Ancient Egyptian art was created to serve a practical purpose, not for its own sake, and so every piece had a specific function. At the same time, these works were crafted in accordance with the cultural value of ma'at (harmony) and so attention was paid to symmetry, balance, and aesthetics.
A statue of a deity was made as a home for that god or goddess just as one made of a king – or a peasant – was created as an eternal image of that person that their soul would recognize and respond to after death but still needed to be aesthetically pleasing. Intricate amulets, bangles, and charms served to protect one from evil spirits, bad luck, and ghosts but were also decorative. Even ceramics, cosmetic spoons and boxes, and perfume bottles, all created for functional purposes, ornamented with symbols of protection and reminders of the gifts of the gods, were still fashioned to be visually stunning.
The images in this gallery include some of the most famous works of ancient Egyptian art and others seldom seen. Statues range from deities to kings and queens to peasants and pets and wall paintings from simple domestic scenes like preparing a duck to the afterlife image of judgment before the god Osiris. The artists of ancient Egypt addressed all aspects of one’s journey through life and after death and, in doing so, created some of the most memorable artworks in world history.
