Nefertiti Bust Analysis

“head of Nefertiti” does not. This is seen in the jawline, if you look closely you can observe a slight sagging of the skin, to an otherwise idealized face (Crystal Links). This gives a nod to the realistic style that Rome was known for.

Both sculptures appearances would be the equivalent of air brushing today. Like they say “there is nothing new under the sun”.

Function/Symbolism

The purpose of Nefertiti bust may have served as a model for full length sculptures or painting of the queen (Stokstad). The bust would have been considered as a sacred object, because rulers were revered as gods in human form.

The Flavian period created a climate of acceptance of one’s true self, hence the use of realism. The portrayal of realism in Roman portrait sculptures may have been developed from the tradition of keeping wax funeral masks of deceased family members in the ancestral home which were worn by mourners at family funerals (Cartwright).

Cultural Context

Ancient Egypt’s art was also influenced by the Amarna period, this can be seen in the Akhenaten sculpture, which was depicted in an androgynous and highly stylized manner. This was deviation from the conventional portrayal of royalty (Crystal Links).

Nefertiti along with Akhenaten

transformed the political, spiritual and cultural life of the country (Stokstad). They founded a new religion honoring a single supreme god, the sun god Aten. Akhenaten and Nefertiti were seen, or at least saw themselves, as deities in their own right. It was only through them that the Aten could be worshipped: they were both priests and gods (Mark).

The Flavian period brought about a brief period of civil war. This period inspired confidence and practicality, which was reflected in the arts. Idealism was scaled back and realism was brought to the forefront. The period of Julio-Claudian fashion for classicizing imperial portraiture were gone, and quickly replaced with a return to the ideal of time worn faces, and enhancing the effects of old age (Stokstad) as seen in the “Middle-age Flavian Woman”.

Our next stop brings us to wall paintings done from both time periods, to your left is the “Initiation Rites of the Cult of Bacchus, Villa of Mysteries” from Rome and to your left we have “Queen Nefertiti Making an Offering to Isis” from Egypt.
.
We will begin by first discussing “The Initiation Rites of the Cult of Bacchus” and then move on to “Queen Nefertiti Making an Offering to Isis”
Identity
“The Initiation Rite of the Cult of Bacchus” is located in a suburban Roman villa, on the outskirts of Pompeii, southern Italy. It is believed that mural was painted around 60–50BCE. At the center of the fresco is Bacchus (or Dionysus) a Pompeian deity. The painting portrays the initiation rites of a mystery religion, probably the cult of Bacchus (Stokstad). This was done on marble dado, using the fresco method, which basically means that the painting was done rapidly in watercolor on wet plaster on a wall, so that the colors penetrate the plaster and become fixed as it dries. The painting is 5’4” high and covers four walls in a dining room. The artist is unknown.

The “Queen Nefertari Making an Offering to Isis” is a wall painting found in the tomb of Nefertari, Valley of the Queens, it is a nineteenth century dynasty; mural dated between 1290- 1224 BCE. The mural portrays Nefertiti offering jars of perfumed ointment to the goddess Isis (Stokstad). Just like the “Initiation Rites the Cult of Bacchus” the artist is unknown and the mural was done using the same fresco method of painting.

Style
In the “Initiation Rites the Cult of Bacchus” it is clear to see that color value and complimentary colors were important to ancient Rome.

This is observed in the pure hue of red that was used in the background, now known as the Pompeian red, which compliments the tones of green used throughout the painting. The initiation chamber is 15 x 25 feet and consists of ten scenes (Art and Archaeology). The artist used naturalism to capture the culture and way on life of the Pompeian people, it’s seen in the way the individuals dressed and how the subjects are depicted. The person of honor or deity is centralized while subjects of a lower order flow in an almost disparaging manner. Which is consistent with the Roman belief and view of

deity.

The Queen Nefertari, not to be confused with Nefertiti, is depicted with her upper body facing the observer and her lower body in profile. This style of profile drawing was common with the New Arman style (Stokstad). The use of abstract and linear styles, white background and the placement of hieroglyphics around the subjects aided to the creation of a three dimensional view of the pictorial relief. The use of black ink lines on a square grids, was just one of the many ways Egyptian artists minimize the risk of creating disproportions of the human body (Stokstad).

Isis is depicted wearing a horned crown with a sun disk in the center, this is how we know, who she is. It is very common for Egyptian artist to use size, placement and color of their subjects to indicate the status and gender of subjects. However, in this case Isis is a bit smaller than Nefertari, but her placement on the throne indicates her importance.

The use of red paint was common to both time periods, but the Roman’s implemented a new hue of the red known as the Pompeiian-red, in their art work. Pompeiian-red has an orange tint that was exclusive to that Rome during that period.
The Roman’s tends to place their deity in a more centralized (focalized) location with lower subjects smaller in size and disbursed or out of focus. While the Egyptians used color, placement and size to represent gender and importance of the subject’s depicted.