Preamble
For you convenience I have listed below posts on this blogspot that featured Museums and Galleries.
When Rainforests Ruled
Some Textiles@The Powerhouse Museum
Textile Museum in Tilburg (The Netherlands)
Eden Gardens
Maschen (Mesh) Museum@Tailfingen
Museum Lace Factory@Horst(The Netherlands)
Expressing Australia – Art in Parliament House
TextielLab & TextielMuseum – 2013
The Last Exhibition @ Galerie ’t Haentje te Paart
Paste Modernism 4 @ aMBUSH Gallery & The Living Mal
El Anatsui – Five Decades@Carriageworks
The Australian Museum of Clothing and Textiles
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Nordiska Museet (The Nordic Museum)
Tarndwarncoort (Tarndie)
Egyptian Museum Cairo - Part I
Egyptian Museum Cairo - Part II
Masterpieces of the Israel Museum
Egyptian Museum Cairo - Part II[1]
The Old Empire (2700 - 2190 BC)
The Old Empire reigned from 2700 to 2190 BC. This period was preceded by various civilizations. They left behind dark red, fired and polished clay vessels decorated with white paintings of subjects from the animal world and then later, bright red fired clay vessels with red paintings of ships, and the rock pictures at Wadi Hammamat, Eastern Desert, Egypt.
Inscriptions at Wadi Hammamat, Eastern Desert, Egypt.
The palettes decorated in relief with votive offerings of the Kings, date from the year 3000 BC and the invention of hieroglyphs. The beginnings of the ordered reproductions in relief, according to established proportions, can also be dated to this period. Stone vessels and handicrafts achieved a magnificent golden age, even before the beginning of the Old Empire.
In the Cario Museum is a makeup palette that includes a pair of fantastic creatures, known as serpopards —leopards with long, snaky necks—who are collared and controlled by a pair of attendants. Their necks entwine and define the recess where the makeup preparation took place. The lowest register on both sides include images of dead foes, while both uppermost registers display hybrid human-bull heads and the name of the king. The frontal bull heads are likely connected to a sky goddess known as Bat and are related to heaven and the horizon. The name of the king, written hieroglyphically as a catfish and a chisel, is contained within a squared element that represents a palace facade.
The Narmer palette is one of the earliest historical records from ancient Egypt and the first written document. It records King Narmer’s victory over Lower Egypt, and so was the first pharaoh of a unified Egypt.
King Djoser (3rd Dynasty) had the first memorial building, the Step Pyramid, built by his master-builder, Imhotep, in the region of Saqqara; a little later, the pyramids of King Cheops, King Chephren and King Mycerinus (4th Dynasty) were constructed. The 5th Dynasty heralded the introduction of the Sun Cult as the national religion.
Step Pyramid of King Djoser, Saqqara, Egypt (3rd Dynasty).
Perhaps an illustration of the art of the period is the cross-legged scribe holding a papyrus scroll. It's a portrait of a high official very much aware of his dignity. The irises of the eyes of the 50 cm (20 inches) high limestone figure are made of inlaid crystal; the green outlines of the eyelids are made of copper and a bronze stud represents each pupil.
Limestone statute of a scribe with papyrus roll.
Prince Rahotep and his wife, Princess Nefert (Dynasty, Medum)
The limestone figures are 1.2 m (48 inches) in height.
Rahotep held high offices under King Snefru as the High Priest of Heliopolis and also as commander-in-chief of the army; his wife was a member of the court. As her name Nefert, indicates, she was known as 'the beautiful one'. In the scene above she wears a white, close-fitting gown, a brightly coloured necklace or collar, a wig reaching down to her shoulders and a headband of floral design. The prince is dressed in a short apron and wears an amulet on a chain about his neck. The short moustache appears to have been the fashion during the 5th Dynasty.
In Rahotep and Nefert we have a beautiful representation of a couple - in accordance with artistic convention, the male and female figures are differentiated by the application of a darker or lighter color. The eyes are made of inlaid quartz in both figures and hieroglyphs are painted on the cube-shaped seats.
In contrast to other ancient peoples, the Egyptian women occupied a higher and more assured position. Women enjoyed similar rights to those of their husbands and in the cult of the dead, the woman had also the right to an eternal life. In images generally, she is depicted by her husband's side and more importantly, is of the same size.
The pharaohs were equals of the gods. The name 'Pharaoh' derives more in recent times and was hardly used prior to 1000 BC. Sometimes the king is shown wearing a headcloth, sometimes with the high White Crown of Upper Egypt, sometimes with a cloth headdress and uraeus or with a blue crown, or as the 'Ruler of Both Lands' with a double crown, consisting of the 'Red Crown' of the Delta and the 'White Crown' of Upper Egypt. In addition to this, the falcon headed Horus is assigned to Chephren - a rare representation.
The green stone representation of King Mycerinus between two goddesses, which was found in the 'Valley Temple' near Giseh, is smaller, about 98 cm (39 inches) high.
King Mycerinus between Goddess Hathor and the Goddess of a Province (Dynasty Giseh).
The King stands emphatically in the centre of this group of three figures. The figure of the god-king, with his ceremonial beard and royal apron, his left leg slightly forward, stands in sharp contrast to the Goddess Hathor, with the solar disc between the cow's horns, and the Goddess of a Province on the right, both of whom have slightly pleasant-like, even a vegetative effect. Manly strength and dignity are expressed by the King's bearing. In the image below, we have a self-assured, but more modest bearing in the figure of Ateti. Humbler and more submissive, with his gaze turned towards the spiritual world, a figure of the priest of the Dead and Ka-Aoer, priest and high state official, known as the 'village magistrate', or 'Sheik-el-Beled' affords the contrast of his corpulence to the youthful figure of the wooden statue of the young man.
Painted false door (limestone) from the tomb of Ateti (Dynasty Saqqara).
Sycamore wood statue of the Sheik-el-Beled (Dynasty Saqqara).
Wooden statute of a young man (Dynasty Saqqara).
Among the figural representations, the working men and women, such as the maid-servant brewing beer are representations that do not surprise.
Woman brewing beer; painted limestone statuette (Dynasty Saqqara).
The extraordinary aspect of the representation of the dwarf Seneb, is that, in spite of his deformity, he reached a high position and achieved a title and high offices. Would this be the case today? Hardly! The Egyptologist Professor Wolf points to the difficulties of combining within a group-sculpture around the dwarfish Seneb, his normally built wife and two children, difficulties which the sculptor has overcome in a masterly, and at the same time, in an original manner.
Dwarf Seneb with family (Dynasty Giza).
Note: How they are seated gives them a physical as well as psychological equality.
Thanks to various representations, and not least to the excellent reliefs from mastabas (the private graves of officials), we know a good deal about the life and habits of Ancient Egypt. These reliefs depict masterly scenes of secular life and we not only recognize musicians (middle section of image below), but also the flute and the harp, the instruments that were then in common use. Besides the harp, the oldest instrument, we recognize the lute, later the lyre and trumpet. A double oboe and a double clarinet were as well known as drums, tambourines, rattles and other instruments. The flute, for instance, consisted of a reed.
Scenes of a feast; tomb of Net-heft-ka (Dynasty Saqqara).
Note: the musical instruments in the scene and the dancing movements.
Music gladdened the hearts of the gods and humans alike, thousands of years before it gladdened the hearts of the modern era.
Reference:
[1] P.P Riesterer,Egyptian Museum Cario, 5th Edition, Lehner & Landrock, Cario, 1995.
For you convenience I have listed below posts on this blogspot that featured Museums and Galleries.
When Rainforests Ruled
Some Textiles@The Powerhouse Museum
Textile Museum in Tilburg (The Netherlands)
Eden Gardens
Maschen (Mesh) Museum@Tailfingen
Museum Lace Factory@Horst(The Netherlands)
Expressing Australia – Art in Parliament House
TextielLab & TextielMuseum – 2013
The Last Exhibition @ Galerie ’t Haentje te Paart
Paste Modernism 4 @ aMBUSH Gallery & The Living Mal
El Anatsui – Five Decades@Carriageworks
The Australian Museum of Clothing and Textiles
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Nordiska Museet (The Nordic Museum)
Tarndwarncoort (Tarndie)
Egyptian Museum Cairo - Part I
Egyptian Museum Cairo - Part II
Masterpieces of the Israel Museum
Egyptian Museum Cairo - Part II[1]
The Old Empire (2700 - 2190 BC)
The Old Empire reigned from 2700 to 2190 BC. This period was preceded by various civilizations. They left behind dark red, fired and polished clay vessels decorated with white paintings of subjects from the animal world and then later, bright red fired clay vessels with red paintings of ships, and the rock pictures at Wadi Hammamat, Eastern Desert, Egypt.
The palettes decorated in relief with votive offerings of the Kings, date from the year 3000 BC and the invention of hieroglyphs. The beginnings of the ordered reproductions in relief, according to established proportions, can also be dated to this period. Stone vessels and handicrafts achieved a magnificent golden age, even before the beginning of the Old Empire.
In the Cario Museum is a makeup palette that includes a pair of fantastic creatures, known as serpopards —leopards with long, snaky necks—who are collared and controlled by a pair of attendants. Their necks entwine and define the recess where the makeup preparation took place. The lowest register on both sides include images of dead foes, while both uppermost registers display hybrid human-bull heads and the name of the king. The frontal bull heads are likely connected to a sky goddess known as Bat and are related to heaven and the horizon. The name of the king, written hieroglyphically as a catfish and a chisel, is contained within a squared element that represents a palace facade.
King Djoser (3rd Dynasty) had the first memorial building, the Step Pyramid, built by his master-builder, Imhotep, in the region of Saqqara; a little later, the pyramids of King Cheops, King Chephren and King Mycerinus (4th Dynasty) were constructed. The 5th Dynasty heralded the introduction of the Sun Cult as the national religion.
Perhaps an illustration of the art of the period is the cross-legged scribe holding a papyrus scroll. It's a portrait of a high official very much aware of his dignity. The irises of the eyes of the 50 cm (20 inches) high limestone figure are made of inlaid crystal; the green outlines of the eyelids are made of copper and a bronze stud represents each pupil.
The limestone figures are 1.2 m (48 inches) in height.
Rahotep held high offices under King Snefru as the High Priest of Heliopolis and also as commander-in-chief of the army; his wife was a member of the court. As her name Nefert, indicates, she was known as 'the beautiful one'. In the scene above she wears a white, close-fitting gown, a brightly coloured necklace or collar, a wig reaching down to her shoulders and a headband of floral design. The prince is dressed in a short apron and wears an amulet on a chain about his neck. The short moustache appears to have been the fashion during the 5th Dynasty.
In Rahotep and Nefert we have a beautiful representation of a couple - in accordance with artistic convention, the male and female figures are differentiated by the application of a darker or lighter color. The eyes are made of inlaid quartz in both figures and hieroglyphs are painted on the cube-shaped seats.
In contrast to other ancient peoples, the Egyptian women occupied a higher and more assured position. Women enjoyed similar rights to those of their husbands and in the cult of the dead, the woman had also the right to an eternal life. In images generally, she is depicted by her husband's side and more importantly, is of the same size.
The pharaohs were equals of the gods. The name 'Pharaoh' derives more in recent times and was hardly used prior to 1000 BC. Sometimes the king is shown wearing a headcloth, sometimes with the high White Crown of Upper Egypt, sometimes with a cloth headdress and uraeus or with a blue crown, or as the 'Ruler of Both Lands' with a double crown, consisting of the 'Red Crown' of the Delta and the 'White Crown' of Upper Egypt. In addition to this, the falcon headed Horus is assigned to Chephren - a rare representation.
The green stone representation of King Mycerinus between two goddesses, which was found in the 'Valley Temple' near Giseh, is smaller, about 98 cm (39 inches) high.
The King stands emphatically in the centre of this group of three figures. The figure of the god-king, with his ceremonial beard and royal apron, his left leg slightly forward, stands in sharp contrast to the Goddess Hathor, with the solar disc between the cow's horns, and the Goddess of a Province on the right, both of whom have slightly pleasant-like, even a vegetative effect. Manly strength and dignity are expressed by the King's bearing. In the image below, we have a self-assured, but more modest bearing in the figure of Ateti. Humbler and more submissive, with his gaze turned towards the spiritual world, a figure of the priest of the Dead and Ka-Aoer, priest and high state official, known as the 'village magistrate', or 'Sheik-el-Beled' affords the contrast of his corpulence to the youthful figure of the wooden statue of the young man.
Among the figural representations, the working men and women, such as the maid-servant brewing beer are representations that do not surprise.
The extraordinary aspect of the representation of the dwarf Seneb, is that, in spite of his deformity, he reached a high position and achieved a title and high offices. Would this be the case today? Hardly! The Egyptologist Professor Wolf points to the difficulties of combining within a group-sculpture around the dwarfish Seneb, his normally built wife and two children, difficulties which the sculptor has overcome in a masterly, and at the same time, in an original manner.
Note: How they are seated gives them a physical as well as psychological equality.
Thanks to various representations, and not least to the excellent reliefs from mastabas (the private graves of officials), we know a good deal about the life and habits of Ancient Egypt. These reliefs depict masterly scenes of secular life and we not only recognize musicians (middle section of image below), but also the flute and the harp, the instruments that were then in common use. Besides the harp, the oldest instrument, we recognize the lute, later the lyre and trumpet. A double oboe and a double clarinet were as well known as drums, tambourines, rattles and other instruments. The flute, for instance, consisted of a reed.
Note: the musical instruments in the scene and the dancing movements.
Music gladdened the hearts of the gods and humans alike, thousands of years before it gladdened the hearts of the modern era.
Reference:
[1] P.P Riesterer,Egyptian Museum Cario, 5th Edition, Lehner & Landrock, Cario, 1995.
No comments:
Post a Comment