#Egyptian Papyrus Painting

[artisticdivasworld]

Egyptian Papyrus Painting: A Journey Through an Ancient Art Form of Timeless Beauty

Today, we continue our trek around the world looking at art forms we may not be familiar with.  We have talked about Mexican Folk Art, Street Art, Chinese Kites, Japanese Origami, Sand drawings of Vanuatu, and Kintsugi so far.  Now we go way back centuries to look at and learn about an ancient art form that is very much alive today. The art of the Egyptian Paypyrus Painting is both interesting…

[deltamarmar]

LOOK AT THE PAINTING I GOT FROM COMIC CON!!! ITS MADE OUT OF REAL PAPYRUS AHHHHH— unfortunately it’s been taking forever to find a frame that fits right :(

[missz3lda]

Ancient Egyptians created artificial plants. They crafted fake flowers and garlands from materials like painted linen, papyrus, and thin metals to decorate temples, tombs, and homes. This practice dates back to around 2500 BCE, making Egypt one of the earliest cultures to produce artificial plants.

Rines, George Edwin, ed. (1920). "Flowers, Artificial" . Encyclopedia Americana.

More dork content here

[toyastales]

A small statue of Tutankhamun (1341-1323 BC), of gilded wood, depicting Pharoah wearing red crown of Lower Egypt, standing in a papyrus boat made of green painted wood, and gilded, where papyrus details are supposed to appear.

Egyptian Museum, Cairo

[egypt-museum]

Statuette of Tutankhamun the Harpooner

Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62), Valley of the Kings, Thebes. Now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. JE 60710

A gilded, wooden statuette of King Tutankhamun stands on a wooden boat that is painted to represent a papyrus boat. Its details are picked out in gold leaf. The king, wearing the Deshret Red Crown of Lower Egypt, holds a harpoon poised to strike an unseen enemy.

According to the myth of Osiris and Isis, the king here represents their son, Horus, who avenged his father, Osiris. His adversary, Seth, often portrayed as a hippopotamus or crocodile, is not depicted, as he is a potentially harmful image. The figure of the king holds a bronze coiled chain to bind the animal, representing Seth, after spearing it. The statue was found wrapped in linen in a varnish-blackened chest.

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[whencyclopedia]

Djed

The Djed is an ancient Egyptian symbol for stability which features prominently in Egyptian art and architecture throughout the country's history. `Stability' should be understood to mean not only a firm footing but immutability and permanance. The symbol is a column with a broad base which narrows as it rises to a capital and is crossed by four parallel lines. The column and the lines are sometimes brightly painted and other times monochrome. The djed first appears in the Predynastic Period in Egypt (c. 6000-3150 BCE) and continues through the Ptolemaic Dynasty (323-30 BCE), the last dynasty to rule Egypt before it became a province of the Roman Empire.

The djed is often overlooked in Egyptian art, and especially in architecture, simply because it is so ubiquitous; the djed is featured on pillars, tomb walls, architraves (the main beam which rests on pillars), palace walls, sheets of painted papyrus, and especially sarcophagi. Once one is aware of the djed and its importance to ancient Egyptian culture it is impossible to miss. It is a potent symbol associated with the god Osiris and his return from the dead. The symbol has been interpreted to represent different objects such as the god Osiris' backbone, the tamarisk tree which enclosed the god, four pillars rising one behind another, and a fertility pole raised at festivals. `Stability', however, seems to have been its prime meaning and the one which the ancient Egyptians attached the greatest importance to.

Meaning & Origins

The precise origin of the djed is unknown but it was associated with the god Ptah, an early creator god in the Predynastic Period whose attributes were later assumed by the deities Atum and Osiris. According to historian Clare Gibson, the djed was an early phonogram which could also act as a pictogram or ideogram. A phonogram is a symbol representing a sound and a pictogram a symbol for a specific word or phrase while an ideogram is a symbol of a thing itself without reference to words or sounds (such as numerals where one recognizes the symbol 10 as representing a certain quantity). The djed symbolized the spoken word-concept for stability, was the written word for stability, and stood for the concept itself.

In the Predynastic Period it may have originally been a representation of a fertility pole upon which sheaves of grain were suspended at festivals. This pole may have been a feature of early fertility rituals which eventually came to be associated with the god who made the land fertile. The god Ptah carried a sceptre which combined the djed and the Ankh (symbol of life) and is referenced as "The Noble Djed" in ancient inscriptions. The Djed Pillar Festival was held annually at which an actual djed pillar was built and raised by the local priesthood on the first day of the harvest season. Raising the pillar may have originally symbolized the grains rising from the earth but, in time, came to represent the god Osiris returning from the dead.

With the rise of the cult of Osiris, the djed came to be firmly associated with him and, especially, with the tree of Byblos which enclosed him and the pillar made from that tree. The djed also symbolized the backbone of Osiris in that, just as Osiris rose from the dead, the deceased would rise from their body after death. In the same way that the human backbone allowed one to sit up and stand and walk, the spiritual image of Osiris' backbone would encourage the soul to rise up from the body and move toward the afterlife. The myth of Osiris was one of the most popular in ancient Egypt, especially in the period of the New Kingdom (1570-1069 BCE). The story details the death of the god, his ressurection by his wife Isis, and descent to the underworld to reign as Lord of the Dead.

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[chthonic-sorcery]

Direct Vision Spell for an Oracle 𓂀

A 2000 year old Greco-Egyptian magic spell

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

[PGM V 54 – 69]

So sick of all these fake bs Tumblr and Pinterest spells-

"what color candle means what lol" with zero cultural or historical significance, it's like they just pulled things out of their ass.

So, here is a real 2000 year old Greek and Egyptian syncretic spell from Thebes to receive a direct vision from the beyond....WITH cultural and historical context.

Because, yes, history is important, and anyone giving you "spell tips" without telling you where the fuck they're from or what they mean is bullshitting you.

Ancient Greek oracular spells were rituals and invocations performed to gain insights or predictions from the gods, the Theoi, as well as Daemons and the Dead, particularly through seers known as oracles.

The Spell: PGM V 54 – 69 from the Greek Magical Papyri

Context of the Spell:

This spell is an interesting blend of Egyptian and Greek oracular practice: the use of Coptic or Egyptian eyepaint, kohl, here is interesting– as well as it's mixture with water from a sunken ship. Water from such locations are normally reserved for love spells, as we see previously in the PGM. The relationship or correspondence between a literal sunken vessel and sinking into the throes of passion. However, here, with its use in an oracular spell, it seems to correspond more to the chthonic or otherworldly realm, giving te wearer the ability to see past the normal, mundane world; past the ‘veil’ so to speak and into the beyond.

The use of the magical mystery word or voces magicae “Akrammachamarei” here is also notable; it is quite often seen throughout the PGM, and is associated with the God/Daemon/Archon of both Gnostic (Jewish-Egyptian) as well as Greek origin, Abrasax.

In spell PGM V. 96-172, Abrasax is identified as part of the "true name which has been transmitted to the prophets of Israel" of the "Headless One, (also known as the Egyptian god Bês) who created heaven and earth, who created night and day ... Osoronnophris whom none has ever seen ... awesome and invisible god with an empty spirit"; the name also includes Iaō and Adōnai, the ineffablenames of the Jewish god. "Osoronnophris" represents Egyptian Wsir Wn-nfr, or "Osiris the Perfect Being.” Another identification with Osiris is made in PGM VII. 643-51: "you are not wine, but the guts of Osiris, the guts of ... Ablanathanalba Akrammachamarei Eee, who has been stationed over necessity, Iakoub Ia Iaō Sabaōth Adōnai Abrasax."

Instructions:

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

After you have purified yourself (through ritual bathing and declarations) you must put on your clean linen robes and sandals of Papyrus.

Then, taking a purified bronze censer, place the laurel leaves inside and light them until the smoke fills the room. Walk clockwise around the room, and your workspace, Chanting the Ephesia Grammata:

ΑΣΚΙ(ΟΝ) ΚΑΤΑΣΚΙ(ΟΝ) ΛΙΞ ΤΕΤΡΑΞ ΔΑΜΝΑΜΕΝΕΥΣ ΑΙΣΙΟΝ (or ΑΙΣΙΑ)

“askion kataskion lix tetrax damnameneus aision”

Then, taking the olive oil, pour it into the waiting bronze dish.

With your right hand, anoint your right eye with the prepared water from a shipwreck.

With your left hand, mix 1 part kohl with 1 part water until it is a viscous paint, from the same dish, and anoint your left eye so that it is completely surrounded by the paint.

Then, pronounce the incantations:

"EEIM TO EIM ALALĒP BARBARIATH / MENEBREIO ARBATHIAÔTH IOUĒL IAĒL OUĒNĒIIE MESOMMIAS,

let the god who prophesics to me come and let him not go away until I dismiss him,

OURNAOUR SOUL ZASOUL / OUGOT NOOUMBIAOU THABRAT BERIAOU ACHTHIRI MARAI ELPHEŌN TABAŌTH KIRASINA LAMPSOURĒ IABOE ABLAMATHANALBA AKRAMMACHAMAREI.”

Once the incantations are finished, present any offerings and ask over the prepared olive oil dish what your question(s) are. Stare into the oil, lit only by candle or oil lamp light, and you will receive a direct vision.

─── ⋆⋅𓂀⋅⋆ ──

For more information & how to pronounce the incantations, check here.

[deinemuddalutscht]

Just me rambling about the husbands of Nephthys

The belief that Nephthys was the wife of Set largely comes from the writings of the Greek author Plutarch. Plutarch was a prolific writer and a priest at Delphi who likely obtained his information about Egypt during his travels to Alexandria. Although he accurately recounts much of Egyptian mythology, his writings are influenced by his philosophical views. By the time Plutarch wrote in the 2nd century CE, religious traditions had begun to merge, especially in Alexandria, where the cult of Isis was extremely popular.

Plutarch recounts a story in which Osiris unknowingly fathers a child with Nephthys, believing she was his wife, Isis. Nephthys, afraid of her husband Set's reaction, abandons the child, and Isis later finds and raises him as Anubis, who becomes her guardian. Interestingly, Plutarch also refers to a tradition where Nut’s children have different fathers: Horus and Osiris are Ra's sons, Isis is Thoth's daughter, and Nephthys and Set are the only children born in wedlock with Geb. Wikipedia states that Horus the Elder is a form of Horus that is the son of Geb and Nut, but this is only partly true: This claim comes from Plutarch, but Plutarch also claims that Horus the Elder is a son of Osiris and Isis, conceived by Isis and Osiris in the womb of Nut, and then born alongside the other children. Essentially, Plutarch tried to explain the multiple origin stories of Horus by stating that Osiris and Isis had supposedly three sons, all named Horus, and early Egyptologists somehow accepted this explanation. According to Plutarch, the three half-brothers also have different hair colors: Osiris has black hair, Horus white, and Set red. Additionally, Plutarch recalls a festival where Egyptians insulted red-haired people to mock Set's power on Earth. This has nothing to do with Nephthys’ marriages, but it's too amusing not to mention.

Overall, Plutarch paints a rather negative picture of Nephthys: Not only is she an adulterous wife who cheats on her husband, but she also has nonconsensual sex with Osiris, abandons her child in the desert, and even betrays Isis by revealing where she is hiding with her dead husband and child to Set. Plutarch also refers to Nephthys as Aphrodite throughout the text.

While many early sources link Nephthys and Set as a couple, there is little concrete evidence from ancient Egyptian texts directly confirming their marriage. Osiris, Nephthys, Set, Horus, and Isis are the core figures in the Osiris myth, and they all interact with one another inside th myths, except for Nephthys and Set. However, they are paired in other contexts, such as in descriptions of the Ennead. For example, in the Pyramid Texts, Nephthys and Set are paired together for specific roles, but they are not explicitly called a married couple. Some texts from later periods refer to Nephthys as Set’s wife, or mention Set having a wife, though these accounts are often times ambiguous and don't firmly establish this as a widespread early tradition. Therefore the tradition reported by Plutarch, in which Nephthys is the mother of Anubis by Osiris, finds little support in indigenous Egyptian sources, though it was likely not entirely invented by him.

As far as I can tell, we currently have no Ancient Egyptian texts that name Nephthys as Anubis’ mother, either by Set or Osiris. I know Wikipedia lists Anubis and Wepwawet as sons of Nephthys and Set, but no actual source is given for this information. Anubis is sometimes regarded as the son of Nephthys and Ra, though. The only real Egyptian source for Nephthys abandoning Anubis that I could find is in the Papyrus Jumilhac (“Nephthys, her bravery existed with him [Horus]. She had him [Horus] hidden as a small child in papyrus. His name is Anubis and his image is as Mehit-imyut.”). However, we should note that it is unclear whether Nephthys hid her son Horus-Anubis as Isis hid her child, or if she helps Isis hide the baby Horus-Anubis. In this text, Nephthys hiding her child is framed positively, not as the action of an adulterous woman abandoning her illegitimate child for selfish reasons.

Nephthys was sometimes regarded as Osiris’ wife in the underworld, just as Isis was on earth. Osiris and Nephthys are depicted as a couple in some contexts, as seen in the statue of Ramose from the Louvre (E 16378). Nephthys is sometimes given the title Onnophret, the feminine form of the Osirian epithet Onnophris or wn.nfr, meaning "the beautiful existent."

Interestingly, an erotic spell from the 4th century, mostly written in Greek with some Old Coptic passages, tells the story of how Isis goes to Thoth (specifically identified as her father in this version) and tells him about Osiris sleeping with Nephthys. Thoth then gives her a love spell to win Osiris back. However, it is unclear whether Isis is upset about Osiris taking a lover or a second wife. Alternatively, Nephthys could even be Osiris' first wife in this scenario, with Isis as the jealous sister.

There is one text I found that names Nephthys and Set as a married couple within the context of the Osiris myth. It's called the Ptolemaic Berlin Papyrus 8278, and it contains a story that goes as follows:

The first nine lines of Pap. Berlin P. 8278 are quite damaged. However, the main topic is the expulsion of Set from Egypt. The first readable paragraph tells how Set will be kept away from Egypt for the rest of his life. The text refers to him as a donkey, which is a very late interpretation of the Set animal. Then, there is a dialogue between the men of Horus and the men of Set. They discuss the punishment inflicted on Set. The men of Set would like the men of Horus to set him free. Set is described as copulating, drunk, and dead of thirst. From an explanatory gloss, we learn that Set went to an oasis with the Eye of Horus and swallowed it, leading to his drunkenness. Then, an unidentified speaker states that he has shown the way to Horus. After this, the god Thoth insists that Set is drunk and accuses him of harming Osiris. It is mentioned that Set "has been seized" and "has failed." All the gods start speaking to him, pointing out his failure. Finally, it is Isis’ turn to insult Set. She accuses him of taking water "in his own hand" (an explanatory gloss equates water with Osiris). Set is called "camel, pig, hippopotamus," and "the Failed One." Set speaks for the first time but avoids the accusations, instead lamenting his failed attempt to have anal sex with Nephthys, likely due to his drunken state. He recalls grabbing Nephthys' tail and trying to copulate with her ("Voice of Set: [The] female donkey was taken when I was seizing her tail. I was given deceit… Nephthys was taken when I was on her anus… although she belongs to me as a wife").

Nephthys was also sometimes regarded as Horus' wife, as seen in the magical stela of Nesamun ("All fertile lands, all deserts, all mountains, and all waters and what is in them are united under the feet of Horus, son of Osiris, with whom Isis was pregnant and with whom Nephthys is married. May they dispel your feverish heat, may they remove your inner restlessness."). Papyrus Ramesseum IV even speaks of an unnamed daughter of Horus and Nephthys ("Hemen slept with his mother Isis after he had impregnated his aunt Nephthys with a daughter").

[maxknightley]

the world's first recorded furry was a largely-forgotten Egyptian priest who would stay up late every Thursday night so he could paint pics of his Set Animal fursona on papyrus scrolls

[ltwilliammowett]

A large Egyptian gesso-painted wood model boat. Middle Kingdom, circa 2133-1797 B.C.

The sailing boat manned by ten sailors arranged in two parallel rows, with a further crew member facing forward and helmsman in the curved stern with a rudder, with a linen sail, the hull painted red, 130cm long. Boats were an integral part of everyday Egyptian life and mythology and as such were considered necessary for the afterlife. Two model boats were usually provided for each tomb, one showing the crew sailing south with the prevailing wind and the other the crew rowing north to allow the deceased to see the whole world of Egypt in both directions, but it also stands for the life and afterlife.. Both papyrus and wooden boats were recreated as models and represent the diversity of Egyptian boats.

[arthistoryanimalia]

Ancient Egyptian hippo & hedgehog squad at the Brooklyn Museum!

Standing Hippo

Middle Kingdom 2nd Int. Per. Dyn.12-17 c1938-1539BCE

Faience

“Egyptian artists decorated statuettes of hippos with images of Nile flora & fauna. Common motifs included lotus buds, flowers, marsh grass, lily pads, frogs, waterfowl, & insects. The legs of most statuettes were broken just before burial to ensure that they posed no threat to the tomb owner. Museum conservators restored the legs of many examples, including this one, to show how the statuettes looked when they were made.”

L: Votive(?) Hippos

Middle Kingdom Dyn.11-13 c2008-1630BCE

Painted pottery

“These coarse figures stand on low bases representing sleds or sledges, possibly alluding to a ritual called The Feast of the White Hippo in which a hippo was dragged on a sledge before the king. Worshippers at the festival probably either left these objects as votive offerings or acquired them as keepsakes.”

R: Two Hippos

Middle Kingdom Dyn.12-17 c1938-1539BCE

“The ancient Egyptians often snapped off the legs of hippopotamus statuettes before placing them in tombs, as these two examples show. The broken stumps of the smaller statuette's legs demonstrate how bright-blue glaze adhered to the white faience. The larger figure's snout, perhaps also broken in antiquity, has been restored.”

L. Hedgehog Rattle

Middle Kingdom Dyn. 12-13 c1938-1630BCE

Faience, 7.6 x 4.4 x 3.5 cm

“The hollow body of this hedgehog figure contains tiny pellets that rattled when it was shaken. The rattles were used to ward off harmful forces such as snakes, scorpions, or malevolent spirits. When attacked, a hedgehog rolls into a ball, presenting a mass of pointed spines to the predator. To the Egyptians, this behavior-_imitated in this figure-made the hedgehog an ideal protective symbol.”

R. Hedgehog Figurine

Middle Kingdom Dyn. 12-13 c1938-1630BCE

Faience, 4.2 x 4.1 x 7.1 cm

“When food is scarce, hedgehogs retreat into underground dens for long periods, to re-emerge only in times of abundance.

The Egyptians associated this behavior with rebirth and thus wore amulets in the form of hedgehogs or left figures such as this one in tombs. Also, according to the Ebers Medical Papyrus of the early Eighteenth Dynasty, hedgehog spines, when ground up and mixed with fat or oil, cured baldness.”

(note: labels are reversed - rattle is on L & figurine on R)

[sharky857]

Pick a treasure from my living room

(or better yet: pick a treasure from my bedroom, because that's where most of my stuff is stashed away)

Tagged by @valkeakuulas

Tagging @evol-astraea @alucardy2000 @missanthropicprinciple @kyrozon

[egyptologylessons]

Making Offering to Amun-Ra - Rock Inscription at Wadi Hammamat Pharaoh Seti I (1290–1279 BC), 19th Dynasty, is making a offering of papyrus 𓇅𓏤𓆰 “w3ḏ��� plants to the state god 𓊹 “nṯr” Amun-Ra. The god is identified by his hieroglyphic title and his double plumed 𓋛 crown. Inscription: Seti I (𓊪𓏏𓎛𓁣𓇌𓌸𓈖) “stḥy mri.n-ptḥ” ‘Seti, Beloved of Ptah’ Menmaatre (𓇳𓏠𓁦) “mn-m3ˁt-rˁ” ‘Enduring is the Maat of Ra’ Amun-Ra 𓇋𓏠𓈖𓇳𓏤𓎟𓇯𓋾𓋆 “ı͗mn-rˁ nb pt ḥk3 w3s.t” ‘Amun-Ra, Lord of the Sky and Ruler of Thebes’ Wadi Hammamat is a dry river bed in Egypt's Eastern 𓋁𓃀𓏏𓏭𓈊 “3bty” Desert 𓅱𓂝𓂋𓏏𓈊 “wˁr.t”, about halfway between Al-Qusayr and Qena. It was a major mining region and trade route east from the Nile Valley in ancient times, and three-thousand-years 𓆳𓊪𓏏𓏤𓆾 “rnp.wt 3000” of rock carvings and graffiti make it a major scientific and tourist site today. The wadi contains many carvings and inscriptions dating from before the earliest Egyptian Dynasties to the modern era, including the only painted petroglyph known from the Eastern Desert and drawings of Egyptian 𓂋𓐝𓎀𓀂𓀭𓏪 “rmṯ” reed boats dated to 4000 BCE. 📸 kairoinfo4u - Flickr 𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬𓋹𓎬 @egyptologylessons 𓋹𓊽𓋴𓆖𓎛𓇳𓎛 © 𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁𓊁 #Ancientegypt #ägypten #egyptology #egypte #egitto #埃及 #مصر #egipto #이집트 #wadihammamat #rockcarving #setii #amun #seti #amunra (at Wadi Hammamat) https://www.instagram.com/p/CoINAbSu5LU/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[a-modernmajorgeneral]

Almost everyone has seen this image of the Seated Scribe. Located on the upper floor of the Department of Egyptian Antiquities, this is the most famous of unknown figures. We know nothing about the person portrayed: neither his name, nor title, nor even the exact period during which he lived. Nevertheless, this statue never fails to impress visitors discovering it for the first time.

A specific posture

The Louvre's scribe, known as the "Seated Scribe", is indeed sitting cross-legged, his right leg crossed in front of his left. The white kilt, stretched over his knees, serves as a support. He is holding a partially rolled papyrus scroll in his left hand. His right hand must have held a brush, now missing. The most striking aspect of this sculpture is the face, particularly the elaborately inlaid eyes: they consist of a piece of red-veined white magnesite, in which a piece of slightly truncated rock crystal was placed. The front part of the crystal was carefully polished. The back side was covered with a layer of organic material, creating the color of the iris and also probably serving as an adhesive. The entire eye was then held in the socket by two large copper clips welded on the back. A line of black paint defines the eyebrows. The hands, fingers, and fingernails are sculpted with a remarkable delicacy. His chest is broad and the nipples are marked by two wooden dowels. The statue was cleaned in 1998, although the process merely reduced the wax overpainting. This restoration brought out the well-conserved ancient polychromy.

An unknown figure

The semicircular base on which the figure sits must have originally fit into a larger base that carried his name and titles, such as the base for the statue of Prince Setka, exhibited in room 22 of the Louvre. This base is missing, and the context of the discovery does not provide any additional information. According to the archeologist Auguste Mariette, who found the work, the statue of the scribe was apparently discovered in Saqqara on 19 November 1850, to the north of the Serapeum's line of sphinxes. But the precise location is not known; unfortunately, the documents concerning these excavations were published posthumously, the excavation journals had been lost, and the archives were scattered between France and Egypt. Furthermore, the site had been pillaged and ransacked, and no information concerning the figure's identity could be provided. Some historians have tried to link it to one of the owners of the statues discovered at the same time. The most convincing of these associates the scribe to Pehernefer. Certain stylistic criteria, such as the thin lips, which was unusual, the form of the torso, and the broad chest could support this theory. The statue of Pehernefer dates from the 4th Dynasty. This is an additional argument in favor of an earlier dating for this statue, which has sometimes been dated to the 6th Dynasty. Another argument supporting this date is that "writing" scribes were mostly created in the 4th and early 5th Dynasties; after this period, most scribes were portrayed in "reading" poses.

A scribe at work

The scribe is portrayed at work, which is unusual in Egyptian statuary. Although no king was ever portrayed in this pose, it seems that it was originally used for members of the royal family, such as the king's sons or grandsons, as was the case for the sons of Didufri (4th Dynasty), who were represented in this position.

[egypt-museum]

"An entertaining and informative introduction to how ancient Egyptians practiced magic in their daily lives.

In the ancient world, if you needed a love charm, wanted to contact your dead wife, or needed the ability to fly like a bird, the magicians of Egypt were the ones who could make it happen. In Ancient Egyptian Magic, Christina Riggs explores how the Egyptians thought about magic, who performed it and why, and also helps readers understand why we’ve come to think of ancient Egypt in such a mystical way.

Readers will learn how to cure scorpion bites, discover why you might want to break the legs off your stuffed hippopotamus toy, and uncover whether mummies really can come back to life. Readers can also learn how to save a fortune on pregnancy tests―urinating on barley grains will answer that question― as well as how to use the next street parade to predict the future or ensure that an annoying neighbor gets his comeuppance.

Was magic harmless fun, heartfelt hope, or something darker? Featuring demons, dream interpreters, the Book of the Dead, and illustrations from tomb paintings and papyrus scrolls, Riggs breathes new life into ancient magic and uses early texts and images to illuminate the distinctions between magic, religion, and medicine."

— Ancient Egyptian Magic: A Hands-On Guide, by Christina Riggs

[whencyclopedia]

A Brief History of Egyptian Art

Art is an essential aspect of any civilization. Once the basic human needs have been taken care of such as food, shelter, some form of community law, and a religious belief, cultures begin producing artwork, and often all of these developments occur more or less simultaneously. This process began in the Predynastic Period in Egypt (c. 6000 - c. 3150 BCE) through images of animals, human beings, and supernatural figures inscribed on rock walls. These early images were crude in comparison to later developments but still express an important value of Egyptian cultural consciousness: balance.

Egyptian society was based on the concept of harmony known as ma'at which had come into being at the dawn of creation and sustained the universe. All Egyptian art is based on perfect balance because it reflects the ideal world of the gods. The same way these gods provided all good gifts for humanity, so the artwork was imagined and created to provide a use. Egyptian art was always first and foremost functional. No matter how beautifully a statue may have been crafted, its purpose was to serve as a home for a spirit or a god. An amulet would have been designed to be attractive but aesthetic beauty was not the driving force in its creation, protection was. Tomb paintings, temple tableaus, home and palace gardens all were created so that their form suited an important function and, in many cases, this function was a reminder of the eternal nature of life and the value of personal and communal stability.

Early Dynastic Period Art

The value of balance, expressed as symmetry, infused Egyptian art from the earliest times. The rock art from the Predynastic Period establishes this value which is fully developed and realized in the Early Dynastic Period of Egypt (c. 3150 - c. 2613 BCE). Art from this period reaches its height in the work known as The Narmer Palette (c. 3200-3000 BCE) which was created to celebrate the unity of Upper and Lower Egypt under King Narmer (c. 3150 BCE). Through a series of engravings on a siltstone slab, shaped as a chevron shield, the story is told of the great king's victory over his enemies and how the gods encouraged and approved his actions. Although some of the images of the palette are difficult to interpret, the story of unification and the celebration of the king is quite clear.

On the front, Narmer is associated with the divine strength of the bull (possibly the Apis Bull) and is seen wearing the crown of Upper and Lower Egypt in a triumphal procession. Below him, two men wrestle with entwined beasts which are often interpreted as representing Upper and Lower Egypt (though this view is contested and there seems no justification for it). The reverse side shows the king's victory over his enemies while the gods look on approvingly. All these scenes are carved in low-raised relief with incredible skill.

This technique would be used quite effectively toward the end of the Early Dynastic Period by the architect Imhotep (c. 2667-2600 BCE) in designing the pyramid complex of King Djoser (c. 2670 BCE). Images of lotus flowers, papyrus plants, and the djed symbol are intricately worked into the architecture of the buildings in both high and low relief. By this time the sculptors had also mastered the art of working in stone to created three-dimensional life-sized statues. The statue of Djoser is among the greatest works of art from this period.

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