COLORSof

ANCIENT EGYPT

COLORSof

ANCIENT EGYPTby Brooke Porter

TAble of contentsIntroduction ..................................................................................The Main Color Palette of Ancient Egypt Red ............................................................................... Yellow .......................................................................... Blue .............................................................................. Green ........................................................................... Black ............................................................................ White ........................................................................... Producing Pigments .................................................Colors In Context Color And Religion .................................................. Color And Race ......................................................... Resources .......................................................................................

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IntrodUction

Color (‘iwen’ in Ancient Egyptian) was a highly essential part of an object’s or person’s nature in Ancient Egypt. The term ‘iwen’ was used interchangeably in varying contexts to mean color, appearance, character, being, or nature. Thus, in terms of the artwork produced by Ancient Egyptians, items depicted with similar colors were thought to have similar properties. Egyptians were master artsist and crafstmen, and used color systematically to depict both realistic and representational views of their world.

Just as Ancient Egyptian artwork was highly functional and almost always served a purpose, colors were used in functional ways. Colors were often paired together, as the Ancient Egyptians revered the concepts of balance and

symmetry in all aspects of life and art. For example, silver and gold were thought to be complementary colors (they represented the duality of opposites like the sun and moon). Red and white were complements of one another (especially in a political/geographic context when used in the red and white crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt). Green and black were representative of different parts of the regenerative processes. Color was also used logically to distinguish items that were lined up in procession; tones of a single color alternated between light and dark to show individualism.

Artists of Ancient Egypt were trained to revere the purity of color in a piece of art. After laying out grid lines, sketching, then refining a relief carving or tomb/temple painting, an artist would use one color to paint sections before moving on to the next. Fine brushwork to outline the work and add detail finished off the work.

The degree to which Ancient Egyptian artists and craftsmen mixed colors varies across the ages and styles of artwork, but generally speaking color mixing was limited. The Ancient Egyptians worked

Even in very early days of Egyptian society, pigments were used to give color to artwork.

Vessel, Predynastic Period, Naqada II, ca. 3450–3300 B.C.. Egyptian Painted pottery

The Ivory Palette of Merytaten

This painter’s palette was found in the treasury of the tomb of King Tutankhamen, between the paws of the jackal mounted on a shrine. This palette is thought to have been a gift from Princess Merytaten to Tutankhamen. Its six paint cavities still held pigments of the traditional color palette of ancient Egypt, and would have been used with animal hair or reed brushes to create paintings on plaster or textile surfaces.

Nebamun hunting in the marshes, fragment of a scene from the tomb-chapel of Nebamun

Thebes, Egypt. Late 18th Dynasty, around 1350 BC

primarly in a six-color palette, using red, yellow, blue, green, white, and black. The lack of color mixing found in typical Ancient Egyptian artwork can be attributed to the fact that certain pigments chemically reacted with one another to produce unfavorable results. Nonetheless, paintings, ceramic works, relief carvings, and statuary were highly detailed, despite their lack of color range and tonal values.

Ancient Egyptians used natural resources and also synthetically produced pigments to achieve their signature color palette. As detailed in the sections of this book, a wide variety of materials were used to produce colors that were physically vibrant, and symbolically charged in their representational contexts. Color was an essential part of Egyptian life, and is reflected in the nature of their artwork.

THE MAIN

COLOR PALETTE

OF ANCIENT EGYPT

RED (Desher)Red (Ancient Egyptian name ‘desher’) was commonly derived from naturally occurring red ochre and iron oxides, and it primarily represented chaos/disorder/negativity/hostility. In addition, the color red could also be representative of solar and kingship associations, and was the heraldic color of Lower Egypt (as seen in the crown). Red is considered the opposite of white in relation to ideas of chaos (see the crown of lower Egypt), and also the opposite of green and black in terms of respresentations of death.

Red ochre was obtained from the desert of Egypt, and thus red was considered the primary representational color of the desert (Ancient Egyptians’ called the desert of the south ‘deshret’, or ‘the red land’). Sybolically, the desert was was considered to be the opposite of the fertile black land of the northern delta region (‘kemet’).

The color red was also used to represent the destructive nature of fire and fury, and often represented something dangerous. Red became associated to the god Seth, traditionally depicted as a god of chaos, and was sometimes also associated with death or punishment. The desert of Egypt was a place where people were exiled or sent to work a life of labor in the mines. In Egyptian culture, the desert was also thought to be an entrance to the underworld, as it was where the sun disappeared each night. However, red was one of the most potent colors of Ancient Egypt, and could also be used to embody ideas of life and protection, being derived from the color of blood and life-supprting fire. Red was a common color of protective amulets.

PIGMENT SHADES:

Red Lead

Red OchreDed

Madder Lake

Carmine Lake

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Footed Bowl, Predynastic Period, probably late Naqada I–early Naqada II, ca. 3750–3550 BCE.

DESIGNER’SCOLOR KEY

RGB VALUE

CMYK VALUE

PANTONE

HEX VALUE

Red LeadImentet and Ra from the tomb of Nefertari, ca. 1298-1235 BCE.

The Tyet knot, also called the "Girdle of Isis" depicts a looped and folded cloth; these amulets were placed on the neck of the deceased and symbolizes strength/power/protection. They were often made of red stone, representing the blood of often red, for blood, as they represent the blood of Isis, whose protection and association with magic derives from her connection to her husband/god Osiris of the dead.

King Nebhepetre II Mentuhotep, found in a rock cut chamber under the first court of the funerary temple of Mentuhotep II at Deir el-Bahari, is painted sandstone. 11th dynasty, 2046 BC – 1995 BCE.

R: 210 G: 40 B: 14

C: 11.54% M: 96.69%Y: 100% K: 2.64%

PANTONE 485 C

#D22804

A tyet amulet dating to the early 18th Dynasty, discovered at Abydos, ca 1550 BCE.

YELLOW (Khenet)Yellow (Ancient Egyptian name ‘khenet’) was used to represent the color of women’s skin, as well as the skin of people who lived near the Mediterranean - Libyans, Bedouin, Syrians, and Hittites. Yellow was also considered the color of the sun, and in addition to gold, could also represent the idea of utlimate perfection. Yellow and gold also designtated an object or person to have eternal and indestructable qualities. Statues of gods were often fabricated from gold or were gold-plated, reflecting the belief that the Egyptian gods’ skin and bones were made from gold. Many funerary objects (sarcophagi, mummy masks, and jewelry) were also made of gold, supporting the idea that the deceased enjoyed eternal life after death.

As with blue and green pigments, the Ancient Egyptians produced a synthetic yellow – lead antimonite. The synthetic yellow’s Ancient Egyptian name, however, is unknown. Shades of natural yellow ochre ranged from bright yellow to reddish orange, and would be ground into fine pigments.

It can be difficult to distinguish between lead antimonite (pale yellow in color) and lead white, which tends to darken over time to a yellow color. Orpiment, a strong yellow shade, lightens and fades over time when exposed to sunlight. Because it can be hard to tell the difference between these colors when looking at Ancient Egyptian art, some historians believe white and yellow were used relatively interchangeably.

PIGMENT SHADES:

Lead Antimonate

Orpiment

Yellow OchreSety

Ochre

GoldNebw

Couch in the form of a cow, from King Tut’s tomb, ca 1323 BCE.

Carved limestone stela of Amenemhat with his wife, son, and daughter. 11th Dynasty, El-Assasif.

A golden “Shen” amulet was placed over the breast of the mummy to give the deceased the protection of Ra and ensure that he or she would live as long as the sun shone, rising again like Ra himself.

Yellow jasper fragment of the face of a queen, New Kingdom Amarna Period, Dynasty 18, reign of Akhenaten, ca 1353–1336 BCE.

Golden shen amulet from King Tut’s tomb, ca 1323 BCE.

DESIGNER’SCOLOR KEY

RGB VALUE

CMYK VALUE

PANTONE

HEX VALUE

Yellow Ochre

R: 223 G: 166 B: 53

C: 12.68% M: 35.68%Y: 93.69% K: 0%

PANTONE 137 C

#DFA635

BLUE (Irtyu)Blue (Ancient Egyptian name ‘irtyu’) was the color associated with the cosmic heavens and the dominion of the gods. Blue also represented the color of water, the yearly floods of the Nile, and the primeval flood of cosmic waters of chaos (known as Nun). As a result, blue was associated with fertility, rebirth,a nd the power of creation. Blue glass or faience hippos, like the one depicted at right, were popular symbols of the Nile and fertility.

Ancient Egyptians treasured natural blue gemstones such as azurite (Ancient Egyptian name ‘tefer’) and lapis lazuli (Ancient Egyptian name ‘khesbedj’, expensively imported across the Sinai Desert) for jewelery and inlay techniques. However, the cost and rarity of such stones gave way to the Ancient Egyptians producing the world’s first synthetic pigment, known since medieval times as Egyptian Blue. Depending on the processing and grinding of the pigment, Egyptian Blue could vary from rich, dark blue (coarser textured) to a pale shade of blue (very fine textured).

Blue was the primary color of the heavens above, and hence represented the celestial universe. Many temples, sarcophagi and burial vaults were characterized by a deep blue roof speckled with little yellow stars.

Blue was also used symbolically as the hair of the gods (lapis lazuli was favored for this application in particular), as well as the skin of the god Amun and pharaohs closely associated with him.

PIGMENT SHADES:

Egyptian Blue

AzuriteTefer

Lapis LazuliKhesbedj

Indigo

Blue faience hippo. Dynasty 12, reign of Senwosret I to Senwosret IIca 1961–1878 BCE.

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Egyptian Blue

R: 16 G: 99 B: 234

C: 82.36% M: 63.28%Y: 0% K: 0%

PANTONE 2726 C

#1063EA

DESIGNER’SCOLOR KEY

According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, Wah’s faience broad collar, anklets and bracelets were made as funerary ornaments for the burial and were found in the layer of wrappings closest to the body. The broad collar is one of the finest examples of its type from the early Middle Kingdom.

Wall painting of Ramses III offering incense and wearing the blue crown. Tomb of Ramses III, ca 1155 BCE.

Lapis lazuli scarab breast plate, from the tomb of King Tut, ca 1323 BCE.

Middle Kingdom Dynasty 12 Funerary Collar of Wah from the Early reign of Amenemhat I.

GREEN (Wahdj)

PIGMENT SHADES:

Malachite

VerdigrisHes-byah

Chyscolla

TurquoiseMefkaht

Green (Ancient Egyptian name ‘wahdj’) was the color that symbolized fresh growth, vegetation, new life, and resurrection (also associated with the color black). The hieroglyph for the ancient word for green depicts a papyrus stem and frond, making it representative of the actual idea of vegetation growth. When the heiroglyph is written with the determinative for minerals (three grains of sand) ‘wahdj’ becomes the actual word for malachite, the green stone from which green pigments were often produced and whose color represented joy.

Green was also the color associated with the ‘Eye of Horus’, or ‘Wedjat’, a symbol motif which was thought to have healing and protective powers. Because of this association, the color green represented the larger, metaphyiscal idea of well-being. The Ancient Egyptians believed that to do ‘green things’ was to behave in a positive, life affirming manner and have sense of respect for all things living. This concept it not so unlike our modern idea of ‘going green’ and acting out of respect for our environment.

As with yellow and blue, the Ancient Egyptians could also synthetically manufacture a green pigment called verdigris (Ancient Egyptian name ‘hes-byah’ – which actually means copper or bronze rust). However, the use of verdigris was not very favorable, particularly in paintings, as it reacted with sulphides such as the yellow pigment orpiment and would turn to black.

Egyptian Faience Uraeus Amulet, Late Period ca 664-332BCE.

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Malachite

R: 63 G: 153 B: 91

C: 77.01% M: 17.07%Y: 83.45% K: 2.84%

PANTONE 354 C

#3F995B

DESIGNER’SCOLOR KEY

Wall painting of Isis depicted with outstretched wings, ca 1360 BCE.

Painting of Nakht and Family Fishing and Fowling, Tomb of Nakht, Thebes. Ca 1400–1390 BCE.

Coffin and mummy of Peftjauneith, ca 664-525 BCE.

BLACK (Kem)

PIGMENT SHADES:

Ivory (Bone) Black

Carbon Black

Lamp Black

Black-topped Badarian pottery, Predynastic period ca 4000 BCE.

Black (Ancient Egyptian name ‘kem’) was the color associated with the life-giving, fertile black silt left by the yearly Nile floods. This association gave rise to the Ancient Egyptian name for the delta country: ‘kemet’ – the black land. Black was symbolic of fertility, new life, and resurrection, particularly in the context of yearly agricultual cycles.

Black was also considered to be related to Osiris (‘the black one’), the resurrected god of the dead. It was also considered the primary color of the underworld, where the sun went each night to be regenerated. As a result of its close association to the world of the dead, black was often used on funerary statues and coffins meant to invoke the regenerative process attributed to the god Osiris. Anubis, a god associated with the protection, embalming, and judging of the deceased also is represented by the color black. His jackal head is always black, though actual jackals were more likely to be a dark shade of brown.

In general representations, black was used as the standard color for the depiction of Ancient Egyptians’ hair. It was also used in varying shades to represent the skin color of people from the southern regions, particularly Nubians and Kushites.

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Ivory Black

R: 34 G: 23 B: 16

C: 62.74% M: 68.13%Y: 72.36% K: 80.14%

PANTONE BLACK C

#221710

DESIGNER’SCOLOR KEY

Egyptian wall painting depicting Nubians bringing offerings of gold, ca 1850 BCE.

Anubis, protector of the dead and embalming, Ancient Egyptian, The Weighing of the Heart, Book of the Dead of Ani, c. 1300 BC

Seated statue of Khafre -Giza, Egypt -Old Kingdom, Ancient Egyptian. Here, the statue represents Khafre’s Ka spirit, and shows the ruler’s heraldic power and Carved from anorthosite stone (diorite), ca 2520-2494 BCE.

WHITE (Hedj)

PIGMENT SHADES:

Chalk White

Lead White

Silver

In Ancient Egyptian culture, white was suggestive of omnipotence and purity, and was often the color of simple and scared things. suggested omnipotence and purity. White sandals and robes were worn at holy ceremonies, and white alabaster was a commonly used material for ritual objects such as small ceremonial bowls and embalming tables. Alabaster was highly prized by the Egyptians because of its beautiful shimmering, translucent quality. It was suited for use to make canopic jars, offering vessels, and funerary statues and vessels.

White was also the heraldic color of Upper Egypt. The “Nefer”, crown of Upper Egypt was white. White was also seen as the opposite of red (associated with rage and chaos), and so the two colors were often paired to represent completeness; the two crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt which were combined to form the dual crown of white and red. It is also interesting to note that the name of the holy city of Memphis was originally known as “Ineb hedj” meaning “White Walls”; white was clearly emphasized as the color of all things holy in nature.

The word ‘hedj’ can represent both white and silver in Ancient Egypt. Silver was highly prized in Egypt, and fairly rare to find. It was a popular choice for pharonic jewelry when it was available, and was known as “white gold” (nub hedj). Silver and gold together represented the duality of the moon and sun respectively. White paint was commonly made from chalk or gypsum (a plentiful resource), and was sometimes used interchangeably with yellow.

Limestone canopic jar, third Intermediate Period, KushiteDynasty: Dynasty 2. From the tomb of Aafenmut, Thebes, ca 712–664 BCE.

RGB VALUE

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Lead White

R: 255 G: 255 B: 224

C: 0.77% M: 0%Y: 13.74% K: 0%

PANTONE 7499 C

#FFFFE0

DESIGNER’SCOLOR KEY

Relief of Mentuhotep II wearing the white crown of Upper Egypt, from his mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahari, ca 2040-2010 BCE.

Lid of a canopic jar from King Tut’s tomb in Luxor, ca 1323 BCE. Canopic jars held the organs of the deceased, and protected them from evil.

Painting of workman Inherkhau and his family in the Tomb of Inherkhau at Dier-el Medina, ca 1155-1149 BCE.

PRODUCING PIGMENTS

NATURAL MATERIALS

RED (desher)Iron oxide and red ochre were common materials sourced from the Egyptian deserts. Once ground into fine powders and mixed with binding agents, these materials made rich red pigments used for painting on plaster, ceramics, papyrus, and even for use in makeup (rouge and lipsticks). Red jasper stones were prized for their beautiful color, and were used to create jewelery beads and amulets; his stone was linked to the fertilizing blood of the goddess Isis.

Yellow (Khenet)Gold was highly prized by Ancient Egyptians, and was mined from the southern regions of Nubia. Yellow ochre rock naturally occurred and was sourced from the Egyptian deserts along with red ochre. Orpiment, a type of mineral, was used occassionally to produce yellow pigments. However, orpiment contains arsenic and was toxic to process into pigments, and also reacted negatively with copper-based pigments such as verdigris and azurite.

Iron Oxide

GOLD

Red Ochre

ORPIMENT

Red JAsper

YELLOW OCHRE

BLUE (IRTYU)Royalty was often associated with the color blue, making blue gemstones such as lapis lazuli and azurite highly prized. They were also expensive to procure, and were often imported from other areas such as Afghanistan.

WHITE (HEDJ)Silver would have been a rare metal in Ancient Egypt; a natural alloy of gold and silver known as electrum was used more commonly than pure silver and sourced from the eastern deserts. Gypsum, however, was a readily available resource, and was easily ground up into chalks and white pigments for painting. Alabaster was prized for its translucent quality, and was used for holy objects.

LAPIS LAZULI

SILVER ORE

BLUE AZURITE

GYPSUM

BLUE OBSIDIAN

Green (WAHDJ)Malachite stone was a primary source of material to produce green colored pigments. Malachite mines were in use between the Suez and Sinai as early as 4000 B.C. Verdigris was also produced from copper rust and turned into pigments. Turqouise stone was prized for its beauty and association to the goddess of maternity and birth, Hathor.MALACHITE VERDIGRIS TURQOUISE

BLACK (KEM)Black is considered one of the oldest pigments of the ancient world, as it was easily and naturally produced through carbon rock and burnt wood or animal bones. Black stones such as obsidian were also used to produce black pigments, and were particularly used in funerary statues due to the association of the color black with concepts of death.WOOD ASH CARBON BLACK OBSIDIAN

ALABASTER

PRODUCING PIGMENTS

EGYPTIAN BLUEEgyptian Blue, also known as calcium copper silicate or cuprorivaite, is considered to be the first synthetic pigment, produced by the Ancient Egyptians around 2500 BCE (4th Dynasty). The pigment was manufactured out of the desire to replicate the beautiful hues of semiprecious stones such as lapis lazuili and turqouise, which were valued for their rarity and bright blue colors. The use of these stones and others, such as azurite, to be ground for pigments was impractical due to their rarity and difficulty to process. Thus, the Egyptians synthetically produced blue pigment to be used across a variety of mediums, including paints, ceramic glazes, faience, and jewelery making.

Ancient Egyptians were not only fine artists, but also extemely skilled chemists. Egyptian Blue was created by mixing a calcium compound (usually

calcium carbonate), copper oxides (found in metal filings or malachite), and silica (sand). The mixture was first heated, and resulted in a coarse-textured product. Then, the mixture was gound into a powder and mixed with water to form a paste. The paste was then shaped into small slabs or balls and then fired again at tempratures of 850-950°C for one hour. This two-staged process produced a paste that was very fine; coarser-textured Egyptian Blue, however, would not have gone through the second firing and would have been ground for use as a blue painting pigment rather than use in faience or jewelry fabrication. The use of Egyptian Blue spread throughout Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, and the far reaches of the Roman Empire.

The pigment is extremly stable, and exhibits beautiful luminesence thousands of years later. Egyptian Blue is luminescent under infrared light, and can be detected on objects though they appear unpainted to the human eye. This quality of the pigment indicates its use for high-tech, modern technology applications, including biomedicine, telcommunications, laser technology, and security inks.

WhAt is Egg TemperA?Egg tempera is made from egg yolk, powdered pigment, and water, and would have been used by Ancient Egyptians as a paint applied to plaster surfaces. The egg yolk serves as the binder that holds the pigment together. The addition of water turns the paint into a usable paste-like form. Tempera paint eventually cracks or wears off a surface after many years of exposure, but adheres to surfaces beautifully and produces rich colors.

TEMPERA PAINT RECIPE

MAteriAls:

• Eggs

•Commerically prepared dry pigments (available for purchase at art supply stores or online), or hand-prepared pigments (ground up chalk, for example)

• Water

• Pin/Needle

•Measure spoons

•Cups for mixing

•Wood or plastic stirrers

•Plastic wrap for preserving paints

STEPS:

A) Roll the separated egg yolk on a paper towel to absorb excess white.

B) Break the yolk sac with a pin.

C) Mix the contents of the yolk sac with ½ -1 tsp. of water and stir. Do not include the yolk sac.

D) Add water to the dry pigment to create a creamy paste. If necessary, add a drop of denatured alcohol to disperse the pigment. Mix with a stirrer.

E) The pigment is now a paste.

F) Add an equal amount of egg yolk to the pigment paste. Thin the tempered medium with more water as needed.

COLORS

IN

CONTEXT

Red was considered the color of chaos and fury, and was symbolically used in depictions of the god Set. In early times Set was worshipped as the god of wind and the desert storms, and later became associated with ideas of evil, disorder, violence and foreigners. He is often shown in his half-animal/half-human form, but also can be shown as a man with red hair or a red mantle headpiece.

Gold (Ancient Egyptian name ‘newb’) represented the flesh of the gods and was used for all things considered eternal or indestructible. Gold leaf could be used on sculptures, and yellow or reddish-yellows were used in paintings to show the skin of gods.. Many tomb paintings of Ancient Egypt showed gods with golden skin, and pharaohs’ sarcophagi were often made from gold, carrying on the belief that a

deceased pharaoh became a god in the afterlife.

Blue was used for the hair of gods (specifically lapis lazuli, or the darkest of Egyptian blues) and for the face of the god Amun – a practice which was extended to those Pharaohs associated with him.

Earth and fertility gods such as Geb and Osiris are depicted with green skin, indicating their power to encourage

the growth of vegetation. The creator god Ptah also was represented as having green

COLORS AND RELIGION

Death mask of King Tut, ca 1323 BCE.

Painted wall relief of god Amun Ra at the Tomb of King Seti I, ca 1279 BCE.

This painting of Amun, one of the creator gods in Egyptian mythology, decorates a tomb in Luxor, Egypt. Amun often appears as a human figure with a ram’s head.

Book of the Dead of Hunefer - The judgment of the dead in the presence of Osiris, Thebes Egypt, ca 1275 BCE.

Painting of Ptah in the Tomb of the King Seti I, ca 1279 BCE.

Double-headed Sistrum fragment of Hathor 26th dynasty ca 663-526 BCE.

or sometimes blue skin. However, the ancient Egyptians recognised the cycle of growth and decay and so green was also associated with death and the power of resurrection. Osiris was a god of the dead whose wife Isis magically conceived a son (Horus) and the ancient Egyptians believed that he could help them make their way to an eternal paradise which bore a striking resemblance to their earthly lives (but without any pain or suffering). This wonderful place was sometimes called “field of malachite”.

Turquoise (Ancient Egyptian name ‘mefkhat’), a particularly valued green-blue stone

from the Sinai, also represented joy, as well as the color of the sun’s rays at dawn. Through the deity Hathor, the Lady of Turquoise, who controlled the destiny of new-born babies, it can be considered a color of promise and foretelling.

Color was used by Ancient Egyptian artists to deliniate a figure’s race and position in society. Most native Egyptians were depicted as having reddish-brown skin, and female Egyptians often had paler shade or yellow toned skin. Black hair was the norm in Ancient Egyptian artistic renderings, and common folk dressed in simple white kilts and tunic dresses. There is prolonged debate about the exact racial qualities of Ancient Egyptians, however, as the variety of representations in their artwork shows a wide range of skin tones. Many historians, archaeologists, and anthropologists speculate that there is indeed strong evidence that Ancient Egyptians could be racially identified as “black”, given that Nubians and inhabitants of nearby African regions were often integrated into Egyptian society and produced mixed-race children. It is not entirely possible, however, to determine the exact skin color of the Ancient Egyptians.

Depictions of foreigners in Ancient Egyptian artwork were prevalent, and color use was important in differentiating races. Yellow (Ancient Egyptian name ‘khenet’) was used to denote the skin color of people who lived near the Mediterranean, including Libyans, Bedouin, Syrians, and Hittites.

Red, which had strong associations to the Egyptian desert, was often used to depict slavesor miners from the desert region.

Nubians were represented as having darker shades of red, brown, and black skin, and the men are shown wearing a typical red sash around the waist. Varying skin tone shades identified foreigners in Ancient Egyptian artwork, and played into racial stereotypes of the time.

COLORS AND RACE

The four races of the world: a Libyan, a Nubian, an Asiatic, and an Egyptian. An artistic rendering, based on a mural from the tomb of Seti I ca 1270 BCE.

Racial imagery from the footrest found in Tutankhamen’s tomb (ca 1323 BCE).

Bound Semitic and black prisoners appear on the footstool. The Egyptian king would rest his feet on his foes. The middle line of hieroglyphics reads “All lands and all foreing countries, and the chiefs of Retchenu (Syria) are united like one beneath your two soles like Re forever.”

Tutankhamun as a sphynx trampling his enemies, 18th Dynasty, ca 1323 BCE.

Here, King Tutankhamun is symbolically represented as a sphynx trampling foreign enemies, who are shown in a topos manner. They are stereotyped representations of foreigners (southern Africans and Asiatics) through their facial features, skin color, and manner of dress.

Painting from the tomb of Huy at Thebes, an Egyptian official who lived during the reign of King Tutankhamun (1336-1327 BCE).

The artist illustrates the relationship between the Nubians and Egyptians, and shows a kneeling Nubian prince identified as Hekanefer, Prince of Miam (modern Aniba) leading the tribute bearers . Hekanefer’s dress is of typical Nubian style, and skin color is that of typical depictions of the Nubian race as demonstrated by Egyptian artsists.

RESOURCES

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Calvert, Amy. “Materials & Techniques.” - Smarthistory. Khan Academy, n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2014. <http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/materials-and-techniques-of-the-ancient-egyptian-artist.html>.

Choi, Charles Q. “Ancient Egyptian Pigment’s Future Now Even Brighter.” Inside Science. N.p., 11 Mar. 2013. Web. 03 Nov. 2014. <http://www.insidescience.org/content/ancient-egyptian-pigments-future-now-even-brighter/954>.

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Jay, Lisa, and Nessi Domizlaff. “Ancient Egyptian Art: The Relationships Among Binders, Pigments and Surfaces.” An-cient Egyptian Art: The Relationships Among Binders, Pigments, and Surfaces. Sewanee University, 2007. Web. 03 Nov. 2014. <http://www.sewanee.edu/Chem/Chem&Art/Detail_Pages/Projects_2005/Jay-Domizlaff/index.htm>.

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Robins, Gay. The Art of Ancient Egypt. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1997. Print.Spalinger, Anthony. “Colors and Directions.” Academia.edu. Aegyptiaca Hamburgensia, n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2014. <https://www.academia.edu/5552687/Colors_and_Directions>.