Apocryphal Papyrus by Chipka
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Description
As a kid, my interest in ancient Egyptian culture, art, and mummies got me in a lot of trouble; I attended fundamentalist Christian schools during most of my childhood, and well…according to The Book of Exodus the Egyptians were the bad guys…most of whom were nameless. “Pharaoh” in the language of ancient Egypt simply means “Great House” in a literal sense and “Ruler” in another…kings and queens were both granted the rank of Pharaoh, though queens were often forced to wear wooden “chin wigs” as a sign of their rank. Biblical nomenclature leaves a bit to be desired, but then, ancient Egyptian nomenclature is quite extravagant and so naming an antagonistic Egyptian king would take at least a full paragraph as names and titles were often one-in-the-same among royalty.
This brings me to ancient Egyptian art. It was highly stylized. Skin colors (always unnatural) represented roles in life and gender. Men were red. Women were pale ocher. Gods and goddesses followed the same rule, unless they were Osiris. He was green. Foreigners were woman-pale, or coal-black if they were Nubian (Southern Egyptian or African in origin.)
I learned a lot about Ancient Egypt as a child: I knew how to make mummies; I could recite a fragment of the prayers required during the Opening of the Mouth ceremony; I knew that ancient Egyptian beer was as thick as oatmeal and as tasty as grain-derived sewage (which is why they flavored the stuff with gobs of honey.) I even stole salt from the cupboard in order to mummify a bird I’d found. It was a bit harder to get the other stuff, but thankfully, my grandparents had what was needed and as a result our basement didn’t stink that much. I didn’t have linen either, and so “L’eggs” nylon stockings sufficed—when they weren’t being used for spaceship modules for Star Wars action figures.
I’d spent a major portion of my childhood drawing people in the “classical” style common in Egypt, and parts of Asia Minor (primarily Persia, Mesopotamia, and thereabout.) I hadn’t attempted such a drawing in decades and I found that I actually have to re-learn the technique; when I get good enough again, I’ll probably post images of Sebek and Thoth, two of my favorite divine figures. Thoth (pronounced Tuh-hot) was the inventor of writing, and so it’s only natural that He’d figure prominently with me…that and when he wasn’t busy appearing as a baboon, he took on the appearance of an ibis or a human with an ibis head. That in and of itself is pretty cool; I like a divine pantheon that exists as the ancient-world mirror of the bar scene in Star Wars.
The figures depicted here are typical of the ancient form. They are drawn almost to the ancient scale (their upper torsos and heads are a bit bigger, but as I said, I’m out of practice.) The figure of the right is a Libyan, commonly used as a template for anyone of non-Egyptian or non-black-African ethnicity. The figure on the left is ethnically-Egyptian, though his Crayola-induced skin color reflects the African origin of a southern Egyptian. Upper Egypt (in the south) was more African-influenced than Lower Egypt (in the north.) The poses here are “active” in that they’re walking, though when standing still, one leg would still exist in front of the other. As these guys aren’t royal or divine they’re not holding anything; nor are they wearing extravagant headgear; their kilts are complicated enough to indicate that they aren’t poor. They’re the same height, which means that they’re compatriots. I’m sure that there will be more Egyptian stuff in my gallery. This is just the start. Hopefully you like it as much as I enjoyed actually drawing it. I could have written the hieroglyphics, but I decided to download a free font and just type them in as hieroglyphic writing is time-consuming and I'm a bit lazy.
Thank you for viewing, reading, and commenting, and I hope you’re all having a great weekend.
Comments (18)
auntietk
I just love it when you do 2-D stuff! It's a whole 'nother side of your talent. This Egyptian-style artwork is wonderful! I love the stylized figures. The accompanying information is fascinating and informative. I learned several new things just now! More of this sort of thing will be most welcome!
durleybeachbum
Brilliant, Chip! This is so exciting! The one in front looks so much like an ex-lover of mine with the long hair and the beard. I look forward to some more.
NefariousDrO
That's pretty cool! As a kid I got to see the "King Tut" exhibit in Chicago, which had a huge impact on me. Although I have stronger memories of being a small person in a very dense crowd of adults than any one specific artifact. I also recall the "Egyptians were aliens" craze from the 1970's, which confused me to no end: I couldn't imagine why anyone would prefer the idea of them not as human as us? The idea that humans could be so "alien" to modern sensibilities, and also accomplish such amazing things with much more basic technology was far more inspiring to me than any alien visitation theory. I never did practice their style of drawing as much as you have, though, and I'm very impressed at how well you've been able to replicate their esthetic. It speaks highly of your anthropological skills to be able to shift your mentality into the viewpoint of a very different set of eyes.
lick.a.witch
I adore anything Egyptian, be it art or even the words used to describe their culture and artifacts. I spent hours in London queuing to see the Tutankharmun exhibit and was completely thrown by the beauty of it. It has long been a dream of mine to go there, though I now know I won't. To see Aida performed outside the pyramids would be amazing! Your art is fabulous! I look forward to seeing more! ^=^ Regards to Corey. ^=^
sandra46
SUPER SUPER COOL! I LOVE THESE EGYPTIAN GUYS ALSO IN THEIR APCRYPHAL CLOTHES...
CoreyBlack
From one strange kid to another... ...while you were mummifying road kill, destroying your mother's pantyhose, and brewing ancient Egyptian beer (Did you really do that?) I was torture testing various man-made products. Just how strong was heavy duty duct tape? How long would it take an Ace bandage to rot if I tied it around a tree in the woods? Would my Tonka truck rust if I buried it in my mother's garden? How exactly did you break shatterproof glass anyway?* In my defense, the early 70s was the era of the torture test in TV commercials. Masterlocks being shot by 44-Magnums to show how well they held; John Cameron Swayze perpetually trying to break Timex watches; gorillas beating the hell out of Samsonite luggage; and, nitroglycerin-laden Mercuries being driven over potholes to show how smoothly they rode...Your pursuits seem a bit more intellectual, somehow; mine seem like a somewhat more scientific version of typical aggressive boy-behavior. Anyway, enough about all that. This is very cool! I can remember you doing things like this when we first met back in the 20th century. Very nice job here, and it really does look like ancient Egyptian artwork...It's amazing how good the likeness is. Pretty strong. * 2.5 years. yes. **** pretty much how you break a CD, you have to throw it at a brick wall at precisely the right angle. Outside of that it's pretty much indestructible.
RodS
Most interesting and amazing art, my friend. You had me.... I thought you'd photographed some Egyptian exhibit in a museum. Most excellent! It's a real bummer the don't sell hose in those cool plastic chrome-finished 'eggs' anymore. I used one for a model rocket one time. It looked really cool, but the first time it flew, one of the fins came off and it crashed in the street. Yes, you COULD shatter one of those plastic eggs....
MrsRatbag
Wow, Chip, you gots da talent, man! I also would have thought this was photographed from some exhibit somewhere. Now the big question, can you read those hieroglypics? Excellent work!
jocko500
very wonderful work
kgb224
Stunning capture my friend.
helanker
OH MY ! WHat do i see!! A drawing from you and I didnt even believe my eyes, before I read it once more, that you drew it yourself. Man, you are really good at this. And I liked the story behind it too. I do hope we wil see more of your 2D trad stuff. I enjoy it.
jac204
Exceptioal drawing and the tale you tell. Love the part about the mummified birds!
beachzz
Another wonderful piece of work from your talented brain. You never cease to amaze me. I read what you and Corey did and think maybe I was a rather boring kid. The most daring thing I ever did was set off firecrackers. Though a friend and I did one kinda trippy thing with them. We got a bucket of water, set a small tin can on the bottom, lit a firecracker, inverted another bucket over the top. When it blew, that top bucket went flying. A number of other things were slightly damaged during this experiment. Mothers and other parental units were NOT happy.
RJS
Wonderful art and an education too! Thanks for sharing this.
flavia49
splendid story and shot!!
danapommet
Wonderful artwork Chip and awesome narrative. By his comment, Corey didn't lose any of his sharp mind after his operation and recovery. Dana
minos_6
This is an incredible piece of work! I too had a fascination with Ancient Egypt as a child. Although I never stretched to actual experiments with mummification, I have recently explored digital embalming, which seemed to work quite well with no risk of obnoxious chemicals of odours.
praep
Great piece of art my friend.