The Egyptians were master stone carvers. The
Pre-dynastic Period was known
as the stone vessel making period, and was distinguished by it's superb stone
making technology. Though it was not until the apex of the third and fourth
dynasties that the full creativity and style of Egyptian stone art was fully
realized. The Thirdand
Fourth Dynasties were the
period of highest artistic achievement in stoneware consisting of mostly
alabaster vessels and statues. From the
Old Kingdom onward there was
considerably less use of the harder stones like alabaster in both stonework and
statue art.
The Early Dynasty's brought the development and use of the potters
wheel and the more extensive use of clay. Indicative of this time are large
pottery storage jars, with conical clay sealings some stamped with the royal
seal at the top. The creation of these large vessels was made possible in part
by the exquisite
throwing techniques of the potters, but also by the
extensive use of hand-building. The fine decorated pottery of ancient Egypt
began to disappear toward the end of the Pre-
dynastic Period. In it's place, undercoated earthenware (a humble
medium) was used for mostly utilitarian endeavors such as storage jars, grain
bins, water and beer jars, cooking pots and the like.
The sculptural exploits of the ancient Egyptians had its humble beginnings in figure sculpture and later in the monumental wall art carvings. The examples of figure sculpture of the early periods are small in size and few in number. Characteristic of these sculptures were small limestone statues, with heavy set figures, large heads, round plump faces, showing no facial expression, emotion or any suggestion of movement. These types of sculptures were a vague attempt at naturalistic symmetry, with eyes gazing straight ahead, arms glued to their sides, hands on their knees, legs close together and feet parallel. Statues of the kings were usually represented as either standing with the left foot advanced, or seated on a cubic block represented as a throne; in either of the two types there was no suggestion of movement in the sculpture nor was there any suggestion of emotion.
There is evidence to suggest that the small statues of ancient Egypt were used in temples. These statues presented a human body, usually adorned with a tight fitting clock reaching from the neck of the subject to the ankles. The use of statues in ritual, however, remained static throughout the years of the intermediate and earlier dynasties (the Archaic and First Dynasty in particular), as did the artistic style of the time. Due to the continuous military and political pressure faced by Egypt, as well as with the integration of Greek and Roman artisans and handcrafters, Egyptian art did not maintain it's purist aspects in later dynasties and was further a diffusionist product of the combined introduction of many cultures into Egypt. However, by the end of the First Intermediate Period, the statues of the time indicate a return to the strong centralized government and politically stable conditions of past periods.
 |
Archaeology of Egypt | History | Hieroglyphs | ||
| Religion | Daily Life | Links | |||