Egyptian architecture

history of architecture

1. HISTORY of
ARCHITECTURE

2. EGYPTIAN
ARCHITECTURE

3. Factors influencing Egyptian Architecture
•Geographical
Nile river-was a trade route to Eastern and Western foreign trade
-On its banks therefore, the Egyptians sited their villages
and cemeteries
•Geological
-Stone is abundant in Egypt in quantity and variety
-the country was poor in metals.
-However, copperis gained chiefly from the Sinai peninsula.
-Tin was imported for the making of bronze.
-The chief kinds of stone were limestone, sandstone, alabaster,
granite,quartiteand basalt.
-Quarryingwas done with copper tools and by the use of timber
wedges which when swollen by water, split the blocks away
from the natural rock.
-Houses, palaceswere constructed of large, sun-dried bricks.

5. •CLIMATIC
-Egypt has only two seasons. Spring and summer.
-Simplicity of design is conduced by the brilliant
sunshine; there was no real need for windows
and thus unbroken massive walls not only
protected the interior from the fierce heat of
the sun, but also provided an uninterrupted
surface for Hieroglyphics
-Roof was not an important consideration, and flat
roofs of stone slabs sufficed to cover the
buildings, and exclude the heat.
Hieroglyphics
-pictorial representation of religious ritual, historic
events and daily pursuits.

6. •HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL
-The Egyptian civilization Is among the most ancient social
and industrial conditions
-in Egypt government, employed large number of staffs,
trained craftsmen continuously, vast armies of
laborers for the erection of monumental Buildings.
Prisoners of war were also turned on to the same
work.
-Craftsmanshipwas very highly developed, particularly in
me royal workshops, and the Egyptians attained
great skill in weaving, glass blowing, pottery
turning, metal-workingand in making musical
instruments, jewelry and furniture.
-The Kings of ancient Egypt are known as pharaohs,
sometimes they appear as gods and demi-gods

7. •RELIGIOUS
-Egyptians in the architecture, focused on both tombs and temples.
•Re/Ra-sun god
•Osiris, the man-god, who died and rose again, the god of death,
and through death of resurrection to eternal life.
•Isis, osiris’ wife, god of motherhood and protection
•Horus, the sky-god
•Hathor, goddess of love
•Set, dread god of evil
•Serapis, a bull-god representing the strange cult of
the sacred bulls.
two predominant types of buildings:
-temples of the gods
-pyramids of the early kings.

9. ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
•'gorge' –Egyptian cornice. Or also called hollow & roll
•Batter walls -which remained, one of the principal
characteristics of Egyptian architecture

10. The surface decoration of the masonry walls
is also held to have been derived from the
practice of scratching pictures on the early
mud-plaster walls called hieroglyphics.

11. Egyptian columns have distinctive
character and a very large proportion of
them plainly advertise their vegetable
origin, their shafts indicative of bundles of
plant stems, gathered in a little at the base,
and with capital seemingly derived from
the lotus bud, the papyrus flower or the
Ubiquitous palm.

14. Egyptian monumental architecture, which is
essentially a columnar and trabeatedstyle, is expressed
mainly in pyramids and other tombs and in temples.

15. Pylon-monumental gateway to an Egyptian
temple consisting with slanting walls
flanking the entrance portal

17. Egyptian temples approached by
impressive avenues of Sphinxes-
mythical monsters each with the
body of a lion and a head of a
man, hawk, ram or a woman-
possess in their massive pylons,
great courts, hypostyle halls,
inner sanctuaries and dim secret
rooms.
3 types of sphinx
Androsphinx-human-headed
Criosphinx-ram-headed
Hieracosphinx-falcon-headed

18. Architectural Egyptian Tomb
-Mastaba
-Pyramid
-Rock-hewn tombs
1. Mastaba
An ancient Egyptian rectangular, flat-topped funerary mound, with
battered (sloping) sides, covering a burial chamber befowground.
Since the ancient Egyptians believed so strongly in an after-life. they
did their utmost, each according to his means, to build lasting
tombs, to preserve the body and to bury with it the finest
commodities that might be needed for the sustenance and eternal
enjoyment of the deceased. As early as the first Dynasty bands of
linen were used to wrap round the limbs of the body, to aid its
preservation called mummification.

20. SARCOPHAGUS-stone coffin: an ancient stone or marble
coffin, often decorated with sculpture and inscriptions

31. -The finest true pyramids are the famous three at GIZEH,
built by the fourth dynasty successors of Sneferu

38. Rock-Hewn Tombs
A type serving for the nobility rather than royalty

40. Examples:
1. The Great Temple of Ammon, Karnak, Thebes
The grandest of all Egyptian temples, was not
built upon one complete plan but owes its size,
disposition and magnificence to the work of
many Kings.

43. 2. The Great Temple of Abu-Simbel
Is one of the rock-hewn temples at this place
commanded by the indefatigable RamesesII. In front of
which are four rock-cut seated colossal statues of
Rameses, over 20 m (66 ft.) high.

45. Obelisks
-originating in the sacred symbol of the sun god Hetiopolis,
and which usually stood in pairs astride temple
entrances, are huge monoliths squareon plan and
tapering to an electrum.
-capped pyramidionat the summit, which was the sacred
part.
-four sides are cut with hieroglyphics

52. Ornament
-This was symbolical, and was an important element in
the style, including such features as the solar disc or
globe and the vulture with outspread wings as
a symbol of protection,
-diaper patterns, spirals and the feather ornament were
largely used.
-The scarab, or sacred beetle, was considered by the
Egyptians as the sign of their religion.
-The Egyptians were masters in the use of color, chiefly
using the primary ones blue, red, and yellow.

53. -lotus plant, the symbol of fertility and abundance,
produced by the overflowing Nile
-the palm, the papyrus, and others, each being copied as
the motif for a design