Page:EB1911 - Volume 09.djvu/80

Demotic.

Hieratic.

Hieroglyphic.

---

---

---

---

---

 ent, “who”

nty

 Perso (“Pharaoh”)

  

  

 Perꜥo ꜥnḫ wz, śnb 

 yôt, “father”

ỉtf

 ꜥônkh, “live”

ꜥnḫ

 ekh, “know”

rḫ

 ahe, “stand”

ꜥḥꜥ

 eine, “carry”

ỉn

 ms (phon.)

ms

 s (alph.)

s

 s (alph.)

ś

 m (alph.)

m

 n (alph.)

n

The early scribe’s outfit, often carried slung over his shoulder, is seen in the hieroglyph 𓏟. It consisted of frayed reed pens or brushes, a small pot of water, and a palette with two circular cavities in which black and red ink were placed, made of finely powdered colour solidified with gum. In business and literary documents red ink was used for contrast, especially in headings; in demotic, however, it is very rarely seen. The pen became finer in course of time, enabling the scribe to write very small. The split reed of the Greek penman was occasionally adopted by the late demotic scribes.

Egypt had long been bilingual when, in papyri of the 2nd century A.D., we begin to find transcripts of the Egyptian language into Greek letters, the latter reinforced by a few signs borrowed from the demotic alphabet: so written we have a magical text and a horoscope, probably made by foreigners or for their use. The infinite superiority of the Greek alphabet with its full notation of vowels was readily seen, but piety and custom as yet barred the way to its full adoption. The triumph of Christianity banished the old system once and for all; even at the beginning of the 4th century the native Egyptian script scarcely survived north of the Nubian frontier at Philae; a little later it finally expired. The following eight signs, however, had been taken over from demotic by the Copts:

ϣ = š, from 𓆷 šꜣ, dem. , .

ϩ = h, probably from 𓄑
𓏛 ḥw (or 𓇉 ḥꜣ), dem. .

Ϧ (Boh.) = ḫ, from 𓆼 ḫꜣ, dem. .

Ⲝ (Akhm.) = ḫ, from 𓐍
𓏭, 𓐍
𓏏𓏤 ḫy, ḫt, dem. .

ϥ = f, from 𓆑 f, dem. .

ϭ = č from 𓎡 k (or 𓐍 ḫ), dem. , .

ϫ = ğ, from 𓍑 dꜣ (or 𓅷𓏤
  tꜣ), dem. .

ϯ = ti, from 𓂞
𓏏 dy·t, dem. .

For origins of hieroglyphs, see Petrie’s Medum (1892); F. Ll. Griffith, A Collection of Hieroglyphics (1898); N. de G. Davies, The Mastaba of Ptahhetep and Akhethetep, pt. i. (1900); M. A. Murray, Saqqara Mastabas (London, 1905); also Petrie and Griffith, Two Hieroglyphic Papyri from Tanis (London, 1889) (native sign-list); G. Möller, Hieratische Paläographie (Leipzig, 1909); Griffith, Catalogue of Demotic Papyri in the J. Rylands Collection (Manchester, 1909).  (F. Ll. G.) 

E. Art and Archaeology.—In the following sections a general history of the characteristics of Ancient Egyptian art is first given, showing the variation of periods and essentials of style; and this is followed by an account of the use made of material products, of the tools and instruments employed, and of the monuments. For further details see also the separate topographical headings (for excavations, &c.), and the general articles on the various arts and art-materials (for references to Egypt); also Pyramids; Mummy, &c.

General Characteristics.

The wide and complex subject of Egyptian art will be treated here in six periods: Prehistoric, Early Kings, Pyramid Kings, XIIth Dynasty, XVIIIth-XXth Dynasties, XXVIth Dynasty and later. In each age will be considered the (A) statuary, (B) reliefs, (C) painting.

Prehistoric.—The earliest civilized population of Egypt was highly skilled in mechanical accuracy and regularity, but had little sense of organic forms. They kept the unfinished treatment of the limbs and extremities which is so characteristic of most barbaric art; and the action was more considered than the form.

(A) In the round there are in the earlier graves female figures of two races, the Bushman type and European, both probably representing servants or slaves. These have the legs always united, sloping to a point without feet (Plate I. fig. 1); the arms are only stumps. The face has a beaky nose and some indication of eyes. Upon the surface is colouring; red for the Bushman, with black whisker though female; white for the European type, with black tattoo patterns. Other female figures are modelled in a paste, upon a stick, and the black hair is sometimes made separately to fit on as a wig over the red head, showing that wigs were then used. Male figures are generally only heads in the earlier times. Tusks with carved heads (Plate I. figs. 2, 3) are the earliest, beginning at S.D. (sequence date) 33;^[1] heads on the top of combs are found, from S.D. 42 to the close of such combs in the fifties. All of these heads show a high forehead and a pointed beard; and such expression as may be discovered is grave but not savage. In later times whole figures of ivory, stone and clay are found, with the legs united, and the arms usually joined to the body. A favourite way of indicating the eyes was by drilling two holes and inserting a white shell bead in each. The figures of animals (Plate I. figs. 4, 5) are quite as rude as the human figures: they only summarily indicate the

1. In the prehistoric age when absolute dating is out of reach a “sequence dating” by means of the sequence of types in pottery, tools, &c., has been proposed in Petrie’s Diospolis Parva, pp. 4 et sqq. The earliest prehistoric graves yet known are placed at S.D. 30, and shortly before S.D. 80 the period of the first historic dynasty is entered.