Overview
- Egypt has three major kingdoms – old (2500 – 2150 BCE), middle (2030 – 1640 BCE), and new (1550 – 1178 BCE)
- Old Kingdom – unified by King Narmer, massive pyramids start at this point
- Middle Kingdom – Mentihotep reunified Egypt, pyramid building abandoned for smaller rock-cut tombs
- New Kingdom – Akhenaton promoted the idea of one god, Aton, and himself as Aton’s representative on earth, artistic style called Amarna Period begins
Funerary objects dominate, including large-scale sculpture, stone architecture, and tomb artifacts
Strict stylistic formulas are applied to gods and pharaohs to emphasize hierarchy
Patronage & Artistic Life
Artists were highly skilled craftsman
Process of mummification was done by highly specialized experts who were well paid for their work
Imhotep was Egypt’s first recorded artist – he oversaw a team of artisans and workers – and built the first and largest pyramid (Stepped Pyramid)
Head artisans like Imhotep were probably ordained priests
resources |
Vocabulary |
hieroglyphics
mastaba pyramid ben-ben The Pyramid Texts mortuary temple sphinx diorite colonnades clerestory pylon hypostyle |