This classic work discusses representations in Egyptian painting, sculpture and reliefs, assessing how objects and figures are represented in two dimensions, introducing the idea of "conceptual" and "perceptual" art. Translated from the German by John Baines, who has revised the text and illustrations to take account of recent research.

This classic book, first published in 1919, is one of the most important works of Egyptology, and is of great significance to art historians, aestheticians, and psychologists working in related fields. In the ground-breaking study Heinrich Schafer set out to analyse and elucidate the representational conventions of Egyptian two-dimensional art, and to explain how they differ from Western conventions that have perspective at their core. He showed that Egyptian representation is based more on mental processing than on direct perception, and that the aim of Egyptian artists was to depict an object as it really is, rather than as it appears to be. Egyptian approaches to representing space were also conditioned by this aim. The author extended this fundamental insight to cover almost all apparent anomalies in the Egyptian rendering of nature. His conclusions can be compared with analyses by psychologists that are based on the very different area study of children's drawings. The observations of Schafer and other art historians, and those of psychologists, have led to a characterization of polar tendencies in pictorial representation that might be termed 'conceptual' and 'perceptual'. Schafer extended his conclusions, which were based on painting and relief, to encompass statuary, as well as providing a concluding synthesis. The present book, based on the fourth German edition of 1963, edited after the author's death by Emma Brunner-Traut, was first published in 1974. In the course of translating it, John Baines, who is Professor of Egyptology in the University of Oxford, revised the text and illustrations to take account of recent research. This reprint incorporates numerous additions and some corrections, keeping the book abreast of work in the field.

This study of ancient Egyptian art reveals the evolution of aesthetic approaches to proportion and style through the ages. The painted and relief-cut walls of ancient Egyptian tombs and temples record an amazing continuity of customs and beliefs over nearly 3,000 years. Even the artistic style of the scenes seems unchanging, but this appearance is deceptive. In this work, Gay Robins offers convincing evidence, based on a study of Egyptian usage of grid systems and proportions, that innovation and stylistic variation played a significant role in ancient Egyptian art. Robins thoroughly explores the squared grid systems used by the ancient artists to proportion standing, sitting, and kneeling human figures. This investigation yields the first chronological account of proportional variations in male and female figures from the Early Dynastic to the Ptolemaic periods. Robins discusses the proportional changes underlying the revolutionary style instituted during the Amarna Period. She also considers how the grid system influenced the overall composition of scenes. Numerous line drawings with superimposed grids illustrate the text.

An insightful volume delving into the enduringly compelling art of ancient Egypt, from a new historical perspective The art and architecture of Egypt during the age of the pharaohs continue to capture the imagination of the modern world. Among the great creative achievements of ancient Egypt are a set of constant forms: archetypes in art and architecture in which the origins of concepts such as authority, divinity, beauty, and meaning are readily discernible. Whether adapted to fine, delicate jewelry or colossal statues, these forms maintain a human face—with human ideas and emotions. These artistic templates, and the ideas they articulated, were refined and reinvented through dozens of centuries, until scenes first created for the earliest kings, around 3000 BCE, were eventually used to represent Roman emperors and the last officials of pre-Christian Egypt. Bill Manley’s account of the art of ancient Egypt draws on the finest works through more than 3,000 years and places celebrated masterpieces, from the Narmer palette to Tutankhamun’s gold mask, in their original contexts in the tombs, temples, and palaces of the pharaohs and their citizens.

A Companion to Ancient Egyptian Art presents a comprehensive collection of original essays exploring key concepts, critical discourses, and theories that shape the discipline of ancient Egyptian art. • Winner of the 2016 PROSE Award for Single Volume Reference in the Humanities & Social Sciences • Features contributions from top scholars in their respective fields of expertise relating to ancient Egyptian art • Provides overviews of past and present scholarship and suggests new avenues to stimulate debate and allow for critical readings of individual art works • Explores themes and topics such as methodological approaches, transmission of Egyptian art and its connections with other cultures, ancient reception, technology and interpretation, • Provides a comprehensive synthesis on a discipline that has diversified to the extent that it now incorporates subjects ranging from gender theory to ‘X-ray fluorescence’ and ‘image-based interpretations systems’

The Middle Kingdom (ca. 2030–1650 B.C.) was a transformational period in ancient Egypt, during which older artistic conventions, cultural principles, religious beliefs, and political systems were revived and reimagined. Ancient Egypt Transformed presents a comprehensive picture of the art of the Middle Kingdom, arguably the least known of Egypt’s three kingdoms and yet one that saw the creation of powerful, compelling works rendered with great subtlety and sensitivity. The book brings together nearly 300 diverse works— including sculpture, relief decoration, stelae, jewelry, coffins, funerary objects, and personal possessions from the world’s leading collections of Egyptian art. Essays on architecture, statuary, tomb and temple relief decoration, and stele explore how Middle Kingdom artists adapted forms and iconography of the Old Kingdom, using existing conventions to create strikingly original works. Twelve lavishly illustrated chapters, each with a scholarly essay and entries on related objects, begin with discussions of the distinctive art that arose in the south during the early Middle Kingdom, the artistic developments that followed the return to Egypt’s traditional capital in the north, and the renewed construction of pyramid complexes. Thematic chapters devoted to the pharaoh, royal women, the court, and the vital role of family explore art created for different strata of Egyptian society, while others provide insight into Egypt’s expanding relations with foreign lands and the themes of Middle Kingdom literature. The era’s religious beliefs and practices, such as the pilgrimage to Abydos, are revealed through magnificent objects created for tombs, chapels, and temples. Finally, the book discusses Middle Kingdom archaeological sites, including excavations undertaken by the Metropolitan Museum over a number of decades. Written by an international team of respected Egyptologists and Middle Kingdom specialists, the text provides recent scholarship and fresh insights, making the book an authoritative resource.