Egyptian terms

Amarna Style

artistic style during Amarna Period - Akhenaton’s rule- where traditional Egyptian conventions were abandoned for a more expressive and non-idealized style of art

Ankh

Egyptian symbol of life

Axial Plan

a building with an elongated floor plan

Canon of proportions

A system of measurement by which artists can regulate size, scale, and proportions

Capital

top of a column

Clerestory

a roof that rises above lower roofs and thus has window space beneath that lets in light

Colonnade

a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature

Continuous narrative

an image that illustrates multiple scenes in a single frame; therefore, some figures repeat

Corridor axis

a long hallway or path enclosed by large stone masonary, possibly symbolized the Nile 

Enamel

melted & fused glass powder mixed w pigment to create color; very smooth once cooled

Historical Narrative

a story or sequence of events that is (or purports to be) historically accurate 

In situ

on site and in its original place

Ka

soul imbedded in fleshly body, but upon death could live on; for the ka to live securely, the dead body had to remian intact as possibe → mummification

Living rock

Rock that is not detached and is still in its original form

Mastaba

simple tomb w four sloping sides which covers an underground burial chamber

Narrative

artwork that conveys a story; either as an oniongoing story or a sequence of events

Necropolis

greek for “city of the dead”; a complex of funerary buildings and tombs

Negative space

empty space around an object or person, such as the cut-out areas between a figure’s legs or arms of a sculpture

Papyrus

paper-like material prepared in ancient Egypt from Nile plants

Portico

a shallow columned porch

Pylon

the simple and massive gateway, w sloping walls, of an Egyptian temple

Relief Structure

figures project from a background of which they are a part. The degree of relief is designated by 1) high; 2) low (bas) 3)sunken/incised. in the last, the artist cuts the design into the surface so the highest projecting parts of the image are no higher than the surface itself

Sphinx

a hybrid animal, with the body of a lion and head of Pharaoh/ god that exhibits protective qualities 

Subtractive

a sculptural process including the removal of material of a block through cutting, chiseling, chipping, or scraping away

Sunken relief

a type of relief carving where all lines are made into the surface, so that the design is set into the material