King Narmer And King Ti example essay topic

Commanders Versus Warriors The art work left by the ancient Egyptians during the Predynastic and Old Kingdom periods were very similar. The Predynastic period preceded the Old kingdom roughly in the years of twenty five hundred B.C. The art work during these time periods followed a set of rules, called the Canon, regarding proportions and the human figure. The same rules were followed during both period, but it is evident that the artists of the New Kingdom where changing and fiddling with the Canon ever so slightly. "The Palette of King Narmer", from the Predynastic period, and the "Painting relief of Ti watching a hippopotamus hunt", from the New Kingdom, are excellent examples of a shift in the way powerful people were displayed in art work, yet were still very similar. Powerful people, such as kings, priests and officials, were displayed disconnected from others much more during the New Kingdom than the Predynastic period.

The "Palette of King Narmer" is a phenomenal representation of the Predynastic period, as it came from Hierakonpolis, Egypt during the years three thousand to twenty nine twenty B.C... It shows the power of King Narmer during a war between upper and lower Egypt. King Narmer is shown victorious in battle as he kills an enemy on one side of the Palette. Above, his name is written in hieroglyphics, and a bird watches over king Narmer.

Behind him, a much smaller figure, most like a servant, stands. On the backside of the palette large serpents are intertwined in the center. The painting is divided horizontally into sections. The serpents lie in the middle section. On the top section King Narmer's army is shown victorious. The "Painted relief of Ti watching over a hippopotamus hunt" is painted on limestone, and lies in the mastaba of King Ti, which dates back to twenty four fifty B.C. in Saqqara, Egypt.

It has a lot of structural similarities to King Narmer's palette. King Ti is a larger figure on a boat in the center of the painting. His soldiers are sown much smaller on a separate boat. They are located in the Nile River. There are not as many characters in this painting when compared to the other. There are also no hieroglyphics, but color was added to this painting.

Both of the works have a central figure that the art work is centered around. It can be inferred that these central human figures in the middle are King Narmer and King Ti respectively. Both are displayed much larger than any other figure in terms of proportions. The viewer is automatically drawn into this central figure.

This is what the artist wants to accomplish. He or she wants to glorify the people in power so that there legacy may live on. The magnitude of the king's power is the main idea the artist wishes to express. King Narmer is displayed larger than any other figure on both sides of the palette. This idea was followed by the artist who created King Ti's painted limestone. King Ti was also portrayed larger than any other figure following the principles presented in the Canon.

The pose, or body position of the two kings is he same. Both men are profiled on the palette and limestone respectively. They create a triangle with there position. The legs are the sides of the triangle and the head is the tip. The profiles of the two men are almost exactly the same. Both men have one arm up and one arm down but King Ti has his right arm up and King Narmer has his left arm up.

However, one subtle difference is King Ti is shown in color on the limestone whereas King Narmer is in all gray on the palette. The space between the characters is very similar in both works. Each has the main character front and center, and the small, less important figures, just off behind the main character. It adds a bit of a depth perception to the viewer...

These basic similarities carry on the tradition presented by the Canon. The ways in which the two kings are incorporated and interact with the rest of the painting are very different... How the two kings use their powers are much different. King Narmer appears to be much more of a warrior, a conqueror, whereas king Ti appears to me a commander. King Narmer is in the thick of things, as he holds his weapon high and makes an enemy kill. He is right in the heat of battle with his soldiers and it looks as if he is the sole person to conquer an entire army of enemies.

King Narmer is separated from his soldiers, and he carriers no weapon at all. He is disconnected from his soldiers. The King is in a separate boat. This gives the feeling that he believes he belongs in a separate tier than the ordinary men. One does not get the feeling that he is doing the work to be known as a conqueror, but more as a commander of troops.

One certainly believes that King Narmer is a warrior. He is in a different boat than the rest of his soldiers. The idea behind the leaders and what there role was changed during the Old Kingdom. King Ti wanted to be remembered differently than King Narmer.

This can be inferred by the viewer because of the change in styles between the Predynastic period and the Old Kingdom. They had different views of leadership, but yet they show the same power and importance that each leader has in society. The Predynastic period contained a much more active leader in warfare, as there leader was in the center of the trenches of war. This period glorified the leader for his conquests. The Old Kingdom was different in the leader seemed to be alienated from his people as he had his own boat in the river Nile. Even though the two periods use the same Egyptian Canon, they have different ideas of what a leader is, and different ideas of warfare and hunt.