Notes on Amarna Art
Was Amana Art a radical break from tradition?
• Armana period - during and just after the reign of Akhenaten (late 18th dynasty) Noticeably different from conventional styles.
• Feminine depictions of Akhenaten, droopy stomach, lack of genitals, wide hips and thighs, narrow waist.
• Traditional representations of men had chiseled muscles, animal representations, eg, theriocephaly - artistic descriptions of characters that simultaneously share human and animal traits. Ra, Sobek, Anubis etc.
• Faces are still shown in traditional profile.
• Akhenaten elongated head, large nose/chin, narrow face. Amenhotep IV
• Ruled for 17 years.
• Abandoned traditional polytheism, monotheistic worship of the Aten, sun disk.
• Sun disk with rays, hands holding ankh at the bottom - giver of life, depicted as a part of the royal family’s lives.
• Break from traditional religion - break from traditional art.
• Hapi - God of the Nile. Related to visually Akhenaten depictions.
• Let Amun remain for a while.
• Lack of funerary and agricultural scenes in tomb artwork, no mention of osiris.
• Tomb artwork isnt inclusive of the dead person unless he/she is depicted with members of the royal family.
• Excerpts from the Hymn of the Aten rather than the journey through the underworld.
• Accentuation of different features. Prominent rather than blending them in as in traditional ways.
• Family relief of Akhenaten and Nefertiti. Intimate with children. Kissing and playing.
• Allowing commoners to see the royal family are just regular people - approachable and to gain support.
• Armana temples - gempaata(?), sun flow through, different from regular enclosed dim cold tombs.
• Talatat blocks
• It was a radical change in the sense that it differed from the regular artwork customs of the time.
• The egyptians didnt like the new art or religion styles because the traditions were too deeply entrenched in their way of
• Armana period - during and just after the reign of Akhenaten (late 18th dynasty) Noticeably different from conventional styles.
• Feminine depictions of Akhenaten, droopy stomach, lack of genitals, wide hips and thighs, narrow waist.
• Traditional representations of men had chiseled muscles, animal representations, eg, theriocephaly - artistic descriptions of characters that simultaneously share human and animal traits. Ra, Sobek, Anubis etc.
• Faces are still shown in traditional profile.
• Akhenaten elongated head, large nose/chin, narrow face. Amenhotep IV
• Ruled for 17 years.
• Abandoned traditional polytheism, monotheistic worship of the Aten, sun disk.
• Sun disk with rays, hands holding ankh at the bottom - giver of life, depicted as a part of the royal family’s lives.
• Break from traditional religion - break from traditional art.
• Hapi - God of the Nile. Related to visually Akhenaten depictions.
• Let Amun remain for a while.
• Lack of funerary and agricultural scenes in tomb artwork, no mention of osiris.
• Tomb artwork isnt inclusive of the dead person unless he/she is depicted with members of the royal family.
• Excerpts from the Hymn of the Aten rather than the journey through the underworld.
• Accentuation of different features. Prominent rather than blending them in as in traditional ways.
• Family relief of Akhenaten and Nefertiti. Intimate with children. Kissing and playing.
• Allowing commoners to see the royal family are just regular people - approachable and to gain support.
• Armana temples - gempaata(?), sun flow through, different from regular enclosed dim cold tombs.
• Talatat blocks
• It was a radical change in the sense that it differed from the regular artwork customs of the time.
• The egyptians didnt like the new art or religion styles because the traditions were too deeply entrenched in their way of