When the Pyramids Were Built: Egyptian Art of the Old Kingdom

Arnold, Dorothea

1999

144 pages

130 illustrations

This title is out of print.

Download PDF (81.06 MB)Read online

Description

Table of contents

About the authors

Praise

The Old Kingdom (about 2650–2150 B.C.E.) was the first golden age of Egyptian culture, a period that determined the form and character of Egyptian art for centuries to come. From the Third through the Sixth Dynasty, not only were the pyramids built in vast construction efforts, but artists working in an array ofmediums and techniques—stone, wood, precious metals, monumental statuary, reliefs, and wall paintings—created masterpieces that still have the power to move us more than four millennia later.

This splendid volume, published to accompany a landmark exhibition organized by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Réunion des Musées Nationaux in Paris, and the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, brings together 115 Old Kingdom masterworks from museum collections throughout the world. Included are sculptures executed with such an acute observation of musculature and body movement that they brought an unprecedented realism to the rendering of men, women, children, and animals. Several depictions of family groups in particular show the sensitivity with which Old Kingdom artists illuminated human relationships. Individual masterpieces include the monumental statue of Hemiunu, thought to be responsible for the construction of the Great Pyramid at Giza; groups representing the Fourth Dynasty king Menkaure with a queen and various deities; and a unique alabaster statuette showing the Sixth Dynasty queen Ankh-nes-meryre II holding her son, the child king Pepi II, in her lap. In addition, there are delicate relief carvings that provide some of the earliest, most joyful artistic representations of daily life, stunning decorative-art pieces (jars, vases, jewelry, even a musical instrument), and a number of rare Old Kingdom wall paintings. The lively text by Dorothea Arnold offers an overview of the history, society, and art of the Old Kingdom and an informative discussion of each of the illustrated works. All of the pieces were newly photographed for the book by Bruce White.

Met Art in Publication

Wall tiles from the funerary apartments of king Djoser, faience — Wall tiles from the funerary apartments of king Djoser
ca. 2630–2611 B.C.

See 09.180.18, limestone, paint — See 09.180.18
ca. 2575–2551 B.C.

Relief fragment with king Khufu's cattle, Limestone — Relief fragment with king Khufu's cattle
ca. 2551–2528 B.C.

Relief with a billy goat, Limestone — Relief with a billy goat
ca. 2551–2528 B.C.

Fragmentary Face of King Khafre, Travertine (Egyptian alabaster) — Fragmentary Face of King Khafre
ca. 2520–2494 B.C.

Archers, Limestone, paint — Archers
ca. 2551–2494 B.C.

Head of a statue of an older man, Limestone, paint — Head of a statue of an older man
ca. 2550–2460 B.C.

The King's Acquaintances Memi and Sabu, Limestone, paint — The King's Acquaintances Memi and Sabu
ca. 2575–2465 B.C.

Relief with running troops, Limestone, paint — Relief with running troops
ca. 2465–2458 B.C.

Relief Fragment with a Ship Under Sail, Limestone, paint traces — Relief Fragment with a Ship Under Sail
ca. 2465–2458 B.C.

King Sahure Accompanied by a Divine Figure, Gneiss — King Sahure Accompanied by a Divine Figure
ca. 2458–2446 B.C.

Statue of Demedji and Hennutsen, Limestone, paint — Statue of Demedji and Hennutsen
ca. 2465–2438 B.C.

Nikare with his Wife and Daughter, Limestone, paint — Nikare with his Wife and Daughter
ca. 2420–2389 B.C. or later

Nursing woman, Limestone, paint traces — Nursing woman
ca. 2420–2389 B.C. or later

Tomb Chapel of Raemkai: South Wall, Limestone, paint — Tomb Chapel of Raemkai: South Wall
ca. 2446–2389 B.C.

Large high-shouldered jar, Travertine (Egyptian alabaster) — Large high-shouldered jar
ca. 2500–2400 B.C.

Sistrum Inscribed with the Names of King Teti, Travertine (Egyptian alabaster), pigment, resin — Sistrum Inscribed with the Names of King Teti
ca. 2323–2291 B.C.

Statue of Kneeling Captive, Limestone, paint — Statue of Kneeling Captive
ca. 2246–2152 B.C.

Vase in the Shape of a Mother Monkey with Her Offspring, Travertine (Egyptian alabaster), paint — Vase in the Shape of a Mother Monkey with Her Offspring
ca. 2289–2255 B.C.

False door from the tomb of Metjetji, Limestone, paint traces — False door from the tomb of Metjetji
ca. 2353–2323 B.C.

When the Pyramids Were Built: Egyptian Art of the Old Kingdom

Met Art in Publication

Related Content