EGYPT ART

Art of ancient Egypt

Ancient Egyptian art is the painting, sculpture, architecture and other arts produced by the civilization of Ancient Egypt in the lower Nile Valley from about 5000 BCE to 300 AD. Ancient Egyptian art reached a high level in painting and sculpture, and was both highly stylized and symbolic. Much of the surviving art comes from tombs and monuments and thus there is an emphasis on life after death and the preservation of knowledge of the past.

In a more narrow sense, Ancient Egyptian art refers to the canonical 2nd and 3rd Dynasty art developed in Egypt from 3000 BC and used until the 3rd century. Most elements of Egyptian art remained remarkably stable over that 3,000 year period with relatively little outside influence. The quality of observation and execution started at a high level and remained near that level throughout the period. Portraiture in Ancient Egypt, above all of royalty, was highly developed, and represented a complicated mixture of realistic depiction of individuals and stylization.