What is the Palette of King Narmar?  How does it establish both visual and iconographic conventions that will guide Egyptian art for centuries?

Egyptian art spans a 3,000-year history.  In this unit, we explore the elaborate funerary practices of the Egyptians and observe how these practices led to the building of mastabas, pyramids, and rock-cut tombs throughout Egypt.  We will also look at Egyptian painting and sculpture.  As we study images of figures, note how the Egyptian artists used the composite style; in other words, figures generally have broad frontal shoulders and profiled heads, torsos, and legs.  We also see how the figures change and evolve through time.  Old Kingdom figures have an unyielding stance and formidable expressions.  Middle Kingdom figures have a more relaxed posture and emotional expressions.  The New Kingdom is characterized by rounded and elongated figures that depict a new type of intimacy and expression.Chapter 3:  Egyptian Art
Predynastic and Early Dynastic Art

Key Images

1. People, boats, and animals, 3.1

Palette of King Narmer 3.2

1. From ca. 5000 BCE until ca. 3150 BCE, Egypt was divided into two independent regions, Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt, unified under King Narmer during the predynastic period.  The Palette of King Narmer, ca. 3000 BCE, commemorates Narmer’s victory over Lower Egypt and is the earliest surviving image of a historic personage identified by name.  The signs and symbols of Upper and Lower Egypt are unified on the Palette of King Narmer, and stylistic conventions for portraying the figure are used, including legs and head being in profile and the torso being frontal.  King Narmer is represented as a divinity, being much larger than the other figures in the Palette.The Old Kingdom: A Golden Age
   Key Images
2. Step pyramid and funerary complex of King Djoser, Saqqara, 3.4
3. Papyrus-shaped half-columns, funerary complex of King Djoser, 3.6
4. The pyramids of Menkaure, Khafra, and Khufu, Giza, 3.7
5. Model of the Great Pyramids at Giza, 3.8

The Great Sphinx, 3.9

Khafra, 3.10

Prince Rahotep and His Wife, Nofret, 3.12

Relief Panel of Hesy-ra, from Saqqara, 3.13

Seated Scribe, from Saqqara, 3.15

Ti Watching a Hippopotamus Hunt, 3.16

The Egyptians believed that the ka, the individual’s life force, lived on after death.  The Egyptians believe that the ka traveled between this world and the next.  Egyptian tombs were equipped with ka doors so that the ka could go through the door into the next world.  Ka statues were a place where the ka could sleep at night if the mummified body of the deceased were not available.
The earliest funerary complex was that of the Third Dynasty King Djoser (Netjerikhet) at Saqqara, designed by the priest Imhotep, the first-named architect in history.  The funerary complex at Saqqara included a funerary temple built in a mastaba, a South and North Palace, and a serdab that contained the ka statue of Djoser inscribed with the name of Imhotep.  The entire complex was oriented north-south, allowing the king’s ka statue to look toward the circumpolar stars in the North sky.During the Fourth Dynasty, there was a dramatic change in funerary architecture.  The step pyramid was adapted into a smooth-sided one.  The earliest of these pyramids is attributed to Sneferu, the founder of the Fourth Dynasty.  The most well-known of the pyramids, considered wonders of the ancient world, were built at Giza by Sneferu’s son Khufu (who made the first and largest of the pyramids), Khafra, and Menkaure.  Each pyramid was covered with white limestone and a gold capstone.  Also, a part of this necropolis is the Great Sphinx.  The head of the sphinx is thought to resemble the features of Khafra.  The sphinx is located directly in front of Khafra’s pyramid.  The Sphinx is almost certainly inspired by Near Eastern lamassus, serving the same protective function for the funerary temple of the deceased pharaoh.
Beginning in the Fifth Dynasty, a canon of proportions was used in which the body of members of royalty and courtiers was portrayed in an idealized manner.  Examples of this can be seen in the ka statues of Khafra, Prince Rahotep and His Wife, Nofret, and the Relief Panel of Hesy-ra.  These works are all abstracted to conform to a standard of perfection dictated by Egyptian cultural preferences.  The canon of proportions was not used for people of lower status.The Middle Kingdom: Reasserting Tradition through the Arts
Key Images

Senwosret III, 3.17

Lady Sennuwy, 3.18

Rock-cut tombs, Beni Hasan, 3.19

Interior hall of rock-cut tomb, 3.20

Feeding the Oryxes, from Tomb of Khnum-hotep, 3.21

• Female Figurine, from Thebes, 3.22

Pectoral of Mereret, 3.23

• Following the death of the Sixth Dynasty pharaoh King Pepy II in ca. 2152 BCE, a turbulent First Intermediate Period lasted over a century.  Much of the art of the Eleventh and Twelfth Dynasties relied on Old Kingdom forms.  Sculptures of members of the royal family show a change from earlier conventions.  This can be seen in the Sculpture of Senwosret III which showed less idealism and more naturalism than earlier periods.  These changes reflect a shift in the role and understanding of the pharaoh during this period, where he was seen not simply as a god but as an individual with responsibilities to his subjects.  The Middle Kingdom ended when a group of immigrants known as the Hyksos moved into the Nile Delta, forcing the pharaoh to retreat to Thebes.  The period of the Hyksos control is known as the Second Intermediate Period.The New Kingdom: Restored Glory

  Key Images

Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, Deir el-Bahri, 3.24

• Kneeling Figure of King Hatshepsut, 3.26

Hypostyle Hall of Temple of Amun-Ra, Karnak, 3.28

Seti I’s Campaigns, Temple of Amun at Karnak, 3.29

Temple of Ramesses II, Abu Simbel, 3.30

Interior of Temple of Ramses II, Abu Simbel, 3.31

Senenmut with Nefrua, Thebes, 3.32

Musicians and Dancers, from the Tomb of Nebamun, 3.33

Mai and His Wife, Urel, 3.34

Akhenaten, from Karnak, 3.35

Akhenaten and His Family, 3.36

Queen Tiy, 3.37

• Queen Nefertiti, 3.38
• Tomb of Tutankhamun, 3.39
• Cover of the coffin of Tutankhamun, 3.40
• The Weighing of the Heart and Judgment by Osiris, 3.41
• Within a century, the Hyksos were expelled by Ahmose, the first pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty, and Egypt entered a final period of cultural and economic prosperity known as the New Kingdom.  One of the key differences between the Old Kingdom and the New Kingdom can be seen in their burial practices.  Eighteenth Dynasty pharaohs did not build pyramids but instead chose to dig their tombs out of rock in the Valley of the Kings.  The best preserved of these tombs is the funerary temple of the female pharaoh Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahri, built by her architect Senenmut.  Hatshepsut’s funerary temple demonstrates a radical departure from the previous temple and tomb building, with an axial plan.  Eighteenth Dynasty pharaohs constructed temples of the Theban divine triad, Amun, his consort Mut, and their son Khons at Karnak and Luxor, creating two temple complexes to honor the triad.  During the Nineteenth Dynasty, Ramesses II commissioned numerous architectural projects at Abu Simbel.  During the New Kingdom, the block statue, where the seated figure with knees drawn up to his chest and wrapped in a cloak, regained popularity.  An example of this is the Senenmut with Nefrua.  During the reign of Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten), a new style of art called the Amarna Style was launched.  The sculptures from this period break with the established canon of proportions, showing an expressive naturalism.  Some scholars suggest that the exaggerated features demonstrated in the portraits of Akhenaten depict an underlying medical condition.  This condition was also passed on to his children.  However, the feminized appearance of the sculptures could also reflect an identification of the pharaoh with the fertile Aten as a life-giver.  The Amarna style can be seen in the naturalism of Queen Tiy, Akhenaten’s mother, and Queen Nefertiti.  In the incised relief of Akhenaten and His Family.  In this relief the pharaoh and his wife sit with their children.  This family grouping emphasizes the close relationship within the family, and dramatically departs from previous images of pharaohs with their wives and children.Amenhotep IV challenged the traditional polytheistic system in Egypt, practicing monotheism and worshipping Aten—the sun disk god.  Changing his name to Akhenaten (meaning “beneficial to Aten”), Akhenaten established a new capital at Amarna.  Akhenaten’s innovations angered the priests and the political elite, who could restore the conventions of older ways in religion and art after Tutankhamun took the throne.The Ramesses dynasty was the last significant dynastic family of the New Kingdom.  The New Kingdom pharaoh, Ramesses II, completed a massive temple at Luxor.  Alexander the Great conquered Egypt and founded Alexandria before his death in 323 BCE.  His general Ptolemy established the Ptolemaic Dynasty, which lasted for almost 300 years until the Roman Emperor Augustus conquered Egypt in 30 BCE following Egyptian art spans a 3,000-year history.  In this unit, we explore the elaborate funerary practices of the Egyptians and observe how these practices led to the building of mastabas, pyramids, and rock-cut tombs throughout Egypt.  We will also look at Egyptian painting and sculpture.  As we study images of figures, note how the Egyptian artists used the composite style; in other words, figures generally have broad frontal shoulders and profiled heads, torsos, and legs.  We also see how the figures change and evolve through time.  Old Kingdom figures have an unyielding stance and formidable expressions.  Middle Kingdom figures have a more relaxed posture and emotional expressions.  The New Kingdom is characterized by rounded and elongated figures that depict a new type of intimacy and expression.Chapter 3:  Egyptian Art
  Predynastic and Early Dynastic Art

  Key Images

• People, boats, and animals, 3.1

Palette of King Narmer 3.2

• From ca. 5000 BCE until ca. 3150 BCE, Egypt was divided into two independent regions, Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt, unified under King Narmer during the predynastic period.  The Palette of King Narmer, ca. 3000 BCE, commemorates Narmer’s victory over Lower Egypt and is the earliest surviving image of a historic personage identified by name.  The signs and symbols of Upper and Lower Egypt are unified on the Palette of King Narmer, and stylistic conventions for portraying the figure are used, including legs and head being in profile and the torso being frontal.  King Narmer is represented as a divinity, being much larger than the other figures in the Palette.The Old Kingdom: A Golden Age
  Key Images

Step pyramid and funerary complex of King Djoser, Saqqara, 3.4

• Papyrus-shaped half-columns, funerary complex of King Djoser, 3.6

The pyramids of Menkaure, Khafra, and Khufu, Giza, 3.7

• Model of the Great Pyramids at Giza, 3.8

The Great Sphinx, 3.9

• Khafra, 3.10

Prince Rahotep and His Wife, Nofret, 3.12

• Relief Panel of Hesy-ra, from Saqqara, 3.13

Seated Scribe, from Saqqara, 3.15

Ti Watching a Hippopotamus Hunt, 3.16

The Egyptians believed that the ka, the individual’s life force, lived on after death.  The Egyptians believe that the ka traveled between this world and the next.  Egyptian tombs were equipped with ka doors so that the ka could go through the door into the next world.  Ka statues were a place where the ka could sleep at night if the mummified body of the deceased were not available.
The earliest funerary complex was that of the Third Dynasty King Djoser (Netjerikhet) at Saqqara, designed by the priest Imhotep, the first-named architect in history.  The funerary complex at Saqqara included a funerary temple built in a mastaba, a South and North Palace, and a serdab that contained the ka statue of Djoser inscribed with the name of Imhotep.  The entire complex was oriented north-south, allowing the king’s ka statue to look toward the circumpolar stars in the North sky.During the Fourth Dynasty, there was a dramatic change in funerary architecture.  The step pyramid was adapted into a smooth-sided one.  The earliest of these pyramids is attributed to Sneferu, the founder of the Fourth Dynasty.  The most well-known of the pyramids, considered wonders of the ancient world, were built at Giza by Sneferu’s son Khufu (who made the first and largest of the pyramids), Khafra, and Menkaure.  Each pyramid was covered with white limestone and a gold capstone.  Also, a part of this necropolis is the Great Sphinx.  The head of the sphinx is thought to resemble the features of Khafra.  The sphinx is located directly in front of Khafra’s pyramid.  The Sphinx is almost certainly inspired by Near Eastern lamassus, serving the same protective function for the funerary temple of the deceased pharaoh.
Beginning in the Fifth Dynasty, a canon of proportions was used in which the body of members of royalty and courtiers was portrayed in an idealized manner.  Examples of this can be seen in the ka statues of Khafra, Prince Rahotep and His Wife, Nofret, and the Relief Panel of Hesy-ra.  These works are all abstracted to conform to a standard of perfection dictated by Egyptian cultural preferences.  The canon of proportions was not used for people of lower status.The Middle Kingdom: Reasserting Tradition through the Arts
Key Images

Senwosret III, 3.17

Lady Sennuwy, 3.18

Rock-cut tombs, Beni Hasan, 3.19

Interior hall of rock-cut tomb, 3.20

Feeding the Oryxes, from Tomb of Khnum-hotep, 3.21

Female Figurine, from Thebes, 3.22

Pectoral of Mereret, 3.23

Following the death of the Sixth Dynasty pharaoh King Pepy II in ca. 2152 BCE, a turbulent First Intermediate Period lasted over a century.  Much of the art of the Eleventh and Twelfth Dynasties relied on Old Kingdom forms.  Sculptures of members of the royal family show a change from earlier conventions.  This can be seen in the Sculpture of Senwosret III which showed less idealism and more naturalism than earlier periods.  These changes reflect a shift in the role and understanding of the pharaoh during this period, where he was seen not simply as a god but as an individual with responsibilities to his subjects.  The Middle Kingdom ended when a group of immigrants known as the Hyksos moved into the Nile Delta, forcing the pharaoh to retreat to Thebes.  The period of the Hyksos control is known as the Second Intermediate Period.The New Kingdom: Restored Glory

Key Images

Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, Deir el-Bahri, 3.24

Kneeling Figure of King Hatshepsut, 3.26

Hypostyle Hall of Temple of Amun-Ra, Karnak, 3.28

Seti I’s Campaigns, Temple of Amun at Karnak, 3.29

Temple of Ramesses II, Abu Simbel, 3.30

Interior of Temple of Ramses II, Abu Simbel, 3.31

Senenmut with Nefrua, Thebes, 3.32

Musicians and Dancers, from the Tomb of Nebamun, 3.33

Mai and His Wife, Urel, 3.34

• Akhenaten, from Karnak, 3.35

Akhenaten and His Family, 3.36

• Queen Tiy, 3.37

Queen Nefertiti, 3.38

• Tomb of Tutankhamun, 3.39
• Cover of the coffin of Tutankhamun, 3.40
• The Weighing of the Heart and Judgment by Osiris, 3.41

Within a century, the Hyksos were expelled by Ahmose, the first pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty, and Egypt entered a final period of cultural and economic prosperity known as the New Kingdom.  One of the key differences between the Old Kingdom and the New Kingdom can be seen in their burial practices.  Eighteenth Dynasty pharaohs did not build pyramids but instead chose to dig their tombs out of rock in the Valley of the Kings.  The best preserved of these tombs is the funerary temple of the female pharaoh Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahri, built by her architect Senenmut.  Hatshepsut’s funerary temple demonstrates a radical departure from the previous temple and tomb building, with an axial plan.  Eighteenth Dynasty pharaohs constructed temples of the Theban divine triad, Amun, his consort Mut, and their son Khons at Karnak and Luxor, creating two temple complexes to honor the triad.  During the Nineteenth Dynasty, Ramesses II commissioned numerous architectural projects at Abu Simbel.  During the New Kingdom, the block statue, where the seated figure with knees drawn up to his chest and wrapped in a cloak, regained popularity.  An example of this is the Senenmut with Nefrua.  During the reign of Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten), a new style of art called the Amarna Style was launched.  The sculptures from this period break with the established canon of proportions, showing an expressive naturalism.  Some scholars suggest that the exaggerated features demonstrated in the portraits of Akhenaten depict an underlying medical condition.  This condition was also passed on to his children.  However, the feminized appearance of the sculptures could also reflect an identification of the pharaoh with the fertile Aten as a life-giver.  The Amarna style can be seen in the naturalism of Queen Tiy, Akhenaten’s mother, and Queen Nefertiti.  In the incised relief of Akhenaten and His Family.  In this relief the pharaoh and his wife sit with their children.  This family grouping emphasizes the close relationship within the family, and dramatically departs from previous images of pharaohs with their wives and children.Amenhotep IV challenged the traditional polytheistic system in Egypt, practicing monotheism and worshipping Aten—the sun disk god.  Changing his name to Akhenaten (meaning “beneficial to Aten”), Akhenaten established a new capital at Amarna.  Akhenaten’s innovations angered the priests and the political elite, who could restore the conventions of older ways in religion and art after Tutankhamun took the throne.The Ramesses dynasty was the last significant dynastic family of the New Kingdom.  The New Kingdom pharaoh, Ramesses II, completed a massive temple at Luxor.  Alexander the Great conquered Egypt and founded Alexandria before his death in 323 BCE.  His general Ptolemy established the Ptolemaic Dynasty, which lasted for almost 300 years until the Roman Emperor Augustus conquered Egypt in 30 BCE following the Battle of Actium. The Ptolemaic Dynasty ended with the death of Ptolemy XIV, the pharaoh Cleopatra VII’s son by Julius Caesar.Resources:
The Grand Egyptian Museum:  https://grandegyptianmuseum.org/