  |
 |
|
      |
||
 |
||
    |
||
    |
||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Egyptian Symbols and Figures: Scroll PaintingsIntroductionThis
lesson introduces students to the writing, art, and religious beliefs of ancient
Egypt through hieroglyphs, one of the oldest writing systems in the world, and
through tomb paintings. Hieroglyphs consist of pictures of familiar objects that
represent sounds. They were used in ancient Egypt from about 3100 BC to 400 CE. In
the first part of this lesson, the class creates a pictorial alphabet of its own
and then learns and uses the symbols of the Egyptian hieroglyphic alphabet. In
the second part of the lesson, students identify and represent in their own drawings
figures from the Book of the Dead, a funereal text written on papyrus and carved
on the walls of tombs to help guide the deceased through the afterlife.
Lesson
1: Decipher the Hieroglyphs Lesson 2 Make
an Egyptian Painting The
ancient Egyptians drew (and carved) figures of gods and goddesses, people, animals,
and everyday objects on tomb and temple walls, stellae, obelisks, and papyrus.
They believed in the magical quality of these figures. For example, they believed
that after a body was placed in a tomb and the doors were sealed, the figures
on the walls (and even models of figures made of clay) would come alive to serve
the deceased in the afterlife. For this reason, pharaohs and nobles had plenty
of pictures (and figures) of servants to wait on them for all eternity!
Sacred Texts were placed in the tombs of the Egyptian elite to guide the soul
of the deceased through various obstacles as it journeyed between this world and
the next. These texts included special words and phrases (known as spells) that,
if uttered at particular times and places, enabled the soul to arrive at the edge
of the land of the dead. During the Old Kingdom (the earliest period of dynastic
Egyptian history, dating from the third millennium BC), these writings were carved
onto the walls of the pyramids of the pharaohs and their queens. The texts were
accompanied by illustrations of the soul's perilous journey and eventual arrival
in the land of the dead. (These are known as the Pyramid Texts.) During
the Middle Kingdom (beginning in 2055 BC), passages and drawings from the Pyramid
Texts were painted directly onto the wooden coffins of wealthy nobles and Egyptian
royalty. (They are known as the Coffin Texts.) During the New Kingdom (1550-1069
BC), sacred funereal texts (and illustrations) were painted on papyrus scrolls.
These were in large part derived from the earlier texts and are referred to as
individual versions of The Book of the Dead. A scroll was rolled up and placed
in a special container in the coffin beside the body. In addition to the scrolls,
many pharaohs who were buried in the Valley of the Kings had copies of The Book
of the Dead carved and painted on the walls and ceilings of their tombs.
An important part of The Book of the Dead was a pictorial description of the drama
that would supposedly unfold when the soul arrived in the land of the dead. The
soul (which resembled the deceased person) was first greeted by Osiris, the Egyptian
god of the dead, who posed a number of questions about the quality of the person's
life on earth. (The appropriate answers were conveniently written above the drawings
for easy reference.) Then Anubis, the jackal-headed god of mummies, placed the
heart of the deceased on a scale. If it balanced with a feather (this symbolized
truth and goodness), the soul would go on to enjoy a very pleasant afterlife.
But if the heart was heavier than a feather, a monster named Ammut (part hippo,
part lion, and part crocodile) was waiting to gobble it (the soul) up! Thoth,
the ibis-headed god of scribes, stood by the scales, ready to write down the verdict,
while 42 other gods sat in judgment. Overseeing the ceremony was Ma'at, the goddess
of truth. (She's easy to spot - she has a feather on her head!) Because the ancient
Egyptians believed in magic, they assumed that everything depicted in the paintings
of the Book of the Dead would actually occur once the tomb was sealed.
Go to the EDSITEment reviewed website Metropolitan
Museum. This is a fragment from The
Book of the Dead found in a tomb dating from about 1000 BC. Also you can view
larger version
of the graphic, without the text. Print copies of the graphic for your students.
Explain
to the students about the Book of the Dead, referring to information in the Introduction.
Then go to the Metropolitan Museum. Read
aloud the description of the Book
of the Dead to the students. Point out the figures of the soul and the various
gods in the image as you come across them in the text. Go
to the EDSITEment-reviewed website Exploring
Ancient World Cultures and click on the icon for Ancient
Egypt. Then click on Images
and scroll down to Detroit Institute of Arts and click "Papyrus
of Nes-min," then on Click for Larger
Version.This is a papyrus fragment found in a tomb dating from 300 BC. Read
the description aloud. Have the students identify the various figures in the picture.
Now navigate back to the Images
page of Ancient Egypt.Scroll
down to the Oriental Institute, then click on Book of the Dead. On the screen
that comes up, click on the picture to enlarge it. This is another fragment of
the Book of the Dead dating from around 300 BC. Read the description with the
students. Discuss with the students what
they've learned about the picture story of The Book of the Dead. Then hand out
the copies of the graphic you printed from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Talk
about the various figures, noting the special attributes of each one. Notice that
some have animal heads or bodies, others don't. The falcon at the top is Horus,
son of Osiris and protector of the living pharaoh. This time Thoth appears as
a baboon. (The Egyptian gods were often depicted in more than one way.) You might
also want to display colored pictures of the Egyptian deities (Anubis, Osiris,
Horus, Ma'at, and Thoth) found in books in your school library. Have each student
choose a favorite figure from the Book of the Dead.
Hand out large pieces of paper and markers or crayons. Have the students draw
their figures. Those who are ambitious might even try to write the name of the
figure in hieroglyphs. When the drawings are finished, have each student share
his or hers with the class, explaining who it is and what his or her special functions
might be. Later, hang the figures near the exhibit of hieroglyphs for all to enjoy.
Standards Alignment View your state’s standards |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | ||
 | ||
   |
| |
| EDSITEment contains a variety of links to other websites and references to resources available through government, nonprofit, and commercial entities. These links and references are provided solely for informational purposes and the convenience of the user. Their inclusion does not constitute an endorsement. For more information, please click the Disclaimer icon. | ||
 | ||
| Disclaimer | Conditions of Use | Privacy Policy Search
| Site
Map | Contact
Us | ||
