diff erent cultural groups to create jewelry. Th e type of metal
usually depended on its availability. Gold was typically the
most-prized metal; in West Africa, however, silver was pre-
ferred because it symbolized purity—gold was thought to be
impure. For anyone studying the history of jewelry, there will
always be the frustration caused by the African custom of
melting down old jewelry, especially gold jewelry, to use the
metal to make new jewelry. Th is tradition means that sculp-
tures showing people wearing jewelry and jewelry placed in
graves are oft en the only sources of information about what
ancient Africans wore.
Jewelry oft en identifi ed a person’s place in society. Th e
size and weight of an anklet sometimes expressed a woman’s
wealth. In the Congo ivory or bone jewelry with human heads
with three points sticking out would indicate that the wearer
was a king. Jewelry had practical value. For example, hairpins
could be made of metal or ivory; they would hold sometimes
elaborate hairdos in place, and their length could speak of a
wearer’s social status.
Perhaps as ancient as the Nok culture are leg ornaments
in the shape of snakes. Worn lengthwise and usually made in
bronze, the ornaments are bars with coils and snake heads,
and modern cultures wear them to ward off real snakes.
Bronze bracelets shaped like snakes have been excavated near
the Cross River in Nigeria. Anklets, armlets, and bracelets in
the shape of coiled rope have been found throughout central
Africa. Some items weigh several pounds and probably were
worn only to show the wearer’s status.
EGYPT
BY MICHAEL J. O’NEAL
Th e ancient Egyptians had no word for art. Artists were
mindful of the aesthetic properties of their creations, but they
had no abstract word that was understood as art, and no one
thought of their creations as art in the modern sense of the
word. When they created items, they did so almost always
with either a practical or religious purpose in mind. Practical
items, like bowls and other vessels, were used in the home for
everyday purposes. Religious art commonly depicted gods
and goddesses as well as the pharaohs, who were seen as di-
vine. It was created to serve a spiritual purpose, most oft en to
honor the gods, to ensure a continuous connection between
the physical and spiritual worlds, or to help a deceased person
on his or her way into the aft erlife.
Egyptian artists worked within a limited range of subject
matter. Ancient Egyptian culture valued conformity rather
than individualism, so there was little room for innovation,
experimentation, or personal idiosyncrasies—features usu-
ally thought of as characteristic of art. Most forms of art-
work, especially larger pieces, were produced by teams rather
than individuals. Th at said, the best, most artistically pleas-
ing objects that survive from ancient Egypt feature carvings
and paintings that seem to be present solely because they are
beautiful. In other words, they are works of art.
ARTISTIC CONVENTIONS
Ancient Egyptian artists adhered strictly to a set of rules and
conventions. Th ese rules did not change dramatically over a
period of three thousand years. Painting and drawing made
use of simple lines and shapes and broad areas of color. Male
fi gures were always darker than female fi gures (perhaps re-
fl ecting the fact that women stayed indoors more than men
and thus were not burnished by the sun). Th e size of a fi gure
refl ected its relative importance; men were always larger than
women, and the pharaoh was always larger than the other
fi gures and equal in size to the gods. Pharaohs were always
shown with their symbols of power, and other symbolism
was strictly maintained: blue represented the Nile River, red
symbolized power, and yellow represented the sun (and hence
the sun god). Commoners were always portrayed with either
two left or two right feet. Depictions of animals, too, were
symbolic; for example, a falcon’s head represented the sky
god Horus, and a jackal’s head represented Anubis, the god
of funeral rites. By adhering to these rules, Egyptian artists
created a sense of order and continuity. Rarely did Egyptian
art attempt to create an impression of chaos, despair, or other
dark elements of life.
In portraying the human form ancient Egyptian artists
made use of what is called the canon of human proportions.
Th ey started with a square grid that, for standing fi gures, in-
cluded 18 “units.” Two were used for the face, 10 for the area
from the neck to the knees, and six from the knees to the
bottom of the feet. For seated fi gures a 14-square grid was
used. Th is way of proportioning the human body remained
remarkably consistent throughout Egyptian history and was
used to guide the artist not only in making statues but in cre-
ating paintings and relief work as well.THE ORIGINS OF EGYPTIAN ART
Th is history of ancient Egyptian art began millennia ago,
long before the time of the pharaohs, the great temples,
and the pyramids. In the Nile River valley archaeologists
have discovered late Stone Age cliff drawings created by the
valley’s fi rst inhabitants that date back to the eighth millen-
nium b.c.e. Th ese drawings show scenes from everyday life,
including wild animals, hunting, herds of domesticated ani-
mals, and boating. Archaeologists have also discovered such
items as pottery and carved stones and ivory, oft en placed in
graves. Also discovered have been small statues of animals
and people. Sometimes the fi gures of people had grotesquely
large genitals, suggesting that these pieces were part of rituals
surrounding a fertility cult.
Later, during the Predynastic Period, or the centuries im-
mediately before Egypt was united under the rule of the pha-
raohs during the Dynastic Period, painted scenes on pottery
became more common. Also, artists began to practice some
of the artistic forms that became common in Dynastic Egypt.
Many of the art objects they created were for ceremonial pur-
poses, including knives with ivory handles, palettes (vesselsart: Egypt 93