The Egyptian gardens

CULTIVATED GARDENS FROM PRE-

HISTORIC UNTIL ROMAN TIMES
(3000BC-100AD) HOWEVER IT IS ONLY
FROM JUST BEFORE THE MIDDLE
KINGDOM (2000BC) THAT EVIDENCE
The gardens of ancient FROM BOTH CONTEMPORARY IMAGES
Egypt probably began as simple fruit AND EXCAVATIONS MAKE IT POSSIBLE
orchards and vegetable gardens, TO VISUALIZE HOW THEY LOOKED.
irrigated with water from the Nile.
Gradually as the country became
richer, they evolved into pleasure
gardens, with flowers, ponds and
valleys of fruit and shade trees.
Temples, palaces, and private
residences had their own gardens,
and models of gardens were
sometimes placed in tombs so their
owners could enjoy them in their
afterlife.
 PHILOSOPHY
Gardens in the ancient world had special meaning, function, and design. Sometimes it
was a place to rest and relax, other times a place for growing and cultivating particular
plants.
Nevertheless, it was a significant place in the lifestyle of the ancient Egyptians, Greeks,
and Romans. The descriptions of the Garden of Eden correspond to the designs of
ancient Egyptian gardens. The philosophy was based on life after death which the
ancient people of Egypt believed in. It was generally believed that the gods enjoyed
gardens, so every temple was surrounded by them. The temple gardens were usually
made of stone and had religious meaning; each god was symbolized by a sacred tree.
The Egyptians also had funeral gardens that were placed in the tombs of the dead so
that the deceased could continue to enjoy them in the afterlife.

IMAGE FROM A MUSEUM REPRESENTING EGYPTIAN GARDEN

IMAGE OF AN ANCIENT EGYPT
 SPATIAL ORGANISATION
The ancient Egyptian gardens depended upon the River Nile for water. They were
surrounded by mud-brick walls and consisted of tons of different flowers, trees, fruits,
and vegetables. In the garden, the Egyptians grew eighteen varieties of trees, among
which were the sycamore fig, jujube, pomegranate, nut trees, willows, palms, acacia,
and tamarisk. The trees were an important element of the garden, a source of shade and
food, providing protection from the strong winds coming from the desert.
Every garden had a pond, positioned in the center, in either a rectangular or “T” shape.
Lotus flowers and papyrus were grown in the pond and it was often also filled with exotic
fish. The higher classes had more than one pond and their gardens were divided into areas.

REPRESENTATION OF ANCIENT EGYPT GARDEN

THROUGH THE EGYPTIAN ART

SPATIAL ORGANISATION OF THE GARDEN

ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLE DESIGN AND FUNCTION
We can distinguish four main categories of Egyptian garden which, logic suggests, developed in
the following sequence:
Fruit and Vegetable Gardens
Domestic Gardens
Palace Gardens
Temple and Tomb Gardens 

SYMBOLISM AND DESIGN OF ANCIENT EGYPT GARDEN

DOMESTIC GARDENS
Fruit and Vegetable Gardens
It is often said that Neolithic food production commenced with sowing wild grain. It may
also have begun with the cultivation of fruit and vegetables: they benefit from protective
enclosures and require more intensive care than grain, including the classic horticultural
activities of weeding and watering. The ancient Egyptians grew vegetable crops which
must have been protected from animals. Nothing survives of these enclosures but
horticultural activities are recorded from early times.
Domestic Gardens
The New Kingdom (1550-1070BC) craftsmen's village of Deir el
Medina at Luxor is an atypical example. Its craftsmen made the
fabulous tombs in the Valley of the Kings and their homes were
in the desert. All water was carried to the village and there was
none to spare for gardens. For reasons of security, it was a
tightly-walled settlement with a single gate, narrow streets and
tiny rooms. Kitchens were un-roofed and stairs led to flat roofs
used for sleeping in hot weather. In the Nile valley, the typical
dwelling was a walled enclosure, part-roofed and part-open.
Poorer people suspended a roof between their garden walls.
Richer people had free-standing one-, two- or three-storey The New Kingdom (1550-1070BC)
houses within walled enclosures. Ceilings were flat or brick- craftsmen's village of Deir
arched. Flat roofs often had a parapet and logia. Columns and
roof-beams were made from timber, which was scarce. Open
courts were usually on the north side of dwellings, for shade. A
pool, rectangular or T-shaped, was the first luxury of such a
space. Wealthy families would have several courts, several pools
and areas for different kinds of plant. The living area would
often be shaded by a grape vine on a pergola.
PALACE GARDEN
Though larger, palace gardens were used in a similar manner to domestic gardens. Most
were built of mud brick and have disappeared. A few were made in stone.
Garden courts in the pharaohs palace for official gatherings, receptions and relaxation.

Temple and Tomb gardens

Because they were made of stone, more is known about
Egyptian temples and tombs than about domestic
buildings. 
Design historians sometimes distinguish temples and tombs
but since the pharaoh was both a god and a king it is more a
matter of emphasis than function.
In the Old and Middle Kingdoms, pyramids were built
with ceremonial paths to smaller waterside 'valley
temples'. Symbolically, the four key components were:
• a sacred mound, pyramid or temple, symbolizing the
emergence of land from water
palace gardens • a sacred pond and a connection to the source of water
(the Nile)
• a sacred grove
• a protective wall
 Location, orientation and dimensions
The New Kingdom mortuary temples at Thebes were located:
• on the side of the Nile, the west bank, over which the sun set
• on the margin of the agricultural land and the desert
• on the east-west axis of the sun's daily journey from dawn to dusk
The temple compound was a domain of gods, bounded by a wavy mud-brick wall to
symbolize a meeting with the waters. The central feature in the compound, at first a
mound, then a pyramid and then a temple, was a divine abode. Priests tended temple
compounds and made offerings to the gods. Temples were not places for the faithful to
gather and pray, like churches and mosques. They were exclusive compounds in which
high priests performed sacred rites. Statues of the gods were dressed, anointed and
offered food and drink twice each day, always at fixed times. This was done by the
pharaoh or his appointed priest

4000 YEAR OLD MODEL GARDEN

FOUND OUTSIDE A TOMB TEMPLE GARDEN
The Egyptian gardens were highly ornamented with the following statues
and materials to glorify its beauty and make it aesthetically appealing

Scale and built and unbuilt relationship

The scale used in most of the domestic and fruit gardens matched with the human
scale, whereas the scale of the gardens for temples and tombs was monumental and
huge to emphasize its importance and its grandeur.
Relationship between built and unbuilt spaces
The Egyptian gardens were basically private gardens
providing private separate spaces for families.
Later as the community became rich they built large
massive gardens like the temple and tomb gardens hence in
the beginning the gardens were basically closed and did not
have much connectivity with the built and unbuilt spaces
but in the later stages the gardens were highly connected
Scale of domestic gardens
Examples of Egyptian gardens

Gardens of Amun at the Temple of Karnak,

early 14th century. From the tomb of Nakh,
the chief gardener. The massive temple
complex of Karnak was the principal
religious center of the god Amun-Re in
Thebes during the New KingdomThe
complex remains one of the largest religious
complexes in the world.
sketches