The ancient Egyptians are well known for their phenomenal architectural structures, works of art and large pantheon of exotic gods. Belief in the afterlife and all aspects of its manifestation made the Egyptians famous all over the world. When viewing many works of art of those years, you will notice that all people and gods are depicted in profile (side). The figures do not use perspective, there is no "depth" of the image.
For what or why was this style applied?
Funeral portrait of a young man. Egypt, 2nd century A. D.
Photo: ru.wikipedia.org
One would think that it was just that this was the only way they knew how to draw in Ancient Egypt. It was a very, very long time ago. Think, for example, rock paintings in caves - it seems. In fact, they knew how to paint realistic pictures in Egypt. The most famous example of antique painting is the Fayum portraits of the 1st-3rd centuries A. D. Many historians and art critics are breaking their spears over questions of the artificial primitivism of Egyptian painting.
And here are the ideas proposed …
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1. At that time the "three-dimensionality" of the image was not yet invented
Egyptian gods on the walls of the tomb of Nefertari
Photo: egyptopedia.info
All drawings of Ancient Egypt are made "flat", but with small details. Perhaps most artists were simply incapable of creating complex compositions with people in realistic poses. Therefore, they adopted standard canons: the heads and legs of all people and gods are depicted in profile. The shoulders, on the other hand, are turned straight. The hands of those who sit are always resting on their knees.
2. Deliberate simplification as a social aspect
Official while hunting birds
Photo: egyptopedia.info
The Egyptians invented a great way to get rid of the third dimension and used this to represent the social role of the people depicted. As they imagined in those years, the picture could not be next to the pharaoh, god and a common man, because this exalted the latter. Therefore, all the figures were made of different sizes: the pharaohs were the largest, the dignitaries were smaller, the workers and slaves were the smallest. But then, realistically drawing two people of different status side by side, one of them would look like a child. Better to depict people schematically.
3. A direct look is considered a challenge
In the animal kingdom, animals avoid looking into each other's eyes. A direct look is considered a challenge. See how the dogs fight. Weak - turns to a strong opponent in profile, or substitutes the neck. The gods are so high and sacred that a person, even an artist, has the right only to look askance at the life of the all-powerful. Only Death looks straight in the eyes, an equally angry god. Therefore, a person can only observe, and certainly not participate in the sacraments of the divine liturgies.
The second answer might explain the imaging technology.
Painted or carved in stone figures are very similar to daguerreotypes, and even the theater of shadows, which has survived to this day since ancient times.
Let's remember how we all loved to play with the shadows of our hands from childhood. Daguerreotypes are more easily perceived in profile. Ancient craftsmen used shadows for patterns cast on the walls of the pyramids from a torch or the setting sun. This technology made it much easier for them to portray majestic giant figures. Therefore, the artists were exclusively priests, Egyptians of the elite circles. Not to use the shadow of a despicable slave for the contours of the deity?
Having mastered the technique of the daguerreotype, the Egyptians may have gone further. How beautifully and naturally the movement is depicted on the frescoes. Where does the ability to transfer a step, direction come from? Didn't there exist in the past flimsy analogies with today's film distribution, cartoons, or at least Shadow Theater? Perhaps we do not know everything about the pastime of young pharaohs, their holidays of worship of deities and dedications. It is symbolic that the gods of Egypt do not look us in the face. Or we don't look at their faces.
4. Religious version
Underworld of Ancient Egypt
Photo: dv-gazeta.info
According to another version, the Egyptians deliberately made drawings of people two-dimensional, "flat". This is especially noticeable in paintings where animals are present. Their ancient masters colorfully painted, giving realistic and elegant poses.
The ancient Egyptians, with their worship of the afterlife, believed that a person's soul could travel. And since the drawings were mainly performed in tombs and tombs, they could "revive" a three-dimensional pictorial image of a deceased person. To avoid this, the figures of people were drawn flat and in profile. So the human face is more expressive and it is easier to portray it as similar.
In order not to revive the image, the Jews went even further. They banned human images altogether, and therefore later many Jewish artists (not all) painted people with distorted proportions. An example of a painting by Chagall. Subsequently, Muslims borrowed this prohibition from the Jews.
Some versions of course overlap, but which one seems most likely to you? Or do you know another version?
