Artifact Analysis

As the course textbook states, "the arts give form to what is imagined, express human beliefs and emotions" (xv) and "for the majority of their history, artists have expressed the dominant beliefs of a culture" (xv). When studying the humanities, you can examine written works, musical works, works of art, and architecture to get a sense of what the creators of those works and the cultures from which those creators came believed. Much of this involves placing these artifacts into the context of what is known from other sources about the creators and cultures. A major part also involves looking at just the artifacts themselves to examine and interpret what their form and content reflect. This assignment asks you to follow this process of looking
at the artifact itself. With that in mind, select one of the following artifacts from the textbook and answer the questions that follow:

Woman of Willendorf (Figure 1.2, page 7)
Standing man (Figure 1.6, page 10)
Victory Stele of Naram-Sin (Figure 1.7, page 11)
Tribute Bearers Bringing Offerings (Figure 1.13, page 16)
Pharoah Mycerinus and Queen Khamerernebty (Figure 1.19, page 23)
Musicians and Dancers (Figure 1.27, page 30)
Describe the artifact in your own words.
What do you see when you look at the artifact? What is depicted and how is it depicted?
Identify and explain some beliefs that this artifact reflects. What might this artifact and the way in which it portrays its subject matter suggest about what the author (and her or his culture) believed and how they saw the world?
Provide specific examples from the artifact that you have chosen and clearly explain how these specific details illustrate your points in response to the questions above. Do not simply rely on the discussion of the artifact that the textbook provides. While you may refer to the points in the textbook or use them as a starting point, you must build your paper upon your own observations and the conclusions that you draw from those observations. This assignment is asking you to develop your own interpretations from what you see when you look at the picture of the artifact in the textbook. You will not be graded on whether your interpretation is "correct" or not. Rather, you will be graded on how well you state what beliefs the artifact reflects, how well you explain how the artifact reflects those beliefs, and how well you show what specifically about the artifact provides the basis for your
conclusions.
If you do use the textbook, be sure to cite it appropriately. See Step 8 of the "General Instructions for Papers" in this lesson for directions on how to cite the textbook properly.
Create a fitting, descriptive title for your paper. You can summarize the content to follow in the title, or you can devise a clever title that connects to what you discuss in the body of your paper.
Be sure to have a clear introduction and a clear conclusion to your paper. At the end of your introduction, you should provide a statement that gives the reader a specific sense of what your overall conclusion(s) in the paper will be. In this sentence, summarize the specific beliefs that you will suggest that the artifact reflects.
Suggested Paper Length: 2 to 3 word-processed pages, double spaced

The statue, Pharaoh Mycerinus and Queen Khamerernebty, is a historical artifact from Egypt dating between 2490-2472 B.C.E. It appears to be depicting a leader and his wife following beside him. He, the leader, takes control while his wife supports his leadership. The way the artifact was constructed says much about how the ancient Egyptians viewed their world. I feel that the artifact also portrays how strong the bond between the Pharaoh and Queen is; the Pharaoh appreciates her, either romantically or politically, or even both. The artifact shows a man and a woman of royalty standing side by side, ready to rule their people

When I look at the artifact, i see the man is beside the woman but slightly in front of her, with his left foot forward. The woman in the artifact has her left arm across her body, holding onto the man’s left arm and her right arm wrapped around the pharaoh’s body.The statue is designed with the postures of the Pharaoh and Queen strictly erect and with no imperfections in firmness. It is shown in the artwork that the man and woman are of royalty, by the dress of the man. I feel that this shows how the ancient Egyptians viewed their world; following strict rule from their leaders in order to gain success for their civilization. The woman in the artwork is holding onto the man, I observe this to display that the woman agrees with his leadership and follows his rule. The man in the artwork is clearly the leader; this is distinguished by his left foot forward, almost as if he is ready to take the next step to strengthen his society with his Queen beside him.

In the artifact the Pharaoh has his Queen beside him, ruling with him. I contemplate this to represent the importance the Pharaoh feels for his Queen. The Pharaoh could have ordered a construction of a statue of only himself, but instead he chooses to have his queen built beside him. I feel that this reflects the importance of women in the ancient Egyptian culture. The role of women in ancient Egypt was very similar to role of women today; they enjoyed all of the same theoretical rights of the men in their time and were viewed as equals. Although in the artifact does depict the man leading the woman, I feel that the role of women in their time is reflected as well.

The artifact gives the impression that the man and woman in the statue are of royalty. This is depicted by the headdress and the fake beard of the Pharaoh. In ancient Egypt the Pharaohs wore false beards at formal and religious ceremonies, as a symbol, to show their position as a god. The status of being a god would place the Pharaoh high above his people and therefore easily be able to rule them without question. The headdress that the Pharaoh is wearing also portrays the leadership of the Pharaoh. In ancient Egypt only the King was allowed to wear the headdress, the headdress represented status as a leader or a god. As it is seen throughout time, only the elite have statues or large pieces of artwork modeled after them, this was no different in ancient Egypt. The statue itself portrays the elite status of Pharaoh Mycerinus and Queen Khamerernebty.

As we have seen throughout time, large pieces of artwork have been constructed to honor those of prestigious ranking in our history. These works of art, or artifacts, have left lasting impressions on our world as time has continued. Each work of art has a story to tell and a message to leave for the viewing audience. In the particular artifact, Pharaoh Mycerinus and Queen Khamerernebty, the message rings clear. The message of leadership, standing by the leaders and that the artifact is modeled after important people from our pas