Abstract: Fine art of Ancient Egypt. Egypt. Travel to Karnak

5. Culture and fine arts of Ancient Egypt (New Kingdom)

After a period of decline caused by the Hyksos invasion, Egyptian art experienced a vibrant flourishing during the New Kingdom (c. 1580 - c. 1085 BC). Successful campaigns in Asia and the influx of wealth determined the exceptional luxury of life of the Egyptian nobility of this time. The harsh, dramatic images of the Middle Kingdom era are replaced by sophisticated aristocratic ones. The desire for grace and decorative pomp is intensifying.

Architecture

In architecture, the traditions of the previous period are being developed. The greatest buildings of the New Kingdom era were the temples, or “houses” of the gods. One of them - the mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut (1525-1503 BC) - is located in Deir el-Bahri in Thebes, the temple is consecrated to Hathor - the goddess of love, music and dance, daughter of the god Ra.

Temple at Deir el-Bahri- an outstanding monument of ancient Egyptian architecture - was built by the architect Senenmut, the royal favorite. The temple stands at the foot of the steep cliffs of the Libyan Plateau, which, while serving as an original backdrop to the structure, at the same time merge with it into a single, unique whole. The temple consists of two tiers of terraces connected by ramps and framed by porticos, an open courtyard surrounded by a colonnade and a sanctuary carved into the rocks. The austere appearance of the temple was diversified by statues of Queen Hatshepsut in the image of Osiris, columns on the capitals of which the head of the goddess Hathor was carved, as well as paintings and reliefs. There were ponds and trees growing on the terraces.

Temple at Karnak

Along with half-rock temples, open-type temple-sanctuaries became widespread in the architecture of the New Kingdom. The most perfect embodiments of the cult ensemble were the famous Theban temples of Ipet Sut and Ipet Res, dedicated to the god Amun-Ra. They are now known as the temples of Karnak and Luxor.

The Temple of Amun at Karnak was built over many centuries - from the Middle Kingdom to the Ptolemaic era. The result of this is a multitude of pylons, squares, gates, halls, obelisks, corridors, etc. Most of the buildings were erected during the New Kingdom era. The temple, which has a T-shape in plan, in its main part (running from west to east) has a structure typical of New Kingdom temples - with pylons, an open courtyard, a hypostyle hall and a sanctuary.

Temple in Luxor

The temple in Luxor is significantly smaller in size than the Karnak Temple, but is considered the most harmonious and complete temple structure of the New Kingdom period.

A distinctive feature of the Luxor Temple is its giant colonnades. In total, there are over two hundred columns in the halls and courtyards of the temple. The colonnades give the temple an emphasized monumentality; the columns symbolize the papyrus thickets in which the sun god Amon was born.

The rectangular-shaped temple stretches from north to south. The entrance to the temple is designed in the form of a pylon built by Ramesses II. Six colossi of Ramesses II were erected in front of the pylon: four giant statues depicted the standing pharaoh, two statues depicted the pharaoh sitting. At the entrance gate of the temple there were two obelisks 35 m high.

The temple in Luxor is a complex architectural ensemble that reflects various eras of Egyptian history. Thus, the general ensemble of the temple includes the temple of Alexander the Great, who achieved his deification from the Egyptians and declared himself the son of the god Amun. There is also a Christian chapel dating back to the first centuries AD.

art

A huge number of magnificent reliefs and paintings executed during the era of the New Kingdom have been preserved. On the walls of temples, in the tombs of the nobility and high officials, a wide variety of scenes are depicted - from household work to funeral processions. The reliefs are dominated by unprecedented freedom of movement and angles. Particularly popular are scenes of feasts and celebrations, hunting among dense thickets of papyrus. Landscape is widely introduced into the images. At the same time, the fine art of this era is characterized by a desire for sophistication. More attention is paid to details: clothes, hairstyles, jewelry. Elongated light bodies acquire flexibility, the outlines of the shoulders become round. Subtle beauty marks the female profiles. Almond-shaped eyes are slightly covered with eyelids, which gives the look a certain mystery. Painting is enriched with a combination of pinkish-violet, golden, and blue tones. The convention of coloring human figures disappears: shades of light and dark skin become close to real ones. A blush appears on the women’s faces, their bodies are visible through transparent clothes. Nude maids, dancers and musicians are often depicted. In reliefs, the sophisticated elegance of lines and the subtlety of processing the surface of the stone increase. Particularly developed is the in-depth relief with an exquisite play of chiaroscuro (reliefs of the temple of Hatshepsut, 16th century BC, the tomb of Rames in Thebes, 15th century BC)

Sculpture

During the New Kingdom, sculpture of colossal proportions began to develop. Huge figures, colossi, are created and installed outside the temples. The most famous colossi are located in Thebes and are two giant statues of Amenhotep III (XVIII Dynasty) sitting on the throne.

The works of small-form sculpture are noted for their high taste. Women's clothing items are decorated with images of young girls carrying vessels, playing the harp, swimming with a lotus, duck or fish in their hands. Glass products, including sculpture, appear for the first time. The obligatory figurines of servants in tombs give way to the so-called ushabti (defendants). These are figurines made of terracotta, faience, stone, wood in the form of mummies with open heads and arms, depicting those who served their duties for the deceased in the afterlife.

Amarna period

In the XIV century. BC. The pharaoh of the 18th dynasty, Amenhotep IV (1368-c. 1351 BC), carried out a religious reform that had a significant impact on the art of the New Kingdom. In an effort to weaken the power of the priests and strengthen his own, the pharaoh banned all old cults, proclaiming Aten, the sun god, or rather the solar disk itself, as the only true god. In the sixth year of his reign, he left Thebes and founded a new capital, Akhetaten, on the eastern bank of the Nile. The Arman style of art appears.

At the center of Akhetaten were the Great Palace and the Temple of Aten, which instead of the traditional colonnades had large open courtyards with altars. The palace was decorated with statues of the pharaoh, multi-colored reliefs, and paintings with inlay and gilding. The floor paintings depicting pools with swimming fish and thickets of flowering plants with fluttering birds and butterflies were especially beautiful.

After the death of Amenhotep under the pharaohs Tutankhamun and Horemheb, the priests achieved the restoration of the cult of the old gods. Thebes again becomes the capital of Egypt. Nevertheless, the art of the Amarna period had a significant influence on the further development of Egyptian culture, which is especially noticeable in the treasures discovered in the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun.

Tutankhamun's tomb

The four halls of the tomb contained countless riches: chests with multi-colored inlays, richly decorated boxes and folding beds, thrones, chairs, armchairs, stools, gaming tables, gilded inlaid chariots, models of ships, painted caskets, ceremonial weapons, vessels and vases, large and small statues, images of animals. Almost the entire space of the burial chamber was occupied by a huge box upholstered in gold leaf with a double-leaf lid. In it, nested one inside the other, there were several sarcophagi. The last sarcophagus, made of pure gold, weighing more than 110 kg, contained the mummy of Tutankhamun with a golden mask on his face. The mummy was covered from head to toe with jewelry - from simple gold plaques to exquisite pieces of jewelry. Tutankhamun’s burial was not one of the most luxurious, but its undeniable wealth, preservation, and exquisite beauty of the finds make a stunning impression.

One of the masterpieces of formal furniture is the throne of Tutankhamun made of wood. The back of the throne is decorated with flexible figures of the royal couple, engraved on gold leaf, with inserts of gems, silver, faience and colored glass.

Architecture of the 19th Dynasty period

The struggle between Amenhotep and the priesthood weakened Egypt: in the first half of the 14th century. the state lost almost all of its previously conquered possessions. Under the pharaohs of the 19th dynasty - Seti I, Ramesses II and Ramesses III - the military power of Egypt was restored, wealth and slaves again flowed into the country. This made it possible to resume grandiose construction. Architectural monuments of this period are distinguished by their colossal size, abundance of columns and statues, richness and splendor of decoration. In Abydos, one of the largest cities in Upper Egypt, the mortuary temple of Pharaoh Seti I was built, completed by his son Ramesses II. The Abydos temple became especially famous due to the magnificent reliefs covering the walls and columns of the temple, as well as the so-called “Abydos Royal List”, a list of Egyptian pharaohs, cut into the wall of one of the galleries.

The most prominent representative of the 19th dynasty was Ramesses II, who reigned for 67 years (1317-1251 BC). The cult of Ramesses II, the veneration of his deified images reached the limit of what was possible - it was a time of the most magnificent praises in honor of the pharaoh, the gods and even the royal chariot. Ramesses II's mortuary temple at Thebes, known as the Ramesseum, was much larger than his father's temple at Abydos. A special feature of the Ramesseum, which has survived to this day in a severely damaged state, was the combination of a temple, a palace, living quarters, warehouses, and stables in one complex. The facade of the temple was decorated with columns and huge statues of Ramesses II in the guise of Osiris.

The tradition of palace and temple architecture was continued in the Theban ensemble of Ramesses III near the modern Arab village of Medinet Habu. Surrounded by two rows of battlements, the temple resembled a fortress. On the sides of the entrance gate there were two towers, also crowned with battlements.

But the most gigantic and impressive monuments of that era are considered to be the two temples of Ramesses II in Abu Simbel (Nubia), built to commemorate the military successes of the pharaoh. Both temples are entirely carved into the rock on the left bank of the Nile. The facade of the large temple, dedicated to Ramesses II and the god Amun-Ra, is decorated with four twenty-meter statues of the pharaoh sitting on a throne in a traditional frozen pose with his hands resting on his knees. At the feet of each statue are figures of the pharaoh's mother and children. Compared to the statue of the pharaoh himself, these figures seem small, but in fact they reach the height of a man. The temple includes a number of rooms, including the hypostyle hall and the sanctuary. In the first hall there are eight statues of the god Osiris, symbolically supporting the ceiling of the room. Twice a year, on February 22 and October 21, one could observe how the first ray of the sun penetrated through the entrance gate of the temple into the long passage leading to the sanctuary, and successively illuminated the statues of Amun-Ra and Ramesses II. The small temple, built in honor of Queen Nefertari, is a simpler and smaller structure. On the facade of the temple in deep rock niches there are four statues of Ramses II and two statues of Nefertari, decorated with the attributes of the goddess Hathor, to whom, in fact, this shrine was dedicated.

The late period in the history of Ancient Egypt was a time of heavy wars and foreign invasions. Egyptian art experienced its last flourishing under the pharaohs of the Sais dynasty (VII century BC). However, in general, the works of architecture, sculpture and painting of this period indicate that the creative forces of the world's oldest civilization gradually exhausted themselves.

The invasion of Asian tribes - the Hyksos (in the language of the ancient Egyptians, their name meant “foreign rulers”) - around 1700 BC. e. plunged the country into an abyss of disasters for a century and a half. Along with the Hyksos, horses and chariots appeared in the Nile Valley, which have since been depicted on Egyptian reliefs and wall paintings.

Expulsion of the Hyksos in the middle of the 16th century. before i. e. marked the beginning of the era of the New Kingdom (XVI-XI centuries BC) and the revival of Egyptian statehood. The pharaohs of the 18th dynasty established Egypt's dominance over many neighboring countries. His increased importance forced the rulers of neighboring powers to send expensive gifts to the pharaoh. To the capital of Egypt - Thebes - brought precious metals, gems and ivory from Nubia (the territory of modern Egypt above the first cataract of the Nile and Sudan), valuable wood from Phenicia (the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea), incense, rare plants from the mysterious African country of Punt (apparently the territory modern Somalia). The power of the state and its rulers was glorified in chronicles and poetic hymns. It is quite natural that the art monuments of the New Kingdom responded to the spirit of the times.

The history of Thebes dates back to a small settlement, known since ancient times and which became the capital of the state during the Middle Kingdom. During the New Kingdom, the wealth that poured into Egypt turned Thebes into a prosperous city, decorated with magnificent temples and palaces. Thebes also became the center of veneration for the god of all Egypt, Amun-Ra.

The Greeks called the ancient Egyptian capital “the hundred-gate Thebes.” Undoubtedly, this was a legendary exaggeration and apparently meant the truly enormous size of the city, which distinguished it from the Greek Thebes itself, called the “seven gates”. At that time, Thebes was a truly large and densely populated city. In Ancient Egypt, not a single city could compare with them in the grandeur and grandeur of architectural structures. Thebes was simply called the City, as later Athens, Alexandria, Rome, Constantinople.

Thebes is located on two banks of the Nile, the bed of which is wide and deep here. On the eastern shore, where the sun rose, stretched a populous city of the living with the famous temple ensembles of Ipet Res and Ipet Sut, palaces, gardens and reservoirs. Trade was in full swing here, shops and workshops were located along the river, chariots raced along the embankment, crowds of people walked, and solemn processions marched. On the western bank, closer to the river, in the valley there were memorial temples of pharaohs of different dynasties, and the tombs of kings and nobles were hidden in the rocks of the Libyan ridge.

The division of each city of Ancient Egypt by the great African river into two parts was traditional: the cult of the dead was associated with the west, from where the merciless desert advanced and where the sun god Ra descended into the underworld. It is difficult to imagine what the city of the dead looked like on the western bank of Thebes. Nowadays desolation, heat and silence reign here. Of the majestic funeral ensembles, the best preserved

ruins of the temple of Queen Hatshepsut in Deir el-Bahri and Pharaoh Ramesses II (the so-called Ramesseum).

In Thebes one can be convinced that, despite all the losses and destruction, the ancient Egyptian monuments did not disappear without a trace, like the monuments of other civilizations. Thebes is a thousand years older than the famous Ancient world the city of New Babylon, the splendor of which is no longer really possible to judge. The ruins of Theban architecture, with its gigantic statues, beautiful reliefs and paintings, still captivate with their extraordinary beauty. And to this day, from the right bank of the Nile, every evening for thousands of years you can see the enchanting spectacle of a flaming sunset, reflected by the brown waters of the river: the sun god Ra leaves for the kingdom of the dead.

TO DEIR EL-BAHRI

The greatest buildings of the New Kingdom era were the temples, or “houses” of the gods. One of them is the mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut (1525-1503 BC), dedicated to the goddess Hathor, in Deir el-Bahri in Thebes, on the west bank of the Nile (early 15th century BC). The cult of Hathor, daughter of the god Ra, goddess of love, music and dance, was deeply revered by the Egyptians.

The most perfect embodiment of the cult ensemble were the famous Theban temples of Ipet Res and Ipet Sut, dedicated to the god Amun-Ra. Today they are known as the temples of Luxor and Karnak. Temples belonging to greatest creatures ancient Egyptian architecture, built starting from the 16th century. BC e. for many centuries. They occupied a large area and were distinguished by their emphasized monumentality. Pylons framed the entrances to temples. Located along the banks of the Nile, the temple in Luxor was almost entirely erected by the architect Amenhotep the Younger in the 16th century. BC e. and completed already in the 15th century. BC e. The courtyards of Luxor are magnificent, surrounded by mighty golden columns in the form of papyrus.

In front of the temple at Karnak, part of an alley of forty stone sphinxes has been preserved - exactly the same, with the body of a lion and the head of a ram (the sacred animal of the god Amun), located at an equal distance from each other. The Alley of Sphinxes approached the first entrance, which was relatively small and narrow.

Flags fluttered from tall wooden masts attached to pylons. The entrance led to an open courtyard surrounded by walls, columns and statues. Through the narrow second entrance one entered the hypostyle hall.

Hypostyle (from the Greek “hypostylos” - “supported by columns”) hall of the Karnak ensemble ( XVI - XII centuries BC BC), in which more than one hundred and thirty columns form sixteen rows, belongs to the masterpieces of world architecture. The central passage, framed by columns more than twenty meters high and about three and a half meters in diameter, with capitals in the form of open papyrus flowers, was illuminated from the side openings. The now defunct deep blue ceilings were decorated with yellow stars and soaring sacred kites.

From the hypostyle hall one could go into a small dark sanctuary, where only the pharaoh and priests were allowed to enter. Only during the nationwide multi-day spring festival of Amun, the statue of this god, installed on a solar boat, was solemnly taken out of the sanctuary for a ritual voyage along the Nile to the temple in Luxor.

Many beautiful reliefs and paintings made during the New Kingdom have been preserved. A wide variety of scenes are depicted on the walls of temples, in the tombs of the nobility and high officials: from work in workshops to mournful funeral ceremonies. Such, for example, is a rare relief from Memphis ( XIV V. BC BC), depicting a crowd of mourners. Movement dominates the subjects of tomb reliefs. Horses harnessed to chariots gallop; animals run away from the arrows of hunters; Defeated enemies fall. The pharaoh's boat invades the depths of the Nile thickets, causing the flowering reeds to bend and birds to fly, flapping their wings; The ginger cat manages to grab a duck with her teeth, and two willows with her paws. art This era is characterized by a desire for sophistication. More attention to detail: lush kami, which gives the look mystery (reliefs of the tomb of Visir Rames, XIV V. BC e.). Painting is enriched with a combination of pinkish-violet, golden, blue tones; the conventionality of coloring disappears: shades of light and dark skin that are closer to real ones are conveyed; blush is noticeable on women's faces; the body is visible through transparent clothes; Naked young maids, dancers, and musicians are often depicted.

The works of small-form sculpture are noted for their high taste. Women's toiletries (spoons for cosmetics, mirrors, boxes) were usually decorated with images of young girls carrying large vessel, playing the harp, swimming with a lotus, a duck, a fish in their hands. Glass products appeared for the first time, including sculpture. The obligatory figurines of servants in tombs gave way to the so-called ushabti (“respondents”). These are figurines made of terracotta (porous baked clay), faience, stone, wood in the form of mummies with open heads and arms. They depicted those who served their duties for the deceased in the afterlife.

art

Ancient Egypt.

A architecture.

The fine arts of Ancient Egypt, represented by architecture, sculpture, reliefs and paintings, are closely associated with the mortuary cult. In this case, the leading type was architecture.

The first significant structure in the series of grandiose royal tombs was the so-called. step pyramid of Pharaoh Josser at Saqqara (28th century BC). Two are associated with the brainchild of the architect Imhotep important points: the first is the creation of an entire ensemble, incorporating a complex of mortuary churches, chapels and courtyards surrounding a 60-meter tomb. The ensemble principle was emphasized by a wall fencing off the rectangular territory of the funeral complex; the second is the embodiment of the idea of ​​increasing the tomb vertically. The emphasizing of the pharaoh's tombs by dramatically increasing their scale reflected the growing power of the “sons of god.”

A classic example of this kind of structure are the pyramids of the pharaohs of the 4th dynasty (27th century BC) Cheops, Khafre and Mikerin (Greek version of their names). Their refined form, based on the proportions of the “golden section”, was extremely laconic and endlessly expressive. Two elements determined the patterns of form: the base, square in plan, and the convergence of the sides at one point, just as all Egyptian life converged and became focused in the deified pharaoh. The pyramidal design, ingenious in its simplicity, carried an artistic generalization of the very essence of Egyptian society, subordinate to the unlimited power of the pharaoh.

A characteristic feature of the pyramids as architectural considerations was the relationship between mass and space: the burial chamber where the sarcophagus with the mummy stood was very small, and long and narrow corridors led to it. The spatial element has been kept to a minimum.

The mass of the entire pyramid reigned supreme, while the pyramid itself was the final part of a huge spatial ensemble: on the banks of the Nile there was a small lower mortuary temple, from which there was a long covered corridor. Rising along the slope of the Libyan plateau, it led to the upper mortuary temple, located at the foot of the pyramid. The ensemble of Pharaoh Khafre had a giant sphinx, whom the Egyptians called “the father of fear.” It is believed that this was an image of Khafre in lion form (the head of a man and the body of a lion).

In the era of the Middle Kingdom (21-18 centuries BC) appears new type mortuary temple. The brightest example is the temple of Mentuhotep I in the Deir el-Bahari valley (west bank of the Nile).

The first, striking innovation is the change in terrain: not in the desert, but near the rocks of the Libyan Highlands.

The second is the complication of the composition of the mortuary temple, consisting of two terraces located one above the other and culminating in a small pyramid. The horizontal flatness of the terraces, emphasized by a gentle ramp, is, as it were, slowed down by the vertical porticoes running along the façade and sides of the temple.

Behind the main core of the complex was a small open courtyard surrounded by a colonnade.

It led to the second hypostyle hall (the first was the lower terrace) and rooms carved into the rock.

To this was added a lower temple (or propylaea) and a road, fenced on both sides by walls and connecting the temple with the main funeral ensemble.

Additional elements of this architectural complex there were painted stone statues of the king standing on the road, and a garden with two pools in front of the first hypostyle hall.

From the mortuary complex of Menhotep I a thread stretches to the temple architecture of the New Kingdom, one of the earliest examples of which was the mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut (early 15th century BC). It was erected in the familiar Deir el-Bahari valley by the architect Senmut, next to the temple of Mentuhotep I.

The most important innovation is burial separately from the temple. The royal mummy is hidden somewhere in a hiding place in the mountains. The ensemble, on the whole, consists of the same elements as the “neighbor’s” temple, but with a tendency towards greater grandeur: three terraces, rising one above the other, are of a large scale; the richest decoration, widespread use of sculptures (over 250 statues), an abundance of colonnades, trees and artificial ponds located on the terraces.

The idea of ​​a spatially developed temple complex, subordinate to the principle of a central axis, received its most complete and perfect expression in the ensembles of Karnak and Luxor on the eastern bank of the Nile in Thebes, dedicated to the god Amun-Ra (16-15 centuries BC).

The main elements of a complex and harmonious whole were the following volumetric and spatial components: chapel, crown hall, open courtyard. They lined up along one axis, which continued behind the walls as a long alley with sphinxes. Their alternation was accentuated by huge pylons - entrances, which were flat trapezoidal shapes, towering above the rest of the architectural volumes of the temple complex. In front of the pylons there were huge sculptural statues of pharaohs and obelisks (the so-called “pharaoh’s needles”).

The main means of architectural expression was the column: there are 270 of them in the Karnak temple, 151 in the Luxor temple. The most characteristic feature of these columns is the use of plant materials: the columns resemble bundles of giant papyri and lotus.

One of the most perfect temple ensembles among Egyptian architectural monuments is the Luxor Temple, called Ipet-Res. Most of it was built by the architect Amenhotep the Younger in the 15th century. BC.

Let's consider his plan: it is easy to distinguish three main parts. The first is an elongated rectangle, denoting the first open courtyard with a colonnade along the central axis (about 20 m in height with capitals in the form of flowering papyrus); the second is a square, denoting the second open courtyard, surrounded by a two-row colonnade; the third is the most extensive, rectangular, denoting a complex of rooms located along the central axis (sanctuaries and chapels with statues of gods) and next to it (storerooms). This third part begins with a vestibule with 32 columns.

The gradual movement towards the chapels through the majestic giant “thickets” of stone papyrus also had a “light drama” from the brightly lit courtyard, through the darkness of the columned hall, where light penetrated through the upper barred openings, to the mysterious twilight of the artificially lit chapel. It is not without reason that some scholars believed that the Egyptian temple building was more of a road for processions than a space for sojourn.

And the main line of architecture of the cult monuments of Ancient Egypt is completed by the so-called. Ramessum: a complex consisting of the Palace and mortuary temple of Ramesses II at Thebes, and two temples of Ramesses II at Abu Simbel (Nubia), which are entirely carved out of rock, including four 24-meter statues of Ramesses on the façade.

They preserved the basic compositional principles of the temple complexes of the New Kingdom, while maximally emphasizing the idea of ​​glorifying the pharaoh.

Sculpture.

A distinctive feature of Egyptian fine art is its canonicity. Formed characteristics visual forms and compositional solutions become mandatory for all subsequent works of a certain genre, such as portrait sculpture, relief, painting. With all this, Egyptian art is also undergoing some evolution, because true artistic creativity cannot help but respond to the changes that are taking place in the spiritual culture of society. Therefore, we will consider a very limited range of works related to sculptural statues, reliefs and paintings, selecting those examples that most clearly reflected the main points in the development of Egyptian art.

In the Old Kingdom, strictly defined types of statues were developed: standing with the left leg extended and arms lowered, pressed to the body (statue of Mikerin with goddesses, statue of Ranofer); seated, with her hands placed on her knees (statue of Rahotep and his wife Nofret, statue of the royal scribe Kaya).

All are characterized by the following artistic techniques: the figures are constructed with strict observance of frontality and symmetry; the head is set straight and the gaze is directed forward; the figures are inextricably linked with the block from which they are carved, which is emphasized by the preservation of part of this block as a background; the statues were painted: the body of male figures was reddish-brown, female figures were yellow, hair was black, clothes were white.

The main character is solemn monumentality and strict calm. To these patterns common to all sculptural statues, one should add a small but very significant touch - portrait features in the rendering of the face. It is impossible to confuse the face of the scribe Kaya with his slightly flat nose and prominent cheekbones and the face of Prince Rahotep with tense wrinkles at the bridge of his nose, neat mustache and plump lips; the arrogant face of the architect Hemiun, slightly plump, with a small but energetic and hard mouth, and the face of the high priest Ranofer with properly stern and dispassionate features.

The individualization of canonical features is completed by careful plastic treatment of the body: young, physically developed or plump, slightly swollen with fat, with loose skin and wrinkles.

During the Middle Kingdom, in order to strengthen the significance of the supreme power in the creation of the people, sculptural images of the living rulers of Egypt, dedicated to the gods, began to be installed in front of and inside temples. The personality of the pharaoh is exalted with even greater clarity (the latter will reach unprecedented proportions during the New Kingdom). This entailed strengthening the individual realistic principle while maintaining the fundamental canons of artistic practice.

The head of the statue of Senusret III (19th century BC) is a wonderful example of Egyptian realistic portraiture: sharp wrinkles, deep-set eyes, a large nose and a slightly protruding, commanding mouth. The cut-off modeling of the face acquires great expressive significance: the sharp contrast of highlights and darkened parts on black stone (obsidian) emphasizes a more complex psychological interpretation of the image, in which energy and insightful intelligence are combined with moments of reflection.

In the small plastic arts of the Middle Kingdom, works appear that are distinguished by such a new quality as grace and harmony. Harmony of the lines of the arms and legs, finer coloring of clothes reproducing various patterns, miniature figures - characteristic stylistic devices of one of the works of the Middle Kingdom - figurines of servants carrying sacrificial gifts (19th century BC).

The lyrical beginning is most characteristic of sculptural examples of the New Kingdom. The figurines of the priestess Rannai and the priest Amenhotep are distinguished by their exquisite workmanship: they are made of wood, the eyes and jewelry are inlaid with gold, and the clothes are silver-plated. The soft outlines of rounded faces, the grace of figures, acquiring fragility and refinement in the image of the “singer of Amon” due to the elongated proportions and fluidity of lines.

The most interesting period in the art of the New Kingdom was

the reign of Amenhotep IV-Akhenaton in the first half of the 14th century. BC. His new capital, Akhetaten, was built according to a single plan and included several large parts: the central one was built up with a palace and the main temple of Aten, which included administrative buildings, and houses - estates of nobles. The outskirts were occupied by housing for artisans and the poor.

A significant innovation of temple ensembles, while maintaining general principle placement of predominantly open rooms on the central axis, there was a rejection of multi-columned halls. They were replaced by spacious courtyards with numerous altars.

But the most significant changes occurred in the visual arts. The break with the ancient religious tradition marked a departure from the glorification of the royal image. The emphasis was now placed on the requirement of simplicity and naturalness, which should have been manifested not only in facial features, but also in conveying the state of mind. Several sculptural portraits and statues of Akhenaten have been preserved, striking in their realistic interpretation. Moreover, in the first years of his reign, realism acquired the character of exaggerating the individual features of the pharaoh’s appearance, sometimes reaching the point of grotesquery: the statue of Amenhotep IV in Karnak; relief “Family of Akhenaten” on the border stele. This disappears in later works - the plaster head of Akhenaten and the portrait head of Akhenaten, unfinished. There are no longer grotesque exaggerations of the lips and nose; the modeling of the face is soft.

The sculpture of the second half of the New Kingdom, its main line, is represented by the following works: giant statues of Ramesses II on the facade of his great temple at Abu Simbel; colossi of Ramesses II in the temples of Amun in Karnak and Luxor and in Ramessum. The most striking feature of these monuments is their enormous scale, combined with public, monumentalized volumes.” “We remembered” the ancient traditions of Egyptian art - solemn and heroic

monumental style, the overwhelming grandeur of the buildings, asserting the greatness of the pharaoh-god.

But in comparison with the Ancient Kingdom, all this sculpture acquired a shade of gigantomania, when the external is too superior to the internal.

Reliefs and paintings.

The characteristics of Egyptian art are completed by reliefs and paintings, which in great abundance adorned the walls of tombs, mortuary temples, columns, sarcophagi and, in general, everything that could be decorated with them.

The characteristic features of the pictorial canon in relief developed back in the pre-dynastic period, which was reflected in the paintings that were already developing in the art of the Middle Kingdom. The famous “Narmer Plate”, created in honor of King Narmer, who united Upper and Lower Egypt, contains the main canonical features. These include:

1. Line-by-line placement of plot scenes (dividing the plane with horizontal belts).

2. Compositional organization of scenes (within belts) based on orderliness. This principle appears most clearly in the so-called. procession motifs, where the figures move one after another, at regular intervals, with repeated gestures.

3.Different scale of figures. Since the pharaoh was the main character in each composition, he, as well as the gods, was depicted in larger sizes than all other figures.

4. The image of a person is the principle of spreading a figure on a plane, when the head and legs are depicted in profile, and the torso and eye are depicted in front. The clearest, most clearly readable aspects were chosen, organically connected by a generalizing type silhouette and correlated with a two-dimensional plane.

5.Image of objects from different points of view using their vertical arrangement: what is further away is depicted on the plane above.

6.Unity of images and hieroglyphic inscriptions.

The most common theme of reliefs and paintings was that of a feast, usually associated with a mortuary cult. The painting from the tomb in the Theban acropolis dates back to the period of the New Kingdom. It is here that the character traits Egyptian art, since any plot composition uses many different “elements” such as human figures, household items (tables, chairs, dishes), trees, birds, animals, etc. And all this multitude of images is placed on a plane divided into horizontal belts so that each of the figures and objects is clearly “readable” by the eyes, without obscuring each other. Placed at regular intervals, with repeated gestures, they seem to freeze: the entire “picture,” whatever its theme, is perceived as a solemn ritual action, soaring above the ordinary world of real life. All specific and borrowed from life subjects, recreated in Egyptian reliefs and paintings, thanks to the compositional solution, acquired the character of a sacred rite, for they reproduced life after death.

"Ancient Pyramids" - Ascending Corridor and Queen's Chambers. Prechamber 12. Mastaba. The Pyramid of Cheops. Architecture of ancient Egypt. The mastaba consists of two parts - above ground and underground. The top of the pyramid was crowned with a gilded stone - the pyramidion. Cross section of the Cheops pyramid: About the pyramid.

“Ancient Egypt lesson” - Mythology of Ancient Egypt. Study of the religion of the ancient Egyptians. The meaning of the temple in ancient Egypt. Lesson objectives. The veneration of Osiris was widespread throughout Egypt. The purpose of the lesson. Egyptian deities. Answers to questions after reading. Development of a history lesson for 5th grade. Find out the meaning of the temple in Ancient Egypt.

“Ancient Mesopotamia” - IV – III millennium BC. e. –River spills and “storage” basins – Egypt. Canals – Mesopotamia, China. II – I millennium BC e. - iron. XIV century BC e. - Amenhotep IV (Akhenaton) – religious reform. Akkado - Sumerian state (XXIV - XXIII centuries BC) - Founder - Sargon. The country is “The House of the King.” + lands of temples and nobles.

“Philosophy of Ancient China” - Bonsai is your child... You will learn that... 7. 4. 5. 1. Chokkan. Bonsai is unique... It lives in spite of all adversity and only becomes more graceful... If you are wise, fair, friendly, delicate, BONSAI IS FOR YOU! 6. Shakan. Bonsai forms. Kengai. Each bonsai tree has its own character, its own unique features...

"MHC Egypt" - About the pharaoh. Pharaoh. By what principle are seemingly incompatible things united here? Why did the ancient Greek historian Herodotus call Egypt the gift of the Nile? Nile water at different times of the year. Quiz on world artistic culture. Keme (chernozem). Fine Arts teacher, Moscow Art Educational Institution, Gymnasium No. 20 Natalya Alekseevna Kurkina.

“Culture of Ancient India” - Today Buddhism is widespread in China, Japan and other countries. Excavations of Mohenjo-Daro. Vishnu and the 12th avatar are the guardian of the universe. The economy is based on irrigation farming. Golden Stambha - a tower with a sacred animal (500 kg of gold). The development of ancient Indian architecture has some peculiarities.

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