Egyptian Architecture
Ancient Egypt : Death Rituals
Ancient Egyptian civilization was based on religion. It is pretty noticeable the huge interest of Egyptians in the death process where they deeply believed in the principle of ‘the passage of the true eternal life’. Death was never feared by this people, instead it was considered as a transition into the Afterlife. The Egyptians believed that the body had to be intact in order for the next world to except it, this is a major reason that the Pharaohs contents of the tomb were of such importance. They emphasis on the importance of rituals, customs and beliefs as well as funerary architecture can be seen clearly in the discovery of the tomb of Kings and Pharaohs.
The planning that went into every Pharaohs tomb was extremely complex, as each tomb was significantly different in terms of the tombs layout and wall decorations. The tombs structure and layout had to somehow reflect the formation and projection of the solar star. Wall decorations in the tomb don’t represent the Pharaohs everyday life but that of their Afterlife and the challenges the Pharaoh has to undertake in order to reach the Kingdom of Osiris, land of the Afterlife. So these beliefs are reflected on the style of decorations featured in the tombs from imitations of papyrus to elaborate texts painted on the walls throughout the tomb. The tomb-owner would continue after death the occupations of this life and so everything required was packed in the tomb along with the body. Writing materials were often supplied along with clothing, wigs, and hairdressing supplies and assorted tools,depending on the occupation of the deceased.
Many tombs have been destroyed over the years, but historians have classified tombs into five types, such as the simple pit-graves, Mastaba tomb, Rock-cut chapels, Pyramid tombs and Mortuary chapel tombs. Pit graves were the simplest forms of burial and were more common in the poorer society in Egypt, and were still seen later on in the
Ancient Egyptian civilization was based on religion. It is pretty noticeable the huge interest of Egyptians in the death process where they deeply believed in the principle of ‘the passage of the true eternal life’. Death was never feared by this people, instead it was considered as a transition into the Afterlife. The Egyptians believed that the body had to be intact in order for the next world to except it, this is a major reason that the Pharaohs contents of the tomb were of such importance. They emphasis on the importance of rituals, customs and beliefs as well as funerary architecture can be seen clearly in the discovery of the tomb of Kings and Pharaohs.
The planning that went into every Pharaohs tomb was extremely complex, as each tomb was significantly different in terms of the tombs layout and wall decorations. The tombs structure and layout had to somehow reflect the formation and projection of the solar star. Wall decorations in the tomb don’t represent the Pharaohs everyday life but that of their Afterlife and the challenges the Pharaoh has to undertake in order to reach the Kingdom of Osiris, land of the Afterlife. So these beliefs are reflected on the style of decorations featured in the tombs from imitations of papyrus to elaborate texts painted on the walls throughout the tomb. The tomb-owner would continue after death the occupations of this life and so everything required was packed in the tomb along with the body. Writing materials were often supplied along with clothing, wigs, and hairdressing supplies and assorted tools,depending on the occupation of the deceased.
Many tombs have been destroyed over the years, but historians have classified tombs into five types, such as the simple pit-graves, Mastaba tomb, Rock-cut chapels, Pyramid tombs and Mortuary chapel tombs. Pit graves were the simplest forms of burial and were more common in the poorer society in Egypt, and were still seen later on in the