什么是埃及艺术

西元前3000～西元前1000年的埃及王朝时期，在埃及与努比亚的尼罗河流域所产生的古代建筑、雕刻、绘画和装饰工艺品。埃及艺术比其他任何一种艺术更是有权者的宣传利器，使社会现存的结构得以持续不断。很大一部分艺术品是由古墓保存下来的。埃及艺术的发展历程大致与国家的政治历史平行并进，分为三个时期：古王国时期（西元前2700年～西元前2150?年）、中王国时期（西元前2000～西元前1670?年）、新王国时期（西元前1550～西元前1070年）。古王国的石墓与神庙都以色彩鲜明的浮雕装饰，生动而真实地描绘人民的日常生活；对人像的绘制已有规定，标明正确的比例、姿态及细节的配置，通常均与所阐释主体的社会地位有关。古王国末期艺术品质衰退，中王国时期政治情况稍为稳定，艺术随之复兴，特别值得注意的是国王们的雕像，浮雕及绘画都臻於高水准的艺术境界。新王国时期艺术进入百花齐放期，巨型花岗岩人像及墙上的浮雕为统治者与众神歌功颂德；绘画成为独立的艺术，装饰的手工艺品达於新高峰，图坦卡门（Tutankhamen）的陵墓所发现的宝藏，是各种奢侈艺术品的典型。

Egyptian art

Ancient sculptures, paintings, and decorative crafts produced in the dynastic periods of the 3rd-1st millennia BC in the Nile Valley of Egypt and Nubia. Egyptian art served those in power as a forceful propaganda instrument that perpetuated the existing framework of society. Much of what has survived is associated with ancient tombs. The course of art in Egypt paralleled the country's political history and is divided into three periods: Old Kingdom (c. 2700-c. 2150 BC), Middle Kingdom (c. 2000-c. 1670 BC), and New Kingdom (c. 1550-c. 1070 BC). The Old Kingdom's stone tombs and temples were decorated with vigorous and brightly painted reliefs illustrating the daily life of the people. Rules for portraying the human figure were established, specifying proportions, postures, and placement of details, often linked to the subjects' social standing. An artistic decline at the end of the Old Kingdom led to a revival in the more stable political climate of the Middle Kingdom, notable for its expressive portrait sculptures of kings and its excellent relief sculptures and painting. The New Kingdom brought a magnificent flowering of the arts; great granite statues and wall reliefs glorified rulers and gods, painting became an independent art, and the decorative crafts reached new peaks, the treasure of Tutankhamen's tomb typifying the variety of luxury items created. See also Egyptian architecture.