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not the case with Ancient Egyptian Art. The Egyptians did not create art for aesthetic
reasons. The sole purpose of Ancient Egyptian art was funerary, from the obvious tombs
and mortuary temples to the statues and relief sculpture that filled them. The art was not
simply for decoration or visual experience. Ancient Egyptian art can hardly be termed art,
not if the word art is defined by only the creation of beautiful or thought-provoking
works1. There was much more involved in the artwork, or craftwork of the Ancient
Egyptians, practically every thing they created was solely to serve the afterlife in one way
If the Theban village people’s homes were any indication of cultural reflection then
there was little to reflect on. Aside from the one single room dedicated to worship, the
Theban people lived very simply. White washed homes provided little in comfort aside
. . .
that are visually pleasing are placed in a single room dedicated to the current King, deity
or the Sun god, ‘Amen-Re’. Why are we compelled to
term these findings ‘art’ when we could easily call them ‘untencils’? Definition of line,
adherence to style and permanence of the works have allowed us insight into the minds of
artists, scribes and tomb makers of the past, allowing us the pleasure of examining their
historical objects, and what is our conclusion? One day we may find out. Many Egyptians preferred to serve the gods at
the current Pharaoh’s tomb3 as opposed to their private homes. Governed by the strict laws of
the Egyptian style: seated statues had to have their hands on their knees, the women were
painted with lighter skin than the men and the deities were required to have the
appropriate animal heads or body parts. New York: The Limited
Editions Club. Cambridge University Press, © 1991.
While today we may consider all of these funerary works beautiful and aesthetic
pieces of art, can we be sure that the Ancient Egyptians thought the same? Time and time
again we are shown examples of work that was created for the tombs, for the mortuary
temples and graves. The stone was to be cut clearly, accurately, but
no one was asked to sculpt originally. The aesthetic qualities qualify it as a piece of
art worth of any Art Gallery yet there is a purpose to this scroll. Egyptian Art in the age of the Pyramids.
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