Review Prior to Writing hephren (Khafre) mastaba during excavation with its upper half visible, Giza, c.2500 BCE Wikimedia Commons, public domain. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Stepped Pyramid of King Djoser, Saqqara, 2630-2575. Author: Dennis Jarvis.  Creative Commons 2.0 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. . Menkaure and a Queen, 2490-2472, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.  Author: unknown.  Photo by Jen.  Creative Commons 3.0 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Rock-cut tomb, Beni Hassan, 1938-1756 BCE.  Author: Kurohito.  Creative Commons 3.0 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. . Head of Akhenaten, c. 1353-1336, Alexandria National Museum. Creative Commons 3.0 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. . Welcome to ancient Egypt. Here we find a culture where tradition reigned supreme. Life along the Nile was organized according to a divine plan established by an array of gods and overseen by the king, who was himself divine. Art celebrated the gods and god-king. Much of the art of ancient Egypt was funerary, put to the purpose of helping the king, members of the royal family and high-ranking officials into that life of immortality. The tombs, their contents, as well as temples dedicated to gods and kings were built to endure, just as the deities would endure through eternity. Aside from physical solidity, Egyptian art was changeless in its style conventions, formulas of representation that would last for 3,000 years. Ancient Egyptian history is divided into three major periods: Old Kingdom (3,000-2181 BCE), Middle Kingdom (2055-1650 BCE) and New Kingdom (1550-1069 BCE). Old Kingdom Egypt is the period of gargantuan tombs, which show a traceable evolution of form through the period. These are solid structures meant to glorify the deceased, as well as provide protection for the king’s belongings and his mummified remains. In the Slideshow are two types of Egyptian tombs from the Old Kingdom, a mastaba tomb and a stepped pyramid. Old Kingdom Egypt also set into place the style conventions that would be so long lasting. In your readings, note the formula for Egyptian figures that artists were expected to follow, especially when rendering the deceased or anyone of high rank. Menkaure and a Queen is a sculpture that exhibits the look for standing figures. The Middle Kingdom presents another period of strong artistic enterprise that continued the established conventions. During this period, tombs, such as those at Beni Hassan, became much more discreet, carved into hillsides and covered over to prevent theft. Separate mortuary temples commemorated these kings. The New Kingdom was an imperial period for the Egyptians, when they extended their borders into Mesopotamia and southward into the Sudan. This is a period of great wealth which was lavished on mortuary temples, extensive pylon temples and extravagant burials, such as that of ...

1. Review Prior to Writing
hephren (Khafre) mastaba during excavation with its upper half
visible, Giza, c.2500 BCE
Wikimedia Commons, public domain. (Links to an external
site.)Links to an external site.
Stepped Pyramid of King Djoser, Saqqara, 2630-2575. Author:
Dennis Jarvis.
Creative Commons 2.0 (Links to an external site.)Links to an
external site.
.
Menkaure and a Queen, 2490-2472, Museum of Fine Arts,
Boston. Author: unknown. Photo by Jen.
Creative Commons 3.0 (Links to an external site.)Links to an
external site.
Rock-cut tomb, Beni Hassan, 1938-1756 BCE. Author:
Kurohito.
Creative Commons 3.0 (Links to an external site.)Links to an
external site.
.
Head of Akhenaten, c. 1353-1336, Alexandria National
Museum.
Creative Commons 3.0 (Links to an external site.)Links to an
external site.
.

2. Welcome to ancient Egypt. Here we find a culture where
tradition reigned supreme. Life along the Nile was organized
according to a divine plan established by an array of gods and
overseen by the king, who was himself divine. Art celebrated
the gods and god-king. Much of the art of ancient Egypt was
funerary, put to the purpose of helping the king, members of the
royal family and high-ranking officials into that life of
immortality. The tombs, their contents, as well as temples
dedicated to gods and kings were built to endure, just as the
deities would endure through eternity. Aside from physical
solidity, Egyptian art was changeless in its style conventions,
formulas of representation that would last for 3,000 years.
Ancient Egyptian history is divided into three major periods:
Old Kingdom (3,000-2181 BCE), Middle Kingdom (2055-1650
BCE) and New Kingdom (1550-1069 BCE). Old Kingdom Egypt
is the period of gargantuan tombs, which show a traceable
evolution of form through the period. These are solid structures
meant to glorify the deceased, as well as provide protection for
the king’s belongings and his mummified remains. In the
Slideshow are two types of Egyptian tombs from the Old
Kingdom, a mastaba tomb and a stepped pyramid.
Old Kingdom Egypt also set into place the style conventions
that would be so long lasting. In your readings, note the formula
for Egyptian figures that artists were expected to follow,
especially when rendering the deceased or anyone of high rank.
Menkaure
and a Queen is a sculpture that exhibits the look for standing
figures.
The Middle Kingdom presents another period of strong artistic

3. enterprise that continued the established conventions. During
this period, tombs, such as those at Beni Hassan, became much
more discreet, carved into hillsides and covered over to prevent
theft. Separate mortuary temples commemorated these kings.
The New Kingdom was an imperial period for the Egyptians,
when they extended their borders into Mesopotamia and
southward into the Sudan. This is a period of great wealth
which was lavished on mortuary temples, extensive pylon
temples and extravagant burials, such as that of Tutankamun.
Conventions in art remained in place, aside from one moment of
eccentricity. This moment occurred during the reign of
Akhenaten, who allowed startlingly expressive exaggeration in
his royal portraits.
These main points should help guide your reading and provide a
broad base for your discussion posts and essay.
Now that you have completed the module readings, please move
to the next learning activity, Cities of the Dead.
Watch the following segment on "
Religious Cults and the Afterlife (Links to an external
site.)Links to an external site.
" [Video, 05:56 minutes] from the film "Ancient Egypt."
From your readings, the film, and any optional outside research,
compose a short essay (two pages of double-spaced text)
regarding Egyptian burial, which integrates art into religious
practices. For examples of tombs, use one of the Great Pyramids
of Old Kingdom Egypt, and also the tomb of Tutankhamen of
New Kingdom Egypt. Consider the religious conception of

4. afterlife for the ancient Egyptians. What material preparations
were necessary for the deceased in terms of tomb structure and
contents?
Address the following in your essay:
Why did the dead need material goods and mummification?
Consider how the differing tombs were designed to protect the
deceased.
What types of objects were buried with Tutankhamen's mummy?
Describe a few items to convey the wealth and artistry of these
objects.
Essay Writing Requirements:
Double-space
Two pages or 500+ words
Follow the APA style.
Proofread: Be sure to check your work and correct any spelling
or grammatical errors before you post it.
Submit the essay to the assignment dropbox.
Tutoring help is available through
Smarthinking (Links to an external site.)Links to an external
site.
.

5. Grammar assistance is available using the
Online Writing Lab (Links to an external site.)Links to an
external site.
(OWL).
Submit the paper by the due date.
Compose your work in a .doc or .docx file type using a word
processor (such as Microsoft Word, etc.) and save it frequently
to your computer. For those assignments that are not written
essays and require uploading images or PowerPoint slides,
please follow uploading guidelines provided by your instructor.