Alayar 1 Moneerah Alayar Art History Presentation and Research - PDF document

Alayar 1 Moneerah Alayar Art History Presentation and Research Paper 25 August 2016 The Jewelry and Design of Ancient Egypt: Still Beautiful, Still Relevant Ancient Egyptian society has existed for more than 5,000 years, and created a style of art and jewelry that continues to be important to this day. Ancient Egyptian religion included a large number of different gods, goddesses, and their animal and natural associations, all of which have found their way into Egyptian jewelry. Egyptians were master craftsmen, creating beautiful buildings and gorgeous pieces of art for all levels of society, but the most amazing works of art for the Egyptian king (called a Pharaoh) and his family and servants. The wide range of materials used by the ancient Egyptians in jewelry is incredible, especially with the knowledge that their technology was 5,000 years earlier than ours today. Overall, the motifs, elements, and materials of Egyptian jewelry from long ago continue to be an inspiration to jewelers around the world, myself included. Egyptian styles of jewelry are not so different from the ones that are enjoying popularity today. In the 21st century, statement necklaces with broad, thick rows of beads and central medallions or large stones which sit on the collarbones are still quite popular. These were very common in ancient Egypt and can be seen in almost all museum collections of Egyptian artifacts. In addition, cuff bracelets, with their broad width and sparse ornamentation, are still very popular. While leather cuffs are currently popular in the United States, in most of the world the metal cuff still sits at the top of the market. It is possible that leather cuffs were made in ancient

Alayar 2 Egypt, but they have not been preserved over time ­ only gold and other metal cuffs remain. Animal and nature symbolism also continues to play an important part in modern jewelry. In ancient Egypt, animals served many symbolic purposes, being associated with different gods and goddesses, with health, wealth, protection from evil, or even fertility (Jennings, 1988). Markowitz and Doxey (2014) explain how the making of “evil eye” beads was popular for protection: "Probably the most extraordinary glass adornments were stratified eye beads. These remarkable beads have spots or circular rings representing eyes, and they were believed to magically protect the wearer from malevolent forces." p. 37). Today, those associations are considered less magical, but we still see a great deal of animal and nature­themed jewelry in modern styles. Finally, charms and amulets were a common piece of jewelry worn by Egyptians at all levels of society (Baines, 2007). Although we no longer believe these charms and amulets to have magic powers, charm bracelets and amulet­type necklaces are still very popular among jewelry designers both in the United States and beyond. Ancient Egyptian styles have, therefore, continued to be very influential in the modern era. One of the most important elements of ancient Egyptian art and jewelry is its symbolism. Symbolism extended to Egyptian writing as well as visual art and jewelry. The Egyptian written language called Hieroglyphics is made up of pictures which take the place of words. These pictures represent objects, ideas, colors, textures, and much more. Ancient Egyptians had four basic types of color: black, white, red, and “grue” which includes green and blue (Baines, 2007). Hieroglyphics also had words for “striped” and for the textures of different animal skins, such as birds’ feathers and snakeskins. Symbolism included animals, features of nature such as the sun and wheat, and other religious symbols such as the eye of Horus and the ankh. The ankh is a

Alayar 3 symbol of eternal life that was used for royal objects and adornments. It consists of a cross with a loop at the top, as shown in Bridgeman Images’ “Jewelry Box” (2014). The eye of Horus, the god traditionally associated with the Pharaoh, was also a symbol used in jewelry. Many animals, including hawks, scarab beetles, and snakes, all had symbolic importance in jewelry designs. Flies in particular were symbols of “pertinacity and bravery” (Scott, 1964). Because flies are so difficult to get rid of, and they never become tired of chasing after what they want, they became symbolic of dedication and patience. The fly motif can be seen in many pieces, including Bridgeman Images’ “Gold Necklace with Flies” (2014). Symbolism was a very important part of Egyptian jewelry, both for visual as well as magical/religious reasons. Jewelry in ancient Egypt served many purposes. Some jewelry was made to honor and worship the different gods in the Egyptian religion. Egyptians believed that the gods could be appeased and pleased by their artworks, and that they might give the Egyptians benefits or favors if their art was good. Jewelry also acted as a status symbol in ancient Egypt ­ the royal family used gold because it was thought to be connected to the sun god, Ra, while lower classes used copper because it was cheaper (Markowitz & Doxey, 2014). According to Baines (2007), “gold was not the affair of normal mortals” (p. 277). Egyptians also believed that when a person died, they took their material belongings into the afterlife. Egyptians were often buried with their jewelry (either worn or in boxes or containers) so that they could be wealthy in the afterlife and have protection from evil based on the symbols and spells written on their jewelry. This custom is what has allowed people in the 21st century to discover what ancient Egyptian jewelry was like, because the jewelry has been so well preserved in the tombs of ancient Egyptians and their mummies. However, grave robbing has been a major problem for Egyptian tombs, and many

Alayar 4 pieces of beautiful jewelry have been lost or stolen from burial places. Jewelry in ancient Egypt served some unique purposes, but many of the things it was used for are still important today. The materials used in ancient Egyptian jewelry were very diverse, and the techniques used to make different types of jewelry were very advanced for such an ancient society. Egyptians had no concept of or word for “art” ­ they simply decorated everything that was important to them in life with pictures and symbols. However, they did have clear preferences for jewelry and adorning themselves with precious metals and stones. Makeup, hairstyles, and jewelry were all finely developed art forms in ancient Egypt. Jewelry was made of stone, wood, bone, leather, clay, ceramic, and enamel, including, of course, metals such as gold, copper, and bronze. Baines (2007), notes that “stone is fundamental to ancient Egyptian monumental buildings, statuary, and objects of all sizes down to amulets and beads” (p. 263). Ancient Egyptians did not use what we would call “precious stones”, but rather “semi­precious” stones such as obsidian, carnelian, feldspar, garnet, turquoise, and lapis lazuli, as shown in Bridgeman Images’ “Jewelry with Precious Stones” (2014). Lapis lazuli and turquoise were most valuable to ancient Egyptians (Baines, 2007). Egyptians were very clever in creating imitations of these two types of stone. Enamels were invented to make ceramic jewelry look like stone­ a turquoise­colored pigment for faience (an early enameling technology) and a lapis lazuli­colored blue frit pigment for glass enameling (Scott, 1964). According to Markowitz and Doxey 2014), "enameling was developed to a high degree and certain techniques found in jewelry, including ​ ​ champlevé, repoussé, en plein sur fond reserve , and ​ plique à jour appear for the first time during this period” (p. 36). These techniques are not so different from the ones used today.

Alayar 5 It appears that the genuine nature of the stone was not that important to Egyptians: “in public record the Egyptians hardly showed a concern with stones for their own sake, focusing rather on their ideological and religious exploitation” (Baines, 2007, p. 279). Other minerals found in Egyptian jewelry include malachite, amethyst, chalcedony, agate, travertine, and quartz (Jennings, 1988). According to Jennings, quartzite was also associated with the sun god, power and royalty, while turquoise was connected to divinity and protection. Additionally, trade routes which crossed through Egypt had an effect on the jewelry styles of the region: "disk­shaped ear studs, ram­head studs, wire hoops with pendants; and cast penannular earrings. Some depict protective household deities...Others resemble ear ornaments from the ancient Greek world" (Markowitz & Doxey, 2014, p. 36). African, Middle Eastern, and Asian trading parties that passed through Egypt would trade their jewelry for the Egyptians’ ­ this continues today as jewelry styles from Saudi Arabia are transmitted through Egyptian migrant workers back to Egypt. Many museums have hosted collections of Egyptian jewelry from a long time ago. Most notable are the collections of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, which holds the most amazing pieces and preserved jewelry of kings and princesses, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, and the Australian Museum in Sydney. These museum collections help ordinary people to enjoy the beautiful artwork that the Egyptian craftsmen made so many thousands of years ago. The museum collections and modern version of these pieces are a significant inspiration to me in my own jewelry design work ­ I love the use of gold, the symbolism, use of words (in hieroglyphics or other text) in jewelry design, and the ornate nature of the pieces. I