Art of Ancient Egypt

1. Art of Ancient Egypt

2. The Old KingdomGreat Pyramids at Giza. ca. 2601-2515 BCE. Giza Egyptian rulers were envisioned as the human manifestation of the Gods. The Great Pyramids at Giza, like most Egyptian art, were royally commissioned funerary objects. This meant that the pyramids were built as burial chambers for the Egyptian rulers.

3. The Old KingdomGreat Pyramids at Giza. ca. 2601-2515 BCE. Giza The pyramids are the last remaining wonder of the seven wonders of the Ancient World. The three primary pyramids on the Giza plateau were built over the span of three generations by the rulers Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure.

4. The Old KingdomGreat Pyramids at Giza. ca. 2601-2515 BCE. Giza Unlike stepped pyramids before them, each face of the Great Pyramids at Giza was perfectly flat. The pyramid was built in a step-style, and then capped by white limestone. The limestone was plundered and used for building by later civilizations.

5. The Old KingdomGreat Pyramids at Giza. ca. 2601-2515 BCE. Giza The shape of the pyramid was a solar reference, perhaps intended as a solidified version of the rays of the sun. The pyramid was considered to be a place of regeneration for the deceased ruler.

6. The Old KingdomThe Great Sphinx. ca. 2570-2544 BCE. Giza. The Great Sphinx represents the combined form of a human head and the body of a lion. The Great Sphinx depicts the head of an Egyptian ruler.

7. The Old KingdomThe Great Sphinx. ca. 2570-2544 BCE. Giza. The Sphinx is carved from the bedrock of the Giza plateau, and it appears that the core blocks used to construct the king’s valley temple were quarried from the layers of stone that run along the upper sides of this massive image. 

8. The Old KingdomThe Great Sphinx. ca. 2570-2544 BCE. Giza. The lion was a royal symbol as well as being connected with the sun as a symbol of the horizon; the fusion of this powerful animal with the head of the pharaoh was an icon that was often used throughout Egyptian history.