Overview
This lecture covers the history, art, and cultural achievements of Ancient Egypt, tracing its development from the Neolithic Revolution through major dynastic periods, with an emphasis on artistic styles, funerary practices, and key rulers.
Chronology & Geography of Ancient Egypt
- The fertile crescent includes Mesopotamia, Palestine, and Egypt, with permanent settlements beginning around 6000 BC.
- Egypt’s timeline is divided into Early Dynastic (c. 3000–2500 BC), Old Kingdom (c. 2500–2000 BC), Middle Kingdom (c. 2000–1500 BC), and New Kingdom (c. 1500–1000 BC).
- The Nile flows south to north; Upper Egypt is in the south, Lower Egypt is in the north (the Nile Delta).
- Egypt’s civilization depended on annual Nile flooding, depositing fertile soil for agriculture.
Unification & Early Dynastic Period
- Legendary King Narmer (Menes) unified Upper and Lower Egypt around 3000 BC.
- The Narmer Palette depicts this unification and established Egyptian artistic conventions (profile heads, frontal shoulders, hierarchical scale).
Old Kingdom: Pyramids and Art
- Mustabas were flat-roofed tombs; later evolved into step pyramids.
- Imhotep, vizier to King Djoser, designed the Step Pyramid at Saqqara.
- The Pyramids of Giza were royal tombs built from stone with burial chambers inside, guarded by the Sphinx.
- Artistic canon standardized: idealized pharaohs, rigid proportions, no perspective, scenes in registers.
- Statues and reliefs emphasized eternity and idealization; scribes were depicted with more realism.
- Mummification developed to preserve bodies for the afterlife (embalming took 70 days).
Middle Kingdom (Brief Mention)
- Best known for its literature; less focus in art and not covered in detail.
New Kingdom & Empire
- Period of greatest territorial expansion and prosperity (c. 1500–1000 BC).
- Queen Hatshepsut was a notable female pharaoh, promoting trade and monumental building (e.g., temple at Deir el-Bahari).
- Pharaoh Akhenaten promoted worship of one god (Aten), changed capital to Amarna, and introduced a naturalistic artistic style.
- Artistic shift under Akhenaten: elongated features and intimate family portraits, especially of Nefertiti and their daughters.
Tutankhamun & Later Pharaohs
- Tutankhamun's tomb was found intact; famous for its treasures, despite his short reign.
- Ramses II (Ramses the Great) was a prolific builder and conqueror, associated with the temple at Abu Simbel.
- Book of the Dead guided the deceased through the afterlife, including the weighing of the heart ceremony.
Deciphering Egyptian Writing
- The Rosetta Stone, found in 1799, contained the same text in hieroglyphics, Demotic, and Greek.
- Jean-François Champollion deciphered hieroglyphics, founding the field of Egyptology.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Neolithic Revolution — the shift from hunting/gathering to agriculture and settled communities.
- Mastaba — early flat-topped Egyptian tomb structure.
- Narmer Palette — ceremonial artifact showing Egypt’s unification and early writing.
- Hierarchical Scale — artistic convention where size indicates importance.
- Canon of Proportion — fixed rules for depicting human figures.
- Mummification — preservation of bodies for the afterlife.
- Step Pyramid — the pyramid of stacked mastabas, first built for Djoser.
- Sphinx — a monumental guardian statue with a lion’s body and pharaoh’s head.
- Book of the Dead — collection of spells to guide the dead through the afterlife.
- Rosetta Stone — artifact key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review approximate dates and names of Egyptian dynastic periods.
- Familiarize yourself with Egyptian burial practices and major monuments.
- Optional: Look up images of key artifacts like the Narmer Palette, pyramids, and statues discussed.