Ancient Egyptian Art For the Egyptians the objects

Ancient Egyptian Art

For the Egyptians, the objects now regarded as art were made to serve a particular purpose, usually a religious one, preparing a person for life after death. Much of the art that has survived was part of a king’s or queen’s burial tombs, protected from the wind, rain, and sunlight by the tomb itself.

Pyramids served as burial tombs for the Pharaohs. Their symmetry and precision are representative of ancient Egyptian art. They were built to honor and protect the pharaohs, and to assist them in reaching the heavens in their afterlife.

Inside the tombs, paintings depicted scenes of the deceased in the afterlife or the trials to get there. There are many paintings of gods and depictions of the weighing of the heart ceremony and other similar scenes expected to be in a tomb.

Also there are many examples of other themes and the paintings give us a visual understanding about the Egyptian way of life.

The Tomb of Nefertari

Much of Egyptian art was standardized. Not only were certain figures always the same number of squares tall and wide, but there also was a formula for the way to draw figures.

Important features were shown fully, not emphasizing realistic proportions or positions.

In the pictures, we see their jewelry and clothing. They wore jewelry and amulets not only as decoration, but also because they believed these items protected them against harm.

In addition, in their paintings we see that their script, Hieroglyphics, was detailed, artistic, and standardized. The script was developed about 4000 BC. Hieroglyphs were called, by the Egyptians, "the words of God" and were used mainly by the priests. These painstakingly drawn symbols were great for decorating the walls of temples.