Continuity of cultures

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Continuity of cultures one flows into another.
The stone age didnt stop one day and Egypt start
the next.Hunter/gatherers still exist.
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• Of course there were many,
• many cultures from prehistoric times to Egyptian,
  but remember, were hitting the highlights. Look
  below at the a time line from the Metropolitan
  Museum of Art in New York.

World Regions, 20,000 to 8,000 BCE.
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Using a timeline

• http//www.metmuseum.org/toah/hm/02/hm02.htm

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Essential Facts

• period or style
• approximate dates
• current events or important aspects of culture
• subject matter
• distinguishing features
• use of art

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Period and Style
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Egyptian Art
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Approximate Dates

• of Old, Middle and New Kingdoms?

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Dates (all before Christian era)

• Early Dynastic (1st-2nd) 3100-2686
• Old Kingdom (3rd-4th) 2686-2150
• First Intermediate (7th-10th) 2150-2100
• Second Intermediate (14th-17th) 1700-1500
• Middle Kingdom (11th-13th) 2100-1700
• New Kingdom (18th-20th) 1500-1085

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Current Events

• Geographic isolation
• Good soil
• Plenty of water
• Strong belief in the afterlife

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Old Kingdom

• The Old Kingdom, best known for the pyramids of
  Giza and Saqqara, is one of the most dynamic and
  innovative periods for Egyptian culture. Not only
  do the Egyptians master the art of building in
  stone, but over a period of 500 years they define
  the essence of their art, establishing artistic
  canons that will last for more than 3,000 years.

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Middle Kingdom

• The Theban king Mentuhotep II reunites Upper and
  Lower Egypt, establishing the capital at Thebes
  and ushering in the Middle Kingdom. A renewed
  flowering of the arts is evident, especially in
  Mentuhotep's innovative funerary temple in
  western Thebes, and in the exquisite painted
  reliefs decorating this structure and the tombs
  of officials in the surrounding cemeteries.

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New Kingdom

• great warrior kings
• Hatshepsut, the most powerful female ruler of
  pharaonic history, builds her unique funerary
  temple in western Thebes
• Akhenaten, ruling near the end of the dynasty,
  breaks with tradition by establishing the first
  monotheistic religion. Although the new religion
  ends with his death, the influence of artistic
  innovations introduced during Akhenaten's reign
  continues into the next dynasty.

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Subject Matter

• Predynastic
• mastabas
• Old Kingdom
• pyramids
• Middle Kingdom
• Temples
• Painted reliefs
• Burial models

• New Kingdom
• Funerary temple of Queen Hatshepsut
• Akhenaten changes in religion create more
  naturalistic art
• Tuts treasure

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Distinguishing Features

• Same style for more than thousands of years
• Geometrical regularity and observation of nature
• Grid used for drawing figures
• Used pictures for words
• Tomb paintings arranged in rows, like a comic
  book.

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Use of Art

• Pyramids ascend to the sky steps for the pharoah
• Ka came into being with birth, left body
  temporarily at death and returned for journey to
  the next world

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Resources

• http//www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/pyramid/

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Review Notes

• Important art works of the Old Kingdom included
  pyramids
• The Ancient Egyptian meaning of the word sculptor
  and artist was he who keeps alive.
• The purpose of art in tombs and sculptures was a
  home for the ka.
• Sculptures were made from diorite and granite
  because these materials were so strong.
  Limestone and wood were also used.

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Review Notes continued

• Characteristics of Ancient Egyptian art style in
  sculpture and painting include
• same style for more than thousands of years
• Geometrical regularity and observation of nature
• Grid used for drawing figures
• Used pictures for words
• Tomb paintings arranged in rows, like a comic
  book
• The tombs of Early Kingdom were called mastabas.
• The tombs of the Old Kingdom were called pyramids.

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Review Notes continued

• The purpose of the shape of the Old Kingdom tomb
  was stability, steps for Pharaoh ascending to
  sky.
• Pharaoh means great house or palace
• Re was the sun god
• Horus was God of sky (Pharaoh when alive)
• Osiris was god of the underworld (Pharaoh when
  dead)
• Isis was the great mother god
• Mat was universe in perfect harmony, goddess,
  single feather
• hunter gatherers settled in the Nile Valley
• The rule of succession among pharaohs was

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Review Notes continued

• Inbreeding was a result of this practice over
  time.
• Egypt remain unchanged for more than 3,000 years
  because of their geographic isolation, fertile
  soil, plentiful water,
• The New Kingdom was Egypts classical age.
• The dominant art form during this period was
  temples, large monuments, wall paintings.
• The discovery of rosetta stone helped us
  understand the Ancient Egyptian language, which
  is now called hieroglyphics.
• The New Kingdoms greatest artistic achievement
  was Hatshepsuts Temple.

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Review Notes continued

• Hatshepsut was the most powerful woman pharaoh.
• Akeneton created a monotheistic religion and
  allowed artists to be more realistic.
• One beautiful example of the change in art style
  was a sculpture of the head of the Aknetons wife
  Nerfertiti, whose face is realistic.
• Return to Egyptian Art History