Changes In Ancient Egyptian Art

Kevin Chen

Professor Kidrick

ARTH 304

October 30, 2015 Ancient Egypt was a time when gods of many kinds graced its people and blessed with many kinds of pharaohs, kings and rulers who brought about many profound changes to its art, architecture, religion, and society. Some rulers created monuments that lasted for centuries, some built statues of themselves to immortalize their existence, and some completely overturned the norm for Egyptian art. The one who brought about these different changes to Egyptian art is Amenhotep IV. Although, Amenhotep IV brought about many changes to Egyptian art, its art still has similar likeness to its previous predecessors. Amenhotep IV self proclaimed son and sole prophet of Aten meant that with his

Menkaure and Khamerernebty is a “4th Dynasty statue found in Giza, Egypt and its age is spans from 2490 to 2472 BCE; it stands 4’6 ½” high and is made from greywacke.” The perfect form befitting a ruler, during Old Kingdom Egypt, was described as having a “well-developed, flawless body and a perfect face, regardless of age and appearance” and the statue of Menkaure and Khamerernebty served its purpose by displaying Menkaure as the perfect male king and Khamerernebty as the perfect female queen. In the statue of Menkaure and Khamerernebty, Menkaure is wearing a nemes, the headdress of an Egyptian pharaoh, a long fake beard, and a kilt with protruding cloth in the middle to show that he is king or pharaoh. The statue Menkaure and Khamerernebty is also described both as having “high cheekbones, bulbous nose, slight furrows running diagonally from his nose to the corners of his mouth, and lower lip thrust out in a slight pout” with slight differences with “her face having feminine fleshiness.” In the statue Menkaure has “broad shoulders, a taut torso, and muscular arms and legs” and Khamerernebty has “narrow shoulders and slim body, visible contours that are apparent under her tight-fitting sheath dress.”

Sandstone in Ancient Egypt was mainly used as building material and non-building like statues etc. Sandstones were usually found in northern Sudan in the Nile valley. The tools used to carve out the colossal statue of Akhenaten made from sandstone are done by copper and stone tools. The Menkaure and Khamerernebty, on the other hand, was made from a harder stone called diorite. The diorite stone that made the Menkaure and Khamerernebty was taken from the royal quarries from the south of the Nile. The harder stone “diorite” that was used on the Menkaure and Khamerernebty used harder stones, copper alloys, and abrasive sand to carve out the statue . Although both statues used different materials, one statue using sandstone and the other diorite, but there uses are quite