the afterlife. Wealthy and eminent people, who during their lifetime were accustomed to the help of slaves and their own troops, could not safely go to the world of the dead without appropriate accompaniment. Therefore, next to their statue there were many smaller sculptures. There could be warriors, slaves, dancers and musicians.
The canons adopted in painting also applied to sculptural images of people. The facial features of the deceased never expressed emotion and were impassive, and their gaze was directed into the distance. The position of the body was also always depicted the same: in sculptures of men, one leg was always put slightly forward, but in statues of women, the legs were tightly closed. Seated figures were created taking into account these rules. The hands of the people depicted standing were either lowered down or holding a staff. Those sitting on the throne had their hands on their knees or crossed over their chests.
Much is currently known about the culture and art of Ancient Egypt. However, there are still a countless number of mysteries that have not been solved for several centuries. Perhaps, after centuries, the meaning inherent in every drawing and every statue will be revealed.
And other forms of art that originated in the Nile Valley ca. 5000 BC e. and existed until 300 AD. e.
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The last factor that plays a big role in the development of architecture in most countries is the availability of roads and their quality. In Ancient Egypt, the only good road was the Nile, and it remains so to this day.
Egyptian building art reached its perfection during the era of Pharaoh Khufu. After this, construction methods did not improve in any way, although new forms appeared in architecture, and the quality of construction, in a broad sense, invariably deteriorated.
Sculpture
Painting
All images in Ancient Egypt were brightly colored. The stone surface was prepared for painting - a rough layer of mud with a softer layer of plaster on top, then limestone - and the paint applied more smoothly. The pigments used were usually mineral in order to protect the images from sunlight. The composition of the paint was heterogeneous - egg tempera, various viscous substances and resins. Ultimately, the actual fresco was never produced or used. Instead, paint was used on a layer of dried plaster, so-called fresco a secco. The top of the painting was covered with a layer of varnish or resin to preserve the image for a long time. Small images made using this technique are well preserved, although they are practically never found on large statues. Most often, such methods were used when painting small statues, especially wooden ones.
Many Egyptian paintings were preserved due to the dry climate of Ancient Egypt. The paintings were created with the intention of improving the life of the deceased in the afterlife. The scenes depicted in the painting represented a journey to the afterlife and a meeting in the afterlife with the deity (the court of Osiris). Also often depicted earthly life the deceased to help him do the same in the kingdom of the dead.
Art of the Middle Kingdom (XXI century - XVIII century BC)
Although the art of the Middle Kingdom carefully observed the traditions and canons of the Ancient, it did not remain completely the same. After a long period of unrest and the collapse of Egypt into separate nomes (regions), the state in the 21st century BC. e. united again under the rule of the Theban rulers - this marks the beginning of the Middle Kingdom. But now centralization was no longer as absolute as before. Local rulers, monarchs, became richer and more independent. They gradually appropriated to themselves the privileges that previously belonged only to the king - the privileges of high titles, religious ceremonies, likening Osiris and Horus. Now the tombs of the nobles were located not at the foot of the royal pyramids, but separately, on the territory of the nomes. The pyramids have become more modest, smaller in size; Not a single pharaoh dared to build such gigantic tombs as Cheops or Khafre.
The art of the Middle Kingdom is characterized by the development of jewelry.
This leads to the fact that, on the one hand, the pathos of monumentality is reduced, and since funeral cults become more widespread, then in art, especially in art local schools, a shade of decline and everyday life appears. And hence the strengthening of genre “liberties” in the interpretation of plots and in composition. The portrait enhances the features of individual character. On the other hand, the canons still prevail and, having too much time behind them, the pattern inevitably goes astray...
Art of the New Kingdom (XVII century - XI century BC)
Bolder and internally more significant shifts are occurring in artistic culture The new kingdom that came after the victory over the Asian tribes of the Hyksos. In the art of the New Kingdom, the flame of earthly feeling, reflection, and anxiety breaks through. The traditional forms themselves are illuminated from within by this new light; it transforms them.
However, many traditions have already become obsolete in forms. Instead of tomb architecture (tombs in the New Kingdom ceased to be above-ground structures - they were hidden in rock gorges), temple architecture flourished. The priests in this era became an independent political force, competing even with the power of the king. Therefore, not only the mortuary temples of the kings, but mainly the temple-sanctuaries dedicated to various hypostases of the god Amun, determined architectural appearance Egypt. True, the person of the Pharaoh, his exploits and conquests were also glorified in the temples; these glorifications were carried out on an even greater scale than before. In general, the cult of the grandiose did not fade away, and even resumed with unprecedented impressiveness, but at the same time some kind of internal unrest was added.
Over the course of several centuries, they built and completed famous temples Amun-Ra at Karnak and Luxor, near Thebes. If the ancient pyramid with its calm, integral form was likened to a mountain, then these temples resembled a dense forest where you could get lost.
The diverse artistic searches of the period of the 18th dynasty prepared the emergence of the final, completely innovative stage associated with the reign of the reformer pharaoh Akhenaten, in the 14th century BC. e. Akhenaten boldly opposed the Theban priesthood and, having abolished the entire ancient pantheon of gods with a single legislative act, made the priests his irreconcilable enemies. The art of the time of Akhenaten (it is called Amarna, since Akhenaten moved the capital to the city of Akhetaten, built under him, near the modern village of Amarna) turned to the unknown before him: to simple feelings people, to their mental states. In the works of the Amarna style, the armor of spiritual impenetrability is destroyed: here are the cries and groans of mourners, here is the gloomy humility of captive blacks, here, finally, are the lyrical scenes of Akhenaten’s family life - he hugs his wife, caresses the child.
Akhenaten's religious and political reforms were too bold to be durable. The reaction began already under one of his closest successors, and soon all the old cults were restored, and the name of Akhenaten was cursed. However, new principles introduced into art continued to develop for at least another century. Many innovative ideas and techniques introduced under Akhenaten were preserved in ancient Egyptian art.
Thus, Egyptian art, as a result of its long journey, reached new frontiers. But then his line of development fades. The last famous conqueror, Ramesses II, began to cultivate a solemn-monumental style, which was no longer as organic as it had once been in the Old Kingdom. The cave temple of Ramesses II at Abu Simbel represents the final flash of Egyptian monumental genius. After Ramesses there followed a period of difficult long wars, the conquest of Egypt by the Ethiopians and Assyrians, the loss of Egypt's military and political power, and then its cultural primacy. In the 7th century BC. e. The Egyptian state is temporarily reunited around the Sais rulers. Ancient Egyptian art was also revived at this time in its traditional forms. Sais art is quite high in skill, but it does not have the same vitality, it is cold, one feels tired, the drying up of creative energy. The world-historical role of Egypt at that time was already exhausted.
