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the tomb of hesy-ra
Page 3 of 9
Only six of the original eleven raised-relief panels were found to have survived the
millennia when the tomb of Hesy-ra was finally excavated. The tomb itself had been known of for
more than a generation. (Quibell, pg. 16) Each carved panel depicts Hesy-ra and a series of
hieroglyphs above him Originally placed in special niches in Hesy-ra’s tomb, the surviving panels
are now located at The Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt. (Saleh, ills. 21) In their ancient
positions, they perpetually faced east, towards the rising sun. The reasons for this are rooted in
the unequaled importance of the sun and the Nile River to Egyptians, dating back to their earliest
ancestors. (Frankfort, pg. 36) The sculptor of the panels employed exquisite skill when crafting
them. They are detailed in both the figure and the hieroglyphics. While the six panels are in
widely varying states of quality, the two, which will be examined, are in excellent condition.
This series is thought to be the most elegant to have survived from such an early time. (Rice,
1997, pg. 200) They are not devoid of damage, however, the imagery is almost completely
unobstructed. The aged wood has, of course, changed color over the years and the paint has been
completely worn away. To see the panels, now, though, is still to truly appreciate the red tones,
dark blends and intricate grain that are so beautifully characteristic of wood. While Michael Rice
lists Acacia-wood as the medium used, there does seem to be some conflict as to exactly what
type of wood was used. (Rice, 1997, pg. 200) Cyril Aldred lists the wood as being sycamore.
(Rice, 1990, pg. 192) In any event, the mere continued existence of these panels is amazing unto
itself. The limited durability of wood makes modern retrieval of sculptures such as these scarce.
Also, wood was not as frequent a medium as stone when used to present hieroglyphs. (Rice,
1997, pg. 200)
Of particular importance in the reliefs is image clarity. This "elegant simplicity and
character of line typify the Third Dynasty" (Wittmer, 3-2-99) Traditionally, the role of artwork in
tombs was to maintain spiritual functionality in the afterlife. While true appearance at death is
unknown, the appearance in relief is meant to allow continued existence in the forms depicted.
The Egyptian association between representations and that which was represented is very close.
For instance, Egyptian sacred tombs and temples shared the stylized architectural forms of the
Egyptian primordial hill of creation. Hence these locations were better able to help, dramatically,
in the struggle to reach the afterlife. (Frankfort, pg. 22) This spiritual to physical association, a
seemingly direct link, led to the concept of precisely created representations within the tomb.
While not privy to the enormous wealth of luxury entombed with a deceased pharaoh, Hesy-ra did
his best to ensure that his identity would not be lost in the afterlife to come. Still, while his
tomb’s artwork is steeped in tradition, it is also forward thinking and almost trend-setting. His
tomb, as well as that of the pharaoh Djoser, participated in the emergence of the Egyptian canon,
used to closely measure the proportions of depicted figures. (Smith, 1981, pg. 66) This method of
sizing integrated itself into future traditional artwork. In some later
works, this inevitably led to fairly similar body appearances with a more personalized face being
created to differentiate the images. The canon served to dictate the height of figures, resulting in
proportions deemed perfect for the afterlife. The unit of measurement was the height of the fist.
This allowed the image to be scaled to any size. Figures were set to be "eighteen fists from hair
line to ground line." (Smith, 1958 pg. 65) The forearm and hand were set to be four and one half
fists.
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