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The oldest specimens of Egyptian art are the products of an already highly civilized race. Its origins are lost in the mists of antiquity but a consecutive development may he traced from the fifth millennium B.C. until the year 332 B.C. when the Greek and Roman civilizations superimposed themselves by political means and ended the last of the Egyptian Dynasties.

The lesson that can be learned today from the Egyptian artists and builders is that of making suitable and consistent designs from the materials at hand, never permitting oneself to imitate rich materials by means of inferior ones. Granite was the chief building stone, and it is due to its extremely hard and durable qualities that so many remains have been found in excellent condition.

Wood was a rarity in Egypt, there were not wood corner blocks around every corner–the palm tree being practically the only variety that grew in quantity. The difficulty of cutting granite was the cause of the great simplicity in the forms and moldings of Egyptian architecture and practically eliminated carved ornament or sculptural forms in surface relief.

The enrichment of the exterior and interior walls of buildings was obtained by incised carving. This was made by cutting the outline of figures and ornament on the surface of the granite in a shallow groove, the color then being applied in primary tones to the figures after a coaling of plaster. The Egyptians loved brilliant colors and used them extensively.

They were a substitute for the uninteresting texture of the stone that made the wall decoration carry in dark interiors and modified the glare on the exterior of buildings. The ornamental forms were almost entirely of religious significance. The scarab or sacred beetle was the symbol of the Egyptian religion. The lotus bud and flower were symbols of everlasting life.

The palm and papyrus were used extensively as a motif of decoration. The vulture with outstretched wings symbolized protection. The globe or solar disc, the spiral and other diaper patterns were other types of ornamentation. Egyptian ornament is all highly conventionalized.

The early Egyptians had no precedents to influence them, no wealth of inheritance from past civilization to affect their own way of analyzing and recording what they saw about them. They did not understand the laws of perspective. The human figure which is so often used, exhibits many faults of drawing.

The eye is placed in front view when it should he in profile, the body is often twisted out of shape due to rendering the shoulders in front view, the legs and head in profile and the trunk of the body in three-quarter view. Egyptian granite columns appear to be groups of palm stalks tied together with reeds.

They branch out at the top in a graceful cup-like form decorated with palm branches or the lotus flower. Near the foot of the column the shaft is often compressed to imitate the palm stalk as it grows from the ground while the root leaves are painted upon it. The effect is sometimes obtained by simple carving while at other times it is limited to color enrichment.

The mentality of the Egyptian was trained to excessive conservatism. His religion taught that life on earth was temporary and his principal thoughts and actions should be to prepare him for his external existence in the hereafter. The nobility spared neither money nor pains in endeavoring to secure for themselves a comfortable existence in the other world.

Present material possessions were supposed to pass with the deceased into the beyond. This theory gave great permanence to all artistic forms. Religious rites were mysterious, traditional and unchangeable. This belief in immutability caused the erection of the Pyramids and great tombs by the kings of Egypt in which have been preserved the masterpieces of the domestic arts of the period.

Examples of furniture that have been found show that the cabinet makers of the period had a thorough knowledge of the qualities and peculiarities of wood. Curved forms were usually cut from the boughs of trees that had a natural curve in them of approximately the same shape as was required for the finished product. Ample allowances were made; for expansion and shrinkage.

The motifs of decorations used for furniture were similar to those used in the stone architecture. Animal legs and feet formed the supports of chairs, tables, etc. Consistency was maintained by using the forelegs of the animals for the front supports while the rear legs of the animal were used in the rear supports. The carved J’eet were usually placed on blocks several inches high.

These were for the purpose of raising the ornamented portions above the straw and reeds that covered the floors. Much of the furniture was luxurious, beautifully painted and inlaid with ivory, gold and precious stones. Such pieces as these belonged to the royal palaces or tombs and date back as far as the fourteenth century, B.C. The greatest extant examples of Egyptian art are the temples at Karnak and Luxor. Examples of domestic art are in the museum at Cairo and the British Museum, London.

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