Chapter Goals
After reading the chapter, you should be able to do the following:
Identify the works and define the terms featured in the chapter
List the Egyptian gods and their functions
Describe iconography, convention, and style, giving works of the chapter as examples
Discuss the main architectural and sculptural types and their purposes
Discuss the role of the Nile in Egyptian culture, art, and religion
Describe the process of mummification, and the Egyptian view of the afterlife
Recognize the texts quoted in the chapter
Locate, on a map of Egypt, the main Egyptian sites
Describe the proportional grid system used for Egyptian sculpture
Draw and label the plan and façade of a typical pylon temple
Describe the Amarna style and the philosophy behind it
Compare the Amarna style with that of the Old Kingdom
Describe the role of Nubia in Egyptian history
Discuss the Nubian assimilation of Egyptian art and culture
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Ancient Egypt ( c. 5450- 31 BCE) Predynastic (5450–3100 B.C.)
Unification of Upper and Lower Egypt (3100 B.C.)
Palette of Narmer: pharaonic rule; polytheism
Old Kingdom (2649–2150 B.C.) Middle Kingdom (c. 1991–1700 B.C.) New Kingdom (1550–1070 B.C.)
Amarna period (c. 1349–1336 B.C.)
Akhenaten's monotheism: worship of the Aten
Nubia: cross-cultural influences
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Key Terms |
Ashlar masonry
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Atlantid
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Ben-ben
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canon
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a set of rules, principles, or standards used to establish scales or proportions.
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canopic jars
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a vessel in which ancient Egyptians preserved the viscera of the dead
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cartonnage
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layers of linen or papyrus glued together and usually coated with stucco
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Caryatid
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clerestory
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the upper part of the main outer wall of a building (especially a church), located above an adjoining roof and admitting light through a row of windows.
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Corbelling
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brick or masonry courses, each projecting beyond, and supported by, the one below it; the meeting of two corbels would create an arch or vault.
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engaged column
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a column, decorative in purpose, that is attached to a supporting wall.
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fresco
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a technique (also known as buon fresco) of painting on the plaster surface of a wall or ceiling while it is still damp, so that the pigments become fused with the plaster as it dries.
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Fresco secco
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frieze
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(a) the central section of the entablature in the Classical Orders; (b) any horizontal decorative band
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gesso
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a white coating made of chalk, plaster, and size that is spread over a surface to make it more receptive to paint and smoother
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Hieroglyphics
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hypostyle hall
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a hall with a roof supported by rows of columns.
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Ka
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mastaba
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a rectangular burial monument in ancient Egypt.
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Necropolis
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obelisk
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a tall, four-sided stone, usually monolithic, that tapers toward the top and is capped by a pyramidion.
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papyrus
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(a) a plant found in ancient Egypt and neighboring countries; (b) a paperlike writing material made from the pith of the plant.
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pier
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a vertical support used to bear loads in an arched or vaulted structure
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pilaster
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a flattened, rectangular version of a column, sometimes load-bearing, but often purely decorative.
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pylon
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a pair of truncated, pyramidal towers flanking the entrance to an Egyptian temple
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sarcophagus
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a stone coffin, sometimes decorated with a relief sculpture
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sphinx
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in ancient Egypt, a creature with the body of a lion and the head of a human, an animal, or a bird.
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step pyramid
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a pyramid constructed of mastaba forms of successively decreasing size.
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vellum
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a cream-colored, smooth surface for painting or writing, prepared from calfskin.
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