The Chautauquan, Vol. 04, October 1883Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle
Philosophy
The Chautauquan, Vol. 04, October 1883
Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle
Chautauqua Institution -- Periodicals; Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle -- Periodicals
It will be observed, therefore, that Egyptian sculpture may be classed
broadly into three styles. (1) the Egyptian proper, reaching its finest
period in the reign of Amunothph III.; (2) the Ethiopic Egyptian; (3)
the later Egyptian, leading to the decline of that style of sculpture.
Of the first it should be noticed that the general proportions of the
figure were more accurately considered than the relative proportions
of hands and feet to the limbs, which are generally incorrect. There
are, however, some examples of excellent proportion, as in a colossal
arm and fist in the British Museum. This arm belonged to a statue of
Thothmes III., and came from Memphis. It is about ten feet long. The
fist also came from Memphis, and measures four feet across. The heads
of statues of this period are of the pure Coptic type, with a nose
somewhat aquiline, and the lips comparatively thin. The eyes, however,
were always carved in full in profile representations; the feet, one
in advance of the other on the same plane. The details of form at the
knuckles and legs are well indicated.
In the Ethiopic-Egyptian statues, general proportion is lost sight of;
the figures become dumpy, being only six heads high; the limbs are
clumsy and wanting in modeling; the hands and feet stiff and not marked
by details at the joints; nor do they show the small bone of the leg.
The heads are more of the Negro type, with turned-up noses and thick
lips.
In the later Egyptian it is remarkable that with more attempt to
imitate nature in the modeling of the muscles, the forms of the
trunk and limbs become unnaturally puffed. More is added in symbolic
attributes; heads of the cat, the hawk, and the ape, are placed on the
human body; the dress is more elaborate, that of the head especially,
on which a disc for the sun was often placed, as on the god Osiris.
From the fall of Thebes, about 1000 B. C., to the conquest of Egypt by
the Persians, 523 B. C., sculpture became more and more degraded, and
soon lost its original style of simplicity and grandeur of form.
After some two centuries of rule, the Persians were conquered by
Alexander the Great, 332 B. C., but there are no statues of Greek style
of this date found in Egypt; under the Ptolemies, his successors for
300 years, new temples of inferior but still Egyptian style were built,
such as those at Phile, Edfou, and Denderah, and many statues were
made, but nearly all have been destroyed, and there is not one of any
king or queen of the Ptolemies.
After Egypt became a Roman province, in 38 B. C., Egyptian sculpture,
in a debased form, was still continued upon the decoration of the
temples, but the statues were then in the hands of Greek artists. Still
later, there is the well-known statue of Antinous as an Egyptian, the
work of a Greek sculptor of the time of the Emperor Hadrian (A. D.
117-138).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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