Egyptian Hieroglyphs and Coptic

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Primary sources, such as archaeological sites, artifacts and written material from different historical periods gives one an insight into the lives and beliefs of the people and the culture responsible for creating those artifacts and shaping their lives. Ancient Egypt, with its treasure trove of excavated sites, the treasures of the tombs of the Pharoah’s, the vast collection of inscribed stones and detailed papyrus scrolls shows us the beliefs which informed ancient Egyptian culture.
After the advent of Christianity, Egypt became home to the Coptics and some of the most important icons and other artifacts of this religious denomination provide insights into the belief of this Christian religious sect. St Catherine's monastery in the Sinai holds some of the most important icons of the Coptic religion and it shows the various phases in the development of the order as well as the art of iconoclasm. This paper explores the lives and beliefs of Egyptians based on their hieroglyphs as well as Coptic artifacts.
Judgment before Osiris, a painted papyrus from the Egyptian Book of Dead, Dynasty 19, at present located in the British Museum is an important artifact that aids in the study of the funerary practices that were one of the most important aspects of ancient Egyptian civilization. This papyrus contains not only hieroglyphs but also illustrations and these are generally placed in the coffin in the belief that the dead person could use them in the afterworld or in the event of resurrection.
The papyrus scroll contains a host of characters from Egyptian mythology, associated with the Dynasty 19 such as Anubis, “the jackal headed god of embalming” who is charged with the task of looking after the judgment scales, used to weigh a p...

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...ting as followed in the Ancient Period and shows the changing beliefs of the Egyptians and their embrace of the Christian faith. It is also interesting to note that the wings in the icons seem to be based on the depiction in the papyrus scroll, attesting to the influence of Ancient Egyptian art on the period.
The Judgment of Osiris and the icons from the monastery of St Catherine in the Sinai throw light upon the religious and cultural beliefs of Egyptians spanning a period of more than two millennia. While the artifacts in themselves reveal the culture of Egypt, it is also testimony to the continuance of the human civilization in the region and the manner in which it adapted itself to the changing religious and cultural ethos of different periods.

References
Kleiner, Fred S. Gardner's Art Through the Ages: The Western Perspective. Cengage
Learning. 2009.

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