Life and Afterlife in Ancient Egypt at The Art Institute of Chicago

 

Funerary Mask, Late Ptolemaic Period–early Roman Period, 1st century BCE. Ancient Egyptian. The Art Institute of Chicago, W. Moses Willner Fund.
© The Art Institute of Chicago

 
 

Life and Afterlife in Ancient Egypt

 

February 11, 2022 —

Experience over 3,000 years of arts from ancient Egypt in a dynamic new gallery.

The transformed space explores aspects of life and the afterlife in the Nile Valley with the first new installation of works from the museum’s historic collection of ancient Egyptian art in a quarter-century. Striking artifacts—displayed along one wall of the gallery in a series of innovative cases that promote viewing from multiple vantage points—provide insight into the beliefs and practices of this illustrious North African culture.

Recurring themes throughout this fresh presentation of the collection consider the impact of Egypt’s natural environment, including the Nile River, on its visual culture; reveal the processes of ancient Egyptian artists, and explore the centrality of gods and goddesses to life (and death) along the Nile. Arresting sculptures, such as the statue of Shebenhor, reveal how ancient Egyptians chose to present themselves so that they would be remembered for eternity, while funerary works—such as a gilded funerary mask—unveil practices for preparing for and protecting oneself in the afterlife.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Exhibition Preview

 

Stela of Amenemhat and Hemet, Middle Kingdom, early Dynasty 12, about 1956–1877 BCE. Ancient Egyptian; Probably Thebes (now Luxor), Egypt. The Art Institute of Chicago, Museum Purchase Fund.

Statue of Shebenhor, Late Period, Dynasty 26 (664–525 BCE). Ancient Egyptian; Memphis, Egypt. The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Mrs. George L. Otis.

Plaque Depicting a Quail Chick, Ptolemaic Period (332–30 BCE). Ancient Egyptian. The Art Institute of Chicago, Museum Purchase Fund.

Statuette of Re-Horakhty, Third Intermediate Period–Late Period, Dynasty 21–26, about 1069–525 BCE. Ancient Egyptian. The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Henry H. Getty, Charles L. Hutchinson, and Robert H. Fleming.

Portrait of a Man Wearing a Laurel Wreath, Roman Period, early to mid–2nd century. Ancient Egyptian; The Fayum, Egypt. The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Emily Crane Chadbourne.

Model of a River Boat, Middle Kingdom, Dynasty 11–12, about 2046–1794 BCE. Ancient Egyptian. The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Henry H. Getty, Charles L. Hutchinson, Robert H. Fleming, and Norman W. Harris.

Funerary Papyrus of Tayu-henut-Mut, Third Intermediate Period, Dynasty 21 (about 1069–945 BCE). Ancient Egyptian. The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Henry H. Getty, Charles L. Hutchinson, Robert H. Fleming, and Norman W. Harris.

Statue of Ptah-Sokar-Osiris, Ptolemaic Period (332–30 BCE). Ancient Egyptian. The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Phoenix Ancient Art, S.A.

Kohl Container in the Shape of a Palm Column, New Kingdom, mid-Dynasty 18 or Dynasty 19, about 1352–1213 BCE. Ancient Egyptian. The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Theodore W. and Frances S. Robinson.

 
News 9, Exhibitions 2Editorial TeamArt of the Ancestors, Steven G. Alpert, Asian Art, Island Southeast Asian Art, Oceanic Art, Asiatica, Ethnographica, Ethnographic Art, Art Collection, Fine Art, Primitive Art, Indonesian Art, Tribal Art, Eyes of the Ancestors, Dr. Reimar Schefold, Peggy Guggenheim Collection