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Ancient Egypt Transformed: The Middle Kingdom
The Middle Kingdom (ca. 2030–1700 B.C.), the second great era of ancient Egyptian culture, was a transformational period during which the artistic conventions, cultural principles, religious beliefs, and political systems formed during earlier dynasties were developed and reimagined. This comprehensive volume presents a detailed picture of the art and culture of the Middle Kingdom, arguably the least known of Egypt’s three kingdoms yet a time of remarkable prosperity and unprecedented change. International specialists present new insights into how Middle Kingdom artists refined existing forms and iconography to make strikingly original architecture, statuary, tomb and temple relief decoration, and stele.
Thematic sections explore art produced for different strata of Egyptian society, including the pharaoh, royal women, the elite, and the family, while other chapters provide insight into Egypt’s expanding relations with foreign lands and the themes of Middle Kingdom literature. More than 250 objects from major collections around the world are sumptuously illustrated, many with new photography undertaken specifically for this catalogue. This fascinating publication is a much-needed contribution to understanding ancient Egypt’s art and culture, and shows how the Middle Kingdom served as the bridge between the monumentality of the previous centuries and the opulent splendor to come.
Thematic sections explore art produced for different strata of Egyptian society, including the pharaoh, royal women, the elite, and the family, while other chapters provide insight into Egypt’s expanding relations with foreign lands and the themes of Middle Kingdom literature. More than 250 objects from major collections around the world are sumptuously illustrated, many with new photography undertaken specifically for this catalogue. This fascinating publication is a much-needed contribution to understanding ancient Egypt’s art and culture, and shows how the Middle Kingdom served as the bridge between the monumentality of the previous centuries and the opulent splendor to come.
379 pages, Hardcover
First published October 6, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 16, 2023
Actually 3.5 stars. This is not just a catalogue of an exhibition about Ancient Egypt: this is a very solid, in-depth exploration of how innovative the Middle Kingdom was (roughly the period 2040-1780 BCE). It offers a bunch of articles by specialists, covering a very wide range of society. Because of the catalogue aspect, the emphasis is on artistic representation and material culture. The only downside is that also here specialists hesitate to look over the wall, and so the interaction between the Nile valley and the wider Near East hardly comes into the picture. More in my History account on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....
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June 17, 2023The Middle Kingdom (c. 2040-1870 BCE) is the least known of the 3 kingdoms of Ancient Egypt. This is mainly because the fabulous size of the pyramids from the Old Kingdom and the greater availability of (narrative) sources from the New Kingdom contrast sharply with the eroded monumental structures and lesser grandeur of protagonists of that period. Nevertheless, Egyptian civilization underwent an important transformation during this era. Adèle Oppenheim sums it up aptly in her introduction: “It is during the Middle Kingdom that the basic cultural principles set out at the beginning of Egyptian civilization and codified during the Old Kingdom were reimagined. Reformulated were the ideology of kingship, the organization of society, religious practices, afterlife beliefs, and relations with neighboring peoples. The transformations that characterize the Middle Kingdom are attested to in architecture, sculpture, painting, relief decoration, stelae, jewelry, personal possessions, and literature, as well as other forms of written, built, and material culture; our knowledge of the era comes from the remains of these objects. Ultimately these developments reflect the basic concerns that have occupied human beings for millennia: how to organize a functional, just society, to understand forces that are beyond human control, to create a meaningful and prosperous life, and to continue some form of existence in an afterlife.”
Indeed, when you consider the material legacy of the Middle Kingdom (and this book illustrates it aptly), it is nothing short of impressive. Highly recommended. Rating 3.5 stars.
Indeed, when you consider the material legacy of the Middle Kingdom (and this book illustrates it aptly), it is nothing short of impressive. Highly recommended. Rating 3.5 stars.
October 13, 2016
This book is very nearly perfect! It provides good historical background and describes each piece of artwork In detail, answering many questions I had and picking up on observations I made myself. There were a very few times when things I had hoped would be discussed weren't but it was so seldom as to be negligible. The authors even made things I would not have normally been interested in worth reading about. This is the first catalogue in which I have read about every item covered in it.
The only compliant I have is that many times the prose would refer to a figure or a catalogue number but didn't give the page number where this illustration could be found. This would interrupt the flow of the ideas as I searched back and forth for the item discussed. Other than that minor flaw this is the way catalogues should be written. It was beautifully illustrated and so informative! I have a new appreciation for the Middle Kingdom. I have always loved the New Kingdom and especially the XVIIIth and XIXth Dynasties. I really regret that I didn't make it to the Met to see this exhibit!
The only compliant I have is that many times the prose would refer to a figure or a catalogue number but didn't give the page number where this illustration could be found. This would interrupt the flow of the ideas as I searched back and forth for the item discussed. Other than that minor flaw this is the way catalogues should be written. It was beautifully illustrated and so informative! I have a new appreciation for the Middle Kingdom. I have always loved the New Kingdom and especially the XVIIIth and XIXth Dynasties. I really regret that I didn't make it to the Met to see this exhibit!
December 27, 2020
Technically, this book is an exhibit catalog.
I begin with this point because exhibit catalogs are rarely indispensable acquisitions. They are dominated by photographs of objects from the exhibition, supported by provenance information and sometimes a few useful notes. Typically, such catalogs boast a handful of essays that draw broader conclusions about those pieces, and many go no further.
Oppenheim's book, on the other hand, transcends the genre and constitutes a vital piece of my ancient Egyptian library. Its subject matter, the Middle Kingdom in Egyptian history, represents a vital phase of that ancient country's past and yet it continually falls into the shadows cast by the Old and New Kingdoms. This is unfortunate because of its importance in its own merits. The later Egyptians looked upon this period as its classic age, and its particular form of the language became the literary standard for the rest of Egyptian history. It represented the first time that the capital was transferred to Thebes, if temporarily, and pioneered many of the characteristics that became standard in the New Kingdom.
Given the importance of its subject, it is gratifying to find a book that offers so much to do justice to that subject. The essays in this catalog are numerous and effective, presenting a crash course of Egypt's lesser-known period. From the politics that brought the capital to Thebes and then took it back to the northern city of Itj-Tawy, to the roles of women, to the economic realities attendant to tomb construction and furnishing for non-royal Egyptians, these essays provide most welcome windows into the period.
This is likely not a book for beginners. A certain amount of familiarity with ancient Egyptian history is surely a prerequisite, but for anyone with knowledge of the subject, this book will provide a most welcome introduction to the dynasties between the Pyramid Age and the Age of Empire.
I begin with this point because exhibit catalogs are rarely indispensable acquisitions. They are dominated by photographs of objects from the exhibition, supported by provenance information and sometimes a few useful notes. Typically, such catalogs boast a handful of essays that draw broader conclusions about those pieces, and many go no further.
Oppenheim's book, on the other hand, transcends the genre and constitutes a vital piece of my ancient Egyptian library. Its subject matter, the Middle Kingdom in Egyptian history, represents a vital phase of that ancient country's past and yet it continually falls into the shadows cast by the Old and New Kingdoms. This is unfortunate because of its importance in its own merits. The later Egyptians looked upon this period as its classic age, and its particular form of the language became the literary standard for the rest of Egyptian history. It represented the first time that the capital was transferred to Thebes, if temporarily, and pioneered many of the characteristics that became standard in the New Kingdom.
Given the importance of its subject, it is gratifying to find a book that offers so much to do justice to that subject. The essays in this catalog are numerous and effective, presenting a crash course of Egypt's lesser-known period. From the politics that brought the capital to Thebes and then took it back to the northern city of Itj-Tawy, to the roles of women, to the economic realities attendant to tomb construction and furnishing for non-royal Egyptians, these essays provide most welcome windows into the period.
This is likely not a book for beginners. A certain amount of familiarity with ancient Egyptian history is surely a prerequisite, but for anyone with knowledge of the subject, this book will provide a most welcome introduction to the dynasties between the Pyramid Age and the Age of Empire.
April 23, 2017
Beautiful, Informative and, for those interested in ancient Egypt, entertaining book
I bought this to help with some research I am performing for a project. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has been involved in excavations in Egypt for decades (I nearly said 'over a century' but need to check my facts). Their Egyptian exhibit is one of the finest, containing some famous items (some of the Letters from Hekanakhte, which served as the inspiration for Agatha Christie's book DEATH COMES AS THE END, for example). Their texts are excellent and, it appears, their picture books are just as good. Actually, this is not a 'picture book', but the catalog for their recent exhibit covering the Middle Kingdom of Egypt.
The text is very good. Informative, educational and even entertaining. The quality of the illustrations is truly superb. The image for this listing is the cover of the book. The other pictures are equally well done.
I see that someone said he/she was looking for more depth. This book was written to accompany am exhibit. It scope is narrowed as a refult.
I bought this to help with some research I am performing for a project. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has been involved in excavations in Egypt for decades (I nearly said 'over a century' but need to check my facts). Their Egyptian exhibit is one of the finest, containing some famous items (some of the Letters from Hekanakhte, which served as the inspiration for Agatha Christie's book DEATH COMES AS THE END, for example). Their texts are excellent and, it appears, their picture books are just as good. Actually, this is not a 'picture book', but the catalog for their recent exhibit covering the Middle Kingdom of Egypt.
The text is very good. Informative, educational and even entertaining. The quality of the illustrations is truly superb. The image for this listing is the cover of the book. The other pictures are equally well done.
I see that someone said he/she was looking for more depth. This book was written to accompany am exhibit. It scope is narrowed as a refult.
June 21, 2016
Ancient Egypt Transformed is the catalog for an amazing exhibit of Middle Kingdom artifacts at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The book stands very well on its own, however, as an introduction to the Middle Kingdom, its art, its history, and its culture. The photos, of course, are superb, but the real surprise is the strength of the text, which is extremely thorough and well written.
September 18, 2024
The Middle Kingdom tends to be neglected because there are few eye-catching monuments associated with it: no massive, stark pyramids or elaborate temples survive from that time. It's easy to see how a museum exhibition catalogue could help with that problem, by giving readers vivid artworks to connect with the period in question. But exhibition catalogues usually focus too closely on the individual pieces on display to give a well-rounded treatment of an entire subject, especially one this broad. Ancient Egypt Transformed bucks the trend, spectacularly.
Firstly, it benefits from the sheer volume of Egyptian artifacts in the Metropolitan Museum: the catalogue has an astounding 222 entries, ranging from ostraca and fragments of furniture inlay to massive statues and even pieces of a destroyed mastaba. The entries for these objects are detailed and illuminating (e.g., the entries for the jewelry of Sithathoryunet are accompanied by excursuses on the techniques used in making it and the origins of the type of jewelry known as a pectoral). More importantly, the catalogue entries are interspersed with essays on Middle Kingdom history, art, architecture, kingship, royal administration, foreign relations, literature, daily life, funerary practices, and temples, along with a series of smaller essays on major Middle Kingdom sites. One essay even discusses the reuse of Middle Kingdom monuments, taking the Third Intermediate Period city of Tanis as a case study.
The essays fully justify the book's title. In contrast to the underdeveloped Old Kingdom, the rulers of the Middle Kingdom seem to have actively tried to populate and cultivate regions of the country that were sparsely inhabited; Wolfram Grajetzki's essay on the history of the period even calls this process "internal colonization". Whereas the Old Kingdom had no external rivals, Middle Kingdom pharaohs annexed and fortified Lower Nubia while looking nervously at the kingdoms that lay upstream. Abydos, which had fairly recently become a cult center of Osiris, became a national pilgrimage site as its patron god became one of the key figures in the pantheon. Tomb and temple architecture were highly variable—sometimes genuinely experimental—and invented several elements that would become common in the New Kingdom. Literature, as a sustained written tradition, came into existence in this period (the only known Old Kingdom literature being the Pyramid Texts). All these topics become more vivid and immediate thanks to the objects in the catalogue, bringing the Middle Kingdom to life for me to an extent that I have never before experienced.
Firstly, it benefits from the sheer volume of Egyptian artifacts in the Metropolitan Museum: the catalogue has an astounding 222 entries, ranging from ostraca and fragments of furniture inlay to massive statues and even pieces of a destroyed mastaba. The entries for these objects are detailed and illuminating (e.g., the entries for the jewelry of Sithathoryunet are accompanied by excursuses on the techniques used in making it and the origins of the type of jewelry known as a pectoral). More importantly, the catalogue entries are interspersed with essays on Middle Kingdom history, art, architecture, kingship, royal administration, foreign relations, literature, daily life, funerary practices, and temples, along with a series of smaller essays on major Middle Kingdom sites. One essay even discusses the reuse of Middle Kingdom monuments, taking the Third Intermediate Period city of Tanis as a case study.
The essays fully justify the book's title. In contrast to the underdeveloped Old Kingdom, the rulers of the Middle Kingdom seem to have actively tried to populate and cultivate regions of the country that were sparsely inhabited; Wolfram Grajetzki's essay on the history of the period even calls this process "internal colonization". Whereas the Old Kingdom had no external rivals, Middle Kingdom pharaohs annexed and fortified Lower Nubia while looking nervously at the kingdoms that lay upstream. Abydos, which had fairly recently become a cult center of Osiris, became a national pilgrimage site as its patron god became one of the key figures in the pantheon. Tomb and temple architecture were highly variable—sometimes genuinely experimental—and invented several elements that would become common in the New Kingdom. Literature, as a sustained written tradition, came into existence in this period (the only known Old Kingdom literature being the Pyramid Texts). All these topics become more vivid and immediate thanks to the objects in the catalogue, bringing the Middle Kingdom to life for me to an extent that I have never before experienced.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews