Introduction to Art and Art History

Symbolism in Egyptian Art

Karishma Sahani

1st Year

Art History
 INDEX

 Introduction
 Ancient Egyptian Art
 Symbolism
 Ancient Egyptian Symbols
 Bibliography


 INTRODUCTION

Ancient Egyptian art is the painting, sculpture, and architecture produced by the civilization in
the Nile Valley from 5000 BCE to 300 CE. Ancient Egyptian art includes the painting, sculpture,
architecture, and other arts produced by the civilization in the lower Nile Valley from 5000 BCE
to 300 CE. Ancient Egyptian art reached considerable sophistication in painting and sculpture,
and was both highly stylized and symbolic. Much of the surviving art comes from tombs and
monuments; hence, the emphasis on life after death and the preservation of knowledge of the
past. In a narrower sense, Ancient Egyptian art refers to art of the second and third dynasty
developed in Egypt from 3000 BCE until the third century. Most elements of Egyptian art
remained remarkably stable over this 3,000 year period, with relatively little outside influence.
The quality of observation and execution began at a high level and remained so throughout the
period.

Ancient Egypt was able to flourish because of its location on the Nile River, which floods at
predictable intervals, allowing controlled irrigation, and providing nutrient-rich soil favorable to
agriculture. Most of the population and cities of Egypt lie along those parts of the Nile valley
north of Aswan, and nearly all the cultural and historical sites of Ancient Egypt are found along
riverbanks. The Nile ends in a large delta that empties into the Mediterranean Sea. The settlers of
the area were able to eventually produce a surplus of edible crops, which in turn led to a growth
in the population. The regular flooding and ebbing of the river is also responsible for the diverse
natural resources in the region.

Natural resources in the Nile Valley during the rise of ancient Egypt included building and
decorative stone, copper and lead ores, gold, and semiprecious stones, all of which contributed to
the architecture, monuments, jewels, and other art forms for which this civilization would
become well known. High-quality building stones were abundant. The ancient Egyptians
quarried limestone all along the Nile Valley, granite from Aswan, and basalt and sandstone from
the wadis (valleys) of the eastern desert. Deposits of decorative stones dotted the eastern desert
and were collected early in Egyptian history.
The Prehistory of Egypt spans the period of earliest human settlement to the beginning of the
Early Dynastic Period of Egypt in ca. 3100 BCE, beginning with King Menes/Narmer. The
Predynastic Period is traditionally equivalent to the Neolithic period, beginning ca. 6000 BCE
and including the Protodynastic Period (Naqada III). The Predynastic period is generally divided
into cultural periods, each named after the place where a certain type of Egyptian settlement was
first discovered. However, the same gradual development that characterizes the Protodynastic
period is present throughout the entire Predynastic period, and individual “cultures” must not be
interpreted as separate entities but as largely subjective divisions used to facilitate the study of
the entire period.

Key Term

 Wadi: A valley, gully or stream bed in Northern Africa and Southwest Asia that remains
dry except during the rainy season.

 Ancient Egypt: A civilization that existed in the valley of the Nile River from   3100
B.C. to its conquest by Alexander the Great in 332 B.C. Noted for building the
Great Pyramids of Giza.

Old Kingdom

The Old Kingdom is the name given to the period in the third millennium BCE when Egypt
attained its first continuous peak of civilization in complexity and achievement—the first of
three so-called “Kingdom” periods which mark the high points of civilization in the lower Nile
Valley (the others being Middle Kingdom and the New Kingdom). While the Old Kingdom was
a period of internal security and prosperity, it was followed by a period of disunity and relative
cultural decline referred to by Egyptologists as the First Intermediate Period. During the Old
Kingdom, the king of Egypt (not called the Pharaoh until the New Kingdom) became a living
god, who ruled absolutely and could demand the services and wealth of his subjects. Under King
Djoser, the first king of the Third Dynasty of the Old Kingdom, the royal capital of Egypt was
moved to Memphis. A new era of building was initiated at Saqqara under his reign. King
Djoser’s architect, Imhotep, is credited with the development of building with stone and with the
conception of the new architectural form—the Step Pyramid . Indeed, the Old Kingdom is
perhaps best known for the large number of pyramids constructed at this time as pharaonic burial
places. For this reason, the Old Kingdom is frequently referred to as “the Age of the Pyramids.”

Middle Kingdom

The Middle Kingdom of Egypt is the period in the history of ancient Egypt stretching from the
establishment of the Eleventh Dynasty to the end of the Thirteenth Dynasty, between 2055 and
1650 BCE. During this period, the funerary cult of Osiris rose to dominate Egyptian popular
religion.

New Kingdom

The New Kingdom of Egypt, also referred to as the Egyptian Empire, is the period between the
sixteenth century and the eleventh century BCE, covering the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and
Twentieth Dynasties of Egypt. The New Kingdom followed the Second Intermediate Period and
was succeeded by the Third Intermediate Period. It was Egypt’s most prosperous time and
marked the peak of its power.

The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Macedonian Greek royal family which ruled the Ptolemaic Empire
in Egypt during the Hellenistic period. Their rule lasted for 275 years, from 305 BCE to 30 BCE.
They were the last dynasty of ancient Egypt.

Ancient Egypt Art

 Ancient Egyptian Art includes painting, sculpture, architecture and other forms of art,
such as drawings on papyrus, created between 3000 BCE and 100 CE.

 Most of this was highly stylized and symbolic. Much of the surviving forms come from
tombs and monuments, and thus has a focus on the life after death and preservation of
knowledge.

 Symbolism meant order, shown through the pharaoh’s regalia or through the use of
certain colors.
  In Egyptian art, the size of a figure indicates its relative importance.

 Paintings were often done on stone, and portrayed pleasant scenes of the afterlife in
tombs.

 Ancient Egyptians created both monumental and smaller sculptures, using the technique
of sunken relief.

 Ka statues, which were meant to provide a resting place for the ka part of the soul, were
often made of wood and placed in tombs.

 Faience was sintered-quartz ceramic with surface vitrification, used to create relatively
cheap small objects in many colors. Glass was originally a luxury item but became more
common, and was used to make small jars for perfume and other liquids to be placed in
tombs. Carving of vases, amulets and images of deities and animals were made of
steatite. Pottery was sometimes covered with enamel, particularly in the color blue.

 Papyrus was used for writing and painting and was used to record every aspect of
Egyptian life.

 Architects carefully planned buildings, aligning them with astronomically significant

events, such as solstices and equinoxes. They used mainly sun-baked mud brick,
limestone, sandstone, and granite.

 The Amarna period (1353-1336 BCE) represents an interruption in ancient Egyptian art

style, subjects were represented more realistically, and scenes included portrayals of
affection among the royal family.

Ancient Egyptian art includes painting, sculpture, architecture, and other forms of art, such as
drawings on papyrus, created between 3000 BCE and 100 AD. Most of this art was highly
stylized and symbolic. Many of the surviving forms come from tombs and monuments, and thus
have a focus on life after death and preservation of knowledge.

Symbolism
Symbolism in ancient Egyptian art conveyed a sense of order and the influence of natural
elements. The regalia of the pharaoh symbolized his or her power to rule and maintain the order
of the universe. Blue and gold indicated divinity because they were rare and were associated with
precious materials, while black expressed the fertility of the Nile River.

Ancient Egyptian Symbols

 The Ankh

 Djed

 Eye of Horus

 Cartouche

 The Lotus

 Winged Sun

 Ouroborus

 Crook and Flail

 Deshret Crown

 Hedjet Crown

 Pschent Crown

 Seba

 Menat

 Sistrum
The Ankh

The Ankh is the most well-known symbol to come out of ancient Egypt the general meaning of
the symbol in its hieroglyphic system of writing the ankh represents the concept of eternal life,
The ankh or the key of life The Ankh frequently appears in Egyptian tomb paintings and other
art, It is known as “the key of the Nile” as the union between Osiris and Isis The ankh was
associated with the cult of Isis was also the Ank depicted as a “cross with a handle” that
represented eternal life.

Djed
The Djed is an ancient Egyptian symbol for stability known as “The Backbone of Osiris”.
This symbol was Osirian in nature and was primarily associated with themes of rebirth and
regeneration.

Eye of Horus

The Eye of Horus, also known as the Eye of Ra was known in ancient Egypt as a slogan to
protect against envy, disease, harmful animals and evil spirits and also good health, and royal
power. The “Eye of Horus” also represents sacrificial and curative qualities. The ancient
Egyptians mastered the industry as it was made of gold and includes the form of the god Re.

Cartouche
A cartouche is an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic nameplate The cartouche has an obvious link
and symbolism to the sun the cartouche Symbolizes of protection against evil spirits both in this
life and the afterlife, The symbol, which had the shape of a circle originally also shaped like an
oval with a horizontal bar, was sometimes used as a cartouche. This kind of use aimed to
represent divine protection also the cartouche closely linked in appearance to the ouroboros
serpent biting its own tail.

The Lotus

The lotus represents rebirth In ancient Egypt there were two main types of the lotus the white,
and the blue also the lotus flower was used as a symbol for the unification of the two Egyptian
kingdoms, Lotus was included in the manufacture of perfumes in ancient Egypt, where the
flowers were soaked in an inverted form in a fatty substance to obtain the desired fragrance, and
the lotus flower has an analgesic colored antispasmodic and has a strange ability to heal
infections.

Winged Sun
The winged sun is a symbol of ancient Egypt but also used in other ancient cultures. This symbol
was also known as Behdety as it was used in the temples to represent the god  Behedti, the god
of the midday sun. This symbol was used as an amulet to provide protection to the Egyptians
who wore it. In some cases, it has also been depicted as an attribute of other Egyptian gods.

Ouroborus

Ouroboros in Egyptian mythology was one of the symbols of the sun, as it represented the
journeys of Aten, the solar disk in Egyptian mythology. In addition to that, Ouroboros
represented rebirth, recreation of life and perpetuity. Also known as the symbol of infinity, the
ouroboros is a symbol very commonly used all over the world.

Crook and Flail

The crook and flail were originally two emblems of the god Osiris but with time they came to
symbolize the authority of the pharaohs. Specifically, the staff represented the Pharaoh as the
shepherd of his people while the flail symbolized the role of the Pharaoh as the provider of food
to his people.

Deshret Crown

Deshret, also known as the Red Crown of Egypt, is the symbol that represents Lower Egypt, the
lands of the goddess Wadjet. It is also used as the symbol of Kemet, the fertile lands within the
territory of Seth
Hedjet Crown

Hedjet the White Crown was one of the two crowns of Egypt representing the kingdom of Upper
Egypt. It was combined with the Red Crown of Lower Egypt, Deshret to form the Pschent,
Double Crown of Egypt when the country was unified.

Pschent Crown
Pschent was the Double Crown of Egypt composed of the Red and White Crown, Deshret and
Hedjet representing Lower and Upper Egypt, respectively. It represented the unity of Egypt and
the total control of the Pharaoh over all of Egypt.

Seba

This symbol was used in Egyptian art to represent the stars. The Egyptians had a good
knowledge of the stars and the constellations. They often used this symbol to decorate the
temples and the interior of the tombs.

Menat
The Menat was an Egyptian necklace with a characteristic shape and a counterweight to keep it
in the right position. This necklace was associated with the goddess Hathor and her son.
According to Egyptian mythology, it was the amulet from which the goddess Hathor emitted her
power. In many of her representations, it can be interpreted as a symbol of fertility, birth, life,
and renewal.

Sistrum

The sistrum was an ancient Egyptian instrument used in rituals to worship the goddesses Hathor,
Isis, and Bastet. This instrument had a similar shape to the Ankh symbol and consisted of a
handle and a series of metal pieces that produced a characteristic sound when shaken.

The goddesses Isis and Bastet were often represented holding one of these instruments. The
Egyptians used this symbol to represent scenes related to dance and festivity. There is also a
hieroglyph in the shape of the sistrum.
 Bibliography

 https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldcivilization/chapter/ancient-egyptian-
art/
 https://www.ancient.eu/article/1011/ancient-egyptian-symbols/
 https://www.egypttoursportal.com/ancient-egyptian-symbols/