Assignment:
Write a summary of the following Egyptology Article
The fist funeral item is the image of a woman who has been wrapped up in preparation for burial. The figure does not show curves of the breast or hips due to the wrapping. However, the scarf tied covering the head and the facial features show feminine features. The dimensions of the image are 13*69*14 inches. These measurements are quite reasonable in that the height of a person should be larger in units as compared to any other dimension hence 69 inches is a reasonable height. The image, being a funeral object was made of human remains consisting of the skeletal parts and the skull that have brought are real human figure, (Arthur, 2003), gold has been used to mask the face, ears and pieces of gold inserted on the linen wrapping and brass to make the eyes. These varieties of materials have been used with a purpose of making the image look real. The brass makes the eyes bright and whitish and the gold mask makes the face appear like a brown complexion. The wrapped linen is actually what was used to wrap corpses ready for burial hence supporting the fact that it is a funeral item. A close look at the neck region shows shapes of two birds standing in both sides meaning that since the birds are alive, they have been used to symbolize life. This concept confirms the belief of life after death. The wrapping near the ear has decoration of two people communicating. This may in a way show the aspect of life after death and links that are believed to exist between the dead and the living. The linen wrapping was believed to be a source of eternity to the human soul while gold mask made the dead equivalent to the gods who in the ancient times were believed to be made of gold flesh, (Laytner, 2007).
The mummy case image on the other hand is an image of a woman dressed in Egyptian attire which mainly consisted of a piece of cloth that covered the whole body. The attire or material had decorations or painting which is a feature of ancient Egyptian cultures. These decorations include geometrical dimension such as lines circles and semi-circles. This shows the legendary feature of prominence of Egyptian in geometric or mathematics. The head is also covered. One hand of the image is placed on the chest or bosom. It can be understood as the nature of love, affection and humbleness of the human nature. This image also has human drawings and painting showing the value of humanity and human activities. Thus, since it shows features of the female gender, it can be used to show the importance of this gender as a source of human life. The mummy cartonnage image shows by all means the characteristics of Egyptian women as far as dressing was concerned in the ancient time. The cloth covers the whole body, and the hair is left hanging but a string of beads is tied round and seen on the forehead. This image is made of painted linen and sizing that has helped to bring out the feminine figure and different colors to differentiate the face, hair and cloth. The dimension used also bring a real picture of human shape; 69*16.5*12.5 inches. The painting has human paintings and drawings that show pharaonic soldiers as seen on the way their gowns are. Usually, they were tied on the waist and reached above the knees, (John, 2004). In most cases the chest was left bare with the exception of a helmet that covered the head and the neck. A part from the soldier’s image, another person is seen besides the soldier. This can in a way show the role of the pharaoh’s soldiers in restoring order and supervising daily activities.
The black-toped pot is another feature of ancient Egyptian culture. This is a ceramic classification since it is made with earthen ware.
This is mainly clay from the Nile molded by hand and the black top is brought about by placing it n a kiln of fire that on burning turned it to black unlike the bottom which is red. The dimension of this pot is molded in a way that the pot is large on the top and reduces as it comes to the bottom..
The New Year’s gift bottle is in the shape of a cooking pot. It has a round bottom, a thin neck and a mouth a bit wider than the neck and the dimensions give this description in detail according to the ranging shape of the bottle. It is made with faience giving the brownish red color. The bottle also has a lid that is made of the same material and also, a string or stand running along the bottom to the neck. It may have been used to give the bottle a firm standing position. I put these objects together because, the first three images were feminine images and the pot and bottle were objects or equipments used mostly by the women in activities such as carrying or storing water or storing grains. Secondly, since Egyptians had a belief in life after death, they used to bury their dead with some of their property so that they could use them in the next life. Therefore, the pot and bottle being one of the things that women used in their daily life, I decided that they would have a connection to the funeral items I choose. These objects however differ in a number of ways. The materials used a different and have been used for a purpose. The funeral item has a lot of linen since its wrapped ready for burial and linen is associated to eternity and gods. The mummy cartonnage and case have been made with materials and paintings that generally show the feminine gender and human activities. The pot is made of clay unlike the previous images that have gold and linen. Another contrast is seen in that the first three are human figures while the rest are equipments used by these human figures. These figures were used in preparation for burials as in the funeral item and the pot to store water or grains. The bottle may be used for carrying water. They are important because they give a clear picture of ancient Egyptian culture, practices and beliefs. This is why they are on exhibition since they restore the history of the Egyptians in the ancient times before Christ. Like any other historical material or art, they are of value if put in exhibition since people can learn Egypt’s history and they can also be a source of income through tourists who visit these sites.
A story is told of an old man who worked as a farmer in a small garden that he owned the outskirts of the Egyptian city. He was an industrious man and each season the rains came, he would spend the whole day in his garden planting wheat, corn and ploughing his fruitful orchard. He was such a religious man, so that he would always be seen giving sacrifice and offerings to his personal god. He would do this more often after harvesting and people believed he did this to thank his god for the harvest. In the last days of his life, he put a lot of effort in his garden and since the rains did not fail him in any way, his crops did so well that he had to call his neighbors on the harvest day.
Unfortunately, before he put down the last sack of corn in his granary, he fell and died.
With the enormous harvest, his death was told all over the neighborhood and people came from all regions to see the ill fated man. This forced his people to use salt as a preservative and later resolved to mummification to ensure that in later ages; people who had this sad story would be able to see his body. They constructed a shallow stone grave for him where they put the sack that he had last carried and pots full of wheat, corn and dried fruits so that he too could eat the crops he had harvested and also to ensure that he did not starve on his way to eternity.
References:
Laytner, R. (2007). The Mummy Makers. British Museum Publication.
Arthur, C. (2003). The Scientific Study of Mummies. Cambridge University Press
John, H. (2004) Mummy: The Inside Story. British Museum Press.
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Attachment:- Egyptology Article Summary.doc