Egyptian Architecture

Egyptian architecture makes us think of the pyramids, the huge temples and tombs. They were built from stone. Stone quarries supplied limestone, sandstone and granite. The structures were built without mortar and so they had to be planned well.

                                      Step Pyramid

                                                       Pyramids of Giza

Only a hundred years after the construction of the Step Pyramid group of King Djose, pyramid construction reached its peak in the Great Pyramid of Giza. It is the largest of the Egyptian pyramids. It was commissioned by the Pharoah Khufu and built by the         Egyptian people. It is a mystery how the pyramids were built. Many believe ramps were used to move the heavy blocks.

The Egyptians used stone for their columns. Columns were placed close together so that they would be able to support the ceiling. Their function was to support ceilings without the use of solid walls. This increased the space and allowed the entrance of light. It also made the entrance to the temples look attractive.  The temple columns like the walls, were also decorated. 

Spectacular columns at Karnak

Lotus style column

The Great Temple of Abu Simbel hewn out of the rocks in the time of Ramesses ll

During the Art Deco period between the 1920's and 1930's,there was a world wide interest in ancient cultures and civilisations. The following are a few examples of Egyptian revival architecture.

The Chrysler building was one of the last buildings built in the Art Deco style. Its geometric patterns on the spire and exterior and the stylish elevator doors inside the building are Egyptian influenced. 

The Step Pyramid

                                   

Boulder County Courthouse,Colorado, USA.

This building was influenced by the Step Pyramid in Egypt.

Spectacular in concept and form the pyramids in the courtyard of the Grand Louvre Museum in Paris are made entirely of glass interlinked with a steel structure. The pyramid has become a new symbol of the city.

National Museum of Beirut (1930-1937) is an example of the influence from Ancient Egyptian architecture. The similarities in the structure can be seen in the Egyptian Temple at Karnak in the picture below.

                                 

                                            

  'Quay in St.Petersburg with two Sphinxes of Amenhotep lll' by Maxim Vorobiev. Oil on canvas 1835

This is a painting of the statues placed at the quay in the harbour of St. Petersburg. They were brought from Egypt in 1832.

One of the two granite sphinxes from ancient Thebes brought to St.Petersburg in 1832 were they still stand to this very day.

                                         

                                             

     

The construction of this sacred building in Barcelona, Spain by the famous Antoni Gaudi started during the Art Nouveau period. The inside of the Sagrada Famiglia with its impressive columns with decorative capitals reminds me of an Egyptian temple as the one in the painting below.

                                

                          Island Temple at Philea by David Roberts

Bibliography

Book

Cartocci, A. and Rosati, G., 2005, Egyptian Art. Firenze: SCALA

Websites

Lomholt, I., 2011. Louvre Pyramid Building - Achitect. [Online]

Available at: http://www.e-architect.co.uk/paris/louvre-pyramid-building
[Accessed 18 March 2014].

Anon, 200-. Art Deco History. [Online]
Available at: http://www.art-deco-style.com/art-deco-history.html
[Accessed 20 March 2014].

Anon, 199-. Egypt: Art and Architecture. [Online]

Available at: http://www2.sptimes.com/Egypt/EgyptCredit.4.4.html

[Accessed 20 March 2014].