EGYPTIAN ART: THE CASE OF THE MISSING MUMMY
(Click on photo to go to Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Lori Langsner, Art Teacher
AIM
1. We will explore the art of Ancient Egypt.
2. We will each creatively design an Egyptian Mummy Case.
GRADE
LEVEL
All grades
ESTIMATED
TIME
One month (class meets 4 times per week for 40 minutes)
SETTING
Art Classroom
INTERDISCIPLINARY
AREAS Social Studies,
Language Arts
DO
NOW
(Thought Questions)
1. Why do you think the afterlife was so
important to the Egyptians?
2. What do you think people did to prepare
the dead for the afterlife?
3. Who was King Tut? What treasures were
found with the discovery of his tomb?
4. Why is the Sphinx one of the most
famous examples of ancient sculpture?
5. What do hieroglyphics tell us about the
Ancient Egyptians?
Understanding
Art Textbook - Gene Mittler, Ph.D., Rosalind Ragans, Ph.D.- Glencoe
Division of Macmillan/McGraw - Hill Publishing Co, 1992
Silently read p. 54 - 57 “The Art of
Ancient Egypt”. Copy and answer questions 1-5 on p. 57 - Check Your
Understanding.
1. When did ancient Egypt come into being?
How long did the civilization survive?
2. Who were the pharaohs?
What part did they play in the art of ancient Egypt?
3. Name two achievements in ancient
Egyptian architecture.
4.
What is a stele?
5. How did Egyptian artists show the human
figure in their work? What was
their reason for doing this?
TEACHER'S
NOTES
Elaborate
paintings were created for tombs, to make the after-life as pleasant for the
deceased as real life. The
paintings, tomb furniture, and sculpture provided food, entertainment, and
worldly goods. Often the life of
the person was recorded, including battles and religious offerings. The deceased was shown making a boat journey through the
underworld, or sometimes depicted with their protective gods introducing them to
the netherworld gods. Mummy cases
were richly decorated, often with the same stories and details seen in the wall
paintings.
HOMEWORK
1.
Using the computer as a resource tool, gather
reference material and photographs to help decorate your mummy case.
2. Make a list of the web sites you have
discovered.
3. Sketch ideas from the material you have
gathered.
VOCABULARY
1.
mummy - a dead person preserved in lifelike condition
2. afterlife - the next life, in which
the dead are believed to live again
3. artisan - a worker who has a special
artistic skill
4. pyramid - triangular buildings built
as royal tombs (place of burial)
5. hieroglyphics -picture symbols
representing words or ideas
6. papier-mache - an art medium of torn
newspaper and paste for sculpting
7. lapis-lazuli - a rich blue gemstone
found in Ancient Egyptian artworks
8. earth tones - rich color
pigments derived from the natural earth
9. pharaoh - the title given to kings
of Ancient Egypt
10. sarcophagus - mummy coffin
MATERIALS
sketchpads,
pencils, papier-mache materials newspaper, cardboard, masking tape, wallpaper
paste, plaster craft, metallic tempera paints, brushes, water containers,
sequins, glitter, rhinestones
MOTIVATION
Student
-size mummy coffin, Student Egyptian Art Gallery in school lobby, visit to the
Egyptian Galleries at the Brooklyn Museum (www.brooklynart.org
), Metropolitan Museum of Art (www.metmuseum.org),
and Egyptian Museum in Cairo (www.powerup.com.au/~ancient/museum.htm),
via the Internet.
PROCEDURE
1.
To become acquainted with Egyptian Art, students will use computer technology to
view the renown Egyptian collections of the Brooklyn Museum, Met, and Cairo
Museum.
2.
These collections will be discussed in class.
Elicit from students What do
these galleries have in common? Why
do you think artisans were inspired to create these art works?
Why are we so fascinated by the discoveries of Egyptian art?
3.
Employing, analyzing, and communicating their newly found information, students
will sketch ideas for their mummy case.
4.
Papier-mache technique will be demonstrated in class and students will work in
groups to create their mummy case.
5.
Once dry, and lightly sanded, students will draw their mummy face and mask, as
well as adornments throughout the
body.
6. Using metallic tempera paint, students
will creatively design their mummy case.
7. Completed mummy cases will be displayed
in classroom art gallery, following evaluation
and critique.
EVALUATION
1.
How did we learn about the art of
Ancient Egypt?
2. What types of artwork are the Egyptians
famous for?
3. Describe how you would prepare for the
afterlife. What possessions would you want to take with you? Why?
4. How are our Egyptian mummy cases
similar to those of the Ancient Egyptians?
5.
Which mummy case do you like best? Why?
STANDARDS:
Cultural
Diversity and Contribution -
Cooperative Learning - group work
ADDITIONAL LINKS
wwar.com/brooklyn_museum/index.html
- Brooklyn Museum
www.memphis.edu/egypt/artifact.html
- artifacts
FOLLOW-UP ACTIVITIES:
1. Take a class trip to the Brooklyn Museum or Metropolitan Museum of Art. Sketch from observation
2. Create a mummy to put inside
your coffin.
3. Create a school gallery exhibiting
artwork from ancient cultures.