The Ancient Egyptians' Wall Painting Techniques - Research Paper Example

How did the Ancient Egyptians' Wall Painting Techniques change through time? Several individuals sometimes argue that the ancient Egyptian civilization endured without necessarily undergoing much change for a period of over three thousand years. This claim is partially true because the Egyptian lifestyle, religion, philosophy, art, and language change considerably over a period. Art and craft in the ancient Egypt is far from what people understand today to be art and craft. What is referred to as the Egyptian Art was created originally for magical and religious purposes. The functions and symbols of this art reveal the beliefs of the Egyptians about the world and their effort to comprehend and relate to it. In the religious and social context of Egypt, the works of Art played a practical role whose direct physicality is not easy or simple for the modern viewer to recognize or realize. Most of the basics of Egyptian art were established or created at the beginning of the history of Egyptians and changed little after that. Most of the subject matter portrayed by this art remained unchanging over several years or periods of time creating a mistaken notion or a misconception that the Egyptian art remained the same virtually or similar for a period of three thousand years. Gay Robins (28) argues that irrespective of the limited repertory of subject matter, the Egyptian artists treasured variation and avoided producing similar or exact copies of the same forms. 1Nonetheless, the Egyptian art content was tied to its roles or functions, which was based or dependent on the world view of Egyptians. Therefore the only reason that would have necessitated a fundamental change in the depictions of Egyptian artists would be an alteration in the purpose of Egyptian art. This paper or article will discuss how the ancient Egyptians' wall painting techniques changed through time from the Old Kingdom to the New Kingdom. The paper will further outline the significances of the paintings and why the Egyptians used that technique to paint the wall. The ancient Egyptian civilization having much stability necessitated that the artistic conventions remain the same or similar for most of the Egyptian art history. However, a closer examination at various art works depicts differences in style showing those of the old, middle, and new kingdom with differences. Art was all round or surrounded entirely the ancient Egyptians. Starting from every temple and public building art down to the pharaohs and their families and ministers’ tombs, the message spreading being that of the God King and his position or place in maintaining order in the world. Starting with the earliest history, the art of the pre dynastic was popular from the funeral offerings. This art was consisted largely of the painted figurines and pottery, cosmetic palettes, carvings, and finely worked weapons (flint weapons). In painting, the monumental treatment was granted to designs such as those drawn in red on buff-colored pottery. The monopolistic figures depicting the gods curved from limestone come up towards the end of the pre dynastic period. The old kingdom period that followed the pre dynastic period or era had the reliefs and wall paintings reflecting the concept of art that served the gods of cult, the dead, and the kings. The traditional poses were combined with the idealistic features in the royal statuary. The statuary depicted the royalty as physically strong having softened features like touch of realism in some instances. Wall spaces found in the temples and tombs started using paintings and reliefs to depict or show the daily activities in estates, workshops, and homes. The paintings and reliefs were at times executed to indicate or show the activities of birds, animals, and working groups. The raised or sunken paintings and reliefs were proportioned well and composed with extreme or fine details particularly the Saqqara tombs. El Aaal Et all (5) while analyzing the paints argues that the polychromatic decorations of the ancient Egyptian temples and tombs have an extended tradition of over three millennia but they are currently difficult to identify because of the many pigments that have been subjected to extreme chemical reactions. However, this only change the features of the paintings of the walls of tombs and temples but the initial significance remains the same given that the paintings or art were aimed at similar functions. Selecting the reliefs on temple walls to portray the functions of the paintings and art on the walls, a relief on the temple wall showed or depicted the king presenting offerings to the gods and hitting or smiting the enemies of Egypt. This passed the message that the king was fulfilling or undertaking fully his duties of maintaining order in the world or universe. Egyptians also had a belief that these images through their existence were very instrumental in making the order a reality (Met Museum, 23). 2 Through out the old kingdom period, the techniques used involved the coming of the artists who were involved in planning the overall designs. The designs would then be transferred roughly to the walls for the carvers of the stone to cut into the columns or walls. After this crew would came the paint crew and the crew correcting the paintings to complete the work. According to Atiya Farid (41) the evolution of the burial places of the Egyptian proceeded from the simple pits of the olden times, which was later on lined with the brickwork, by way of the step pyramids and the mastabas. Attached to the burial place or tomb was the cult chapel where the living or surviving relatives would foregather and leave their offerings belonging to the dead. During the old kingdom, the private tombs of people of high rank and the nobles or mastabas, were already large or massive structures increased or enlarged by the addition of the cult chambers and several other rooms, which were decorated richly with colored reliefs, statues, and inscriptions, an example being the tombs of Mereruka, Ti, and Ptah-hotep. The start of the old kingdom centered at Memphis was marred by a rapid development of stylistic conventions, which characterized the Egyptian art throughout history. In painting and relief sculpture, the figure of human was often represented with the head in profile, the shoulders and eye in the front view, and the legs, pelvis, and feet in the profile. Because of the relative impermanence of the old kingdom, probably the painting was little used as a representation medium. The religious beliefs of the old kingdom period had it that the happy posthumous existence of the dead depended on the extension or continuation of all the phases of their earthly life. Artists thus had the obligation to produce a statement of reality using the most durable material to pass this message. The tombs were painted or decorated with military, domestic, ceremonial, and hunting scenes. Though the techniques changed based on the kingdom, the subject of the art or paintings remained the same. The middle kingdom having its capital based in Thebes was a new invention and experimental age that developed out of the first intermediate turbulence. This period witnessed the forms of the old kingdom being retained, but the style unity was broken. 3 The increasing formalism became combined with a meticulous craftsmanship delicacy. The painting of the rock-cut burial places or tombs at Bani Hasan forms one of the outstanding paintings for draftsmanship freedom. Robins (101) speaking about this kingdom argues that as at Koptos very little is known regarding this kingdom and the buildings of the middle kingdom were all replaced in during the 18th dynasty. The blocks of the middle kingdom however, survived because they had been re-used in the later buildings. The new kingdom art can be perceived as the final development of the Egyptian classic style of the middle kingdom, a combination of the old kingdom monumental forms, and the inspiration and drive of the middle kingdom. The paintings made during this period have been noted for controlled vitality and boldness of design. A delicate and free style came up during the Amarna period with several naturalistic tendencies and an innovative sense of living and movement. However, this change did not last for a longer period. The new stile that developed in sculpture was carried to the point of caricature. The sophistication, delicacy, and excessive richness of this particular style in its final period were best exemplified or shown by the furnishings from the Tutankhamen tomb. Atiya (40) writing about the tombs argues that the tombs that were cut out of the rocks replaced the pyramids in the new Kingdom. During the Amarna Period the traditional ideal and majestic forms of the gods and king were replaced with the exaggerated and elongated images of the Nefertiti and the king. Intimate tenderness and affection were portrayed in the scenes of the king, the queen, and their daughters. 4 The period of the Remesside witnessed a trial to return to the earlier New Kingdom’s classic formalism, but the vitality of that period was difficult to be recovered. The decline period was characterized by the mechanical repetition of the earlier forms by the introduction of the often cynical and satirical drawings in the papyri. Walter (504) in his article regarding the painting techniques in the antiquity period argues that the artists prepared their pigments using mixed minerals and different ground, applied the material onto the wall and the material particles remained engraved or embedded in the shallow calcite layer. The bottom line of the argument is that throughout the old middle and new kingdoms, the ancient Egyptians' wall painting techniques changed. In as much as it may be hard to observe those changes currently given that they depicted a similar style and function, every period come with a change that altered the techniques. In conclusion, Rawley argues that based on an observation of the abandoned or unfinished temples and tombs, a sequence of techniques used by the Egyptians can be drawn which kept changing from the old kingdom to the new kingdom. The Egyptians using nonferrous metals curved stone and applied or used paint on the stone or on the plastered walls, or in the case of tombs. The specialists working for the tomb or temple apprenticed at various techniques or skills over several years. Every period was centered on a different place with some dynasties contributing to the changes in the techniques of painting walls.5 An examination of the paintings provided as evidence indicate some common phenomenon in the painting techniques and these included the paintings having the feet of Egyptians pointing in a similar direction, and containers having contents on top showing what they held. Egyptian Wall Paintings Funeral wall painting in Egypt Wall paintings of tomb-chapel at Nebamun Ancient Egyptian Wall Painting Tomb of Saqqara Works Cited Atiya, Farid. Ancient Egypt. Egypt: American Univ in Cairo Press, 2006. Print. El Aaal, Shaaban et al. “Ion Beam Analysis Of Ancient Egyptian Wall Paintings.” Vacuum, 86.1(2009), S4–S8. Met Museum. The Art Of Ancient Egypt: A Resource For Educators. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, N.d. Web. 06 November 2012 Rawley, JC. Arts & Crafts in Ancient Egypt. Demand Media, Inc, 2012. Web. 2012 November 06 < http://www.ehow.com/about_5375623_arts-crafts-ancient-egypt.html> Robins, Gay. The Art of Ancient Egypt. U.S.A: Harvard University Press, 2008. Print. Walter, Ph. “Pigments With or Without Organic Binder? A Survey of Wall Painting Techniques During Antiquity.” AIP Conference Proceedings, 354.1(2003), 503-515. Read More