Coffin of Pedi-Osiris/Inner coffin of Tutankhamun's Sarcophagus - Essay Example

Both pieces were made about a thousand years apart yet they have many similarities. Each piece is a work of art with value that cannot be priced from both its history and the precious materials from which they are constructed. From general observation, it appears in the long documented history of Egypt that their culture did not change too much, at least not their view of the afterlife. The New Kingdom was named as such because it came after a period of rule from the Hyksos, foreigner to Egypt.

The time was from 1550 to 1070 B.C. King Tutankhamun ruled after his parents broke with traditional religion in favor of the sole worship of the Aten (light). When King Tutankhamun succeeded to the throne he restored the traditional worship of Egyptian gods. (Watts 12). The period Ptolemy was so named after a general that worked under Alexander the Great. The time frame was 332 to 30 B.C. Alexander the great had invaded Egypt and made it his own. After he died the general ruled for the sons of Alexander the great but eventually named himself Pharaoh of Egypt.

As part of his reign, Ptolemy elevated the worship of Osiris. (Schulz, Matthias, et al, 291) Egyptian artisans commonly used readable descriptions on their art – in order to promote good will from the gods or as an insurance against bad fortune. The descriptions were either hieroglyphs, “sacred carvings” or hieratic, a simplified hieroglyph. (Stokstad 78). “The vision of the afterlife is vividly depicted in the sculptures, reliefs and wall paintings of Egyptian tombs, with the deceased portrayed in the way he or she wished to remain forever.

To achieve this ideal existence, however, a proper burial was necessary.” (Watts 27). To help the dead progress to the after life, “rituals and magic spells were inscribed on the walls of the burial chamber, sarcophagus and coffins.” (Watts 28). Both coffins, while anthropoid in shape, conform to another common Egyptian art sculpting practice: