The workshop was a smoky cavern of noise in
the afternoon heat. Hammers
pounded, chisels clinked on stone and the men called to each other for paint and
tools. Hot fires lent a haze to the
air as the craftsmen toiled away. Despite
its look of chaos, this orderly shop would produce art to outlast the ages.
The Egyptian Assembly Line
Stonemasons
Painters
How Do We Know That?
Ancient Egyptians had teams of craftsmen in every town and village. Each of them was specially trained for a different job. Skilled Egyptian craftsmen worked as potters, weavers, carpenters, painters, stonemasons and metal workers.
The Egyptian Assembly
Line
Although
craftsmen in Egypt were valued, they tended to occupy the lower social classes.
They also didn’t get individual credit for the work they did since all
projects were finished by teams. Each
craftsman was trained to do one task only, so each piece of art would require
several differently trained workers to complete it.
These teams of craftsmen were paid for their
labors with lodging, clothing, food and beer.
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Stonemasons
In addition to carving statues and hewing out blocks for building,
Egyptian
stonemasons were responsible for preparing tomb walls for elaborate paintings.
A stonemason would use a mallet and chisel to carve the main figures from
the background. If the painting was
to occupy an outside wall, the mason would have carved deep outlines around the
figures so that shadows from the sun would enhance the scene.
If the painting was on an inside wall, the mason would chip away all the
background so that the figures stood out.
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Ancient Egyptian painters adorned tomb walls, palaces and temples with
magnificent paintings. The painters
believed that the figures and objects they painted would come to life in the
Afterworld.
Painters were given a plan with strict rules
for painting figures and objects. If
a scene was not already car
ved out on a wall, a geometric grid was drawn.
The painters used the grid to help them judge scale as they copied the
plan onto the wall.
There were also firm guidelines for painting
human and animal figures. In
Egyptian paintings, the figure’s face and legs were turned to the side. One eye, both shoulders and the chest were painted facing
front. Both feet were turned to the
side, with the toes pointing in the same direction. The ancient Egyptians feel that this method displayed all the
important features.
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How
Do We Know That?
Although Egyptian craftsmen were not individually recognized, we do know the
name of one ancient painter. He
painted himself into a tomb scene. When an admirer copied the scene, the
labeled the painter with a name. The
painter, shown decorating a statue, was named Hovy.
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