Old Kingdom Sculpture
Royal Statuary
With the arrival of the Old Kingdom, there is an explosion of new statue representations in a variety of materials. Most royal statues were part of statuary programs in the kings’ funerary temples in the Memphite area, although a few were found in the temples of local gods.
A function of Royal Statuary
Statues of Egyptian Kings form a unique category separate from that of the royal family, nobles and ordinary human beings.
The royal statue had a specific role: to make manifest the ruler’s position in society. The royal statue was therefore not an exact representation of a human being but an ideal depiction of the divine aspects of the king.
Features of the old kingdom sculpture
Idealism: The reproduction of an ideal aspect of the human figure.
Since the Ancient Egyptian believed in divine kingship, the artists, therefore, depicted things not as they saw them but as idealized symbols, which intended to be more significant and enduring.
The king was represented always in a youthful, strong and muscular form.
Life-sized statues.
Postures of royal status
Standing with feet together.
Striding with left foot advanced with both arms hanging.
Sitting on the throne or a block wearing either the short kilt with the left hand placed on the knee and the right hand in a fist vertically on the thigh.
Appearing as a sphinx.
Appearing as a part of group statues.
Kneeling and presenting a pair of nw jars. (Only 6th Dynasty)
Squatting with one hand held to the mouth. (Only 6th Dynasty)
Statue of +sr
Dating: Old Kingdom, 3ed Dynasty.
Location of Discovery: Discovered by the Egyptian Antiquity Service in 1924- 25 in a small chapel (serdab) built against the north face of the step pyramid (which permitted the dead king, buried in the pyramid to look out through the eyes of his statue and receive offerings placed before.)
Material: Painted Limestone.
Who is +sr?
He is the founder of the 3ed Dynasty and was the son of King Khasehmwy and Queen Nimaathp.
In contemporary inscriptions, he is called Ntri-Xt, meaning “he who belongs to the sacred body.“
Manetho states Djoser ruled Egypt for 29 years, while the Turin King List states it was only 19 years.
Djoser dispatched several military expeditions to the Sinai, during which the local inhabitants were subdued. He also sent expeditions there to mine for valuable minerals such as turquoise and copper. This is known from inscriptions found in the desert there.
Who is +sr?
Some fragmentary reliefs found at Heliopolis and Gebelein mention Djoser's name and suggest he commissioned construction projects in those cities.
He may have fixed the southern boundary of his kingdom at the 1st Cataract. An inscription known as the Famine stela and claiming to date to the reign of Djoser, relates how Djoser rebuilt the temple of Khnum on the island of Elephantine at the First Cataract, thus ending a seven-year famine in Egypt.
Although he seems to have started an unfinished tomb at Abydos (Upper Egypt), Djoser was eventually buried in his famous pyramid at Saqqara in Lower Egypt.
Description of the Statue
The King is represented sitting on the throne with high back, with his right arm placed across his chest, while his left arm rests on his knee.
Description of the Statue
The king wears a long Hb-sd robe.
Under the king’s feet are the depictions of the nine bows.
On the base of the throne, an inscription is carved mentioning the Horus name of the king Ntri-Xt, which means “he who belongs to the sacred body.”
Sculpture of the Fourth Dynasty
Reisner was able to distinguish between two workshops:
Sculptor A: who worked in a severe style characterized by more extensive modeling, especially around the mouth and preference for ideal type rather than realistic portraits.
Sculptor B: may have been younger than the first and might have worked for a longer period. He is characterized by gentler modeling and more realistic rendering.
Statuette of Khufu ($nmw) xw.f-w(i)
Statuette of ($nmw) xw.f-w(i)
Dating: Old Kingdom, 4th Dynasty.
Location of Discovery: Found by Petrie in 1903 in the ruins of a temple at Kom el Sultan near Abydos (that was dedicated to the god #nti-imnty and from the Old Kingdom onwards to Osiris who was assimilated with him.) This site was enriched with votive stelae being offered to the god. The figurine was found headless, according to Petrie it was caused by an accident while digging. When Petrie recognized the importance of the find, he made all workings stop and offered a reward to any workman who could find the head. Three weeks later the head was found after intense sifting in a deeper level of the room rubble.
Material: Ivory.
Who is #w.f-w(i)?
Khufu was the second ruler of the 4th Dynasty, he followed his possible father, king Snefrw, on the throne.
He is the builder of the great pyramid at Giza.
At the Wadi Maghara in Sinai, a rock inscription depicts Khufu with the double crown. Khufu sent several expeditions in an attempt to found turquoise and copper mines.
Khufu also entertained contacts with Byblos. He sent several expeditions to Byblos in an attempt to trade Copper tools and -weapons for precious Cedarwood. This kind of wood was needed for building nice and stable funerary boats, the boats at the Great Pyramid were made of it.
Description of the Statuette
This little figure remains the only representation of King Khufu.
The king is seated on a throne with a short backrest. At the left side of his knees the Horus-name ( @r mDd.w) is preserved, and at the right side, the rest of the lower part of his name Khnum-Khufu is visible.
The statuette shows the king with the red crown of Lower Egypt.
Khufu holds a flail (NxxA) in his left hand, his right-hand rests together with the lower arm on his right upper leg.
He is dressed in a short shendyt. (Sndyt).
The royal portrait is executed with certain realism: the age of the figure is certainly advanced, its pose serene.
On his face, we find a hint of a smile, which seems a little cruel as the later legends of his character would claim.
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