The Less I Know the Better | Tame Impala
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Inktober Day 25: Alexander the Great
In the latter half of the 3rd Century BC Alexander III of Macedon conquered Egypt and founded the city of Alexandria.
This city would become enormously important as the seat of power to later rulers of Egypt and, eventually, would become Alexander’s final resting place. The grave of Alexander the Great remains a major undiscovered archaeological site to this day. Alexander left the governance of Egypt in the hands of one of his senior generals: Ptolemy Soter, the first of the Ptolemeic line.
Art note: Thank you Aidan Turner for your hair.
Inktober Day 24: Herodotus
The Greek “Father of History” is an un-ignorable source of information about the ancient world. In antiquity he visited Egypt and a tourist to see the temples and monuments (some of which were already 2000 years old). He recorded his findings in Book II of his opus “Historia” which is where we get our modern word “history” from.
However, modern archeology has found fault with a lot of Herodotus’ account. Likelihood is that either Herodotus received partially fabricated guidance on his tour of Egypt or drew conclusions himself without a clear picture.
Inktober Day 23: Piye
From about 1070 BC to 400 BC Egypt was invaded multiple times by factions and groups from across the ancient Middle East and Africa. The Libyans, Saites and Persians all had control of it for a time. The 25th Dynasty is when Egypt was conquered by a Nubian ruler, King Piye.
Although Piye ruled from his Southern capital at Napata, Piye seems to have embraced the culture of Egypt. Reliefs at Jebel Barkal show Piye participating in the Hed-Seb Festival at Thebes and upon his death he was buried in a pyramid at El-Kurru. He also defended Egypt from fierce raids from the Assyrian Empire. Considering that, in ancient times, Nubia was one of Egypt’s foes, evidence suggests that the country thrived under Piye and his family’s rule.
Artist Note: The Kingdom of Nubia, called Kush in antiquity, was located in modern day Sudan. The Kushite kings are often referred to as the “The Black Pharaohs”. I can heartily recommend looking more into this period Egyptology as it’s just starting to be given the attention that it deserves, and was denied to it by racist colonialism. Start with this documentary by The National Geographic.
Inktober Day 22: Ramesses III
This later Ramesses may well have been the last “great” Egyptian Pharaoh before a rapid decline in Egyptian power. The Judicial Papyrus of Turin is a document that refers to the assassination of Ramesses III as the result of a plot made by some of his senior wives and women of the court. These events are often referred to as The Harem Conspiracy.
This period of history saw greater inequality between the people of Egypt and its ruling class. It’s likely that such a coup d’etat would garner support from a frustrated populous.
Inktober Day 21: Ramesses the Great
Covering all the achievements of Ramesses II would be a long, long task. The most notable ones: The Battle of Kadesh, The Temple Complex at Abu Simbel, the brand new capital city of Pi-Ramesses in the delta region and the grand mortuary temple known as The Ramesseum.
Probably one of the most beloved of Ramesses’s building projects was the tomb he constructed for his “Great Wife”: Queen Nefertari. It’s widely considered the most beautiful tomb in Egypt. Many Egyptologist’s agree that evidence suggests a strong romantic attachment between Ramesses and his Queen: a truly rare thing among rulers of antiquity.
Art note: Normally adult Egyptians were completely clean shaven, but I’ve shown Ramesses with his hair slightly grown out because of his famous red hair. Also, if you’re looking for the Ramesses depicted by Ralph Fiennes in Dreamwork animated masterpiece “The Prince of Egypt”, this is him. Now go watch that film.
Day 20: Thoth
Egyptian scribes were selective with what they recorded. There are no papyri recording Egypt’s defeats and losses. Propaganda obscured many official records of Egypts dark hours and archeologists often turn to the graffiti and letters of the people of Egypt for the truth about famines, wars and corruption.
Thoth’s origin is as the god of the moon, but as much of the Egyptian calendar is measured by the phases of the moon, so Thoth evolved into the god of measurement, mathematics, sciences and of course, writing.
Inktober Day 19: Tutankhamun & Ankhesenamun
The picture we get of the life of the boy king, made infamous in modern times, is a sad tale. Tutankhamun, born “Tutankhaten”, was made pharaoh at age eight and died only ten years later. His life was marked with the restoration of the polytheistic religion of before his father’s time, likely at the demand of the high-priests and viziers. But the young king’s reign was ultimately overshadowed with a period of drastic decline for him and his family. His wife and half-sister Ankhesenamun was, as far as record show, the last living member of the famous 18th Dynasty at the time of her brother’s death. She disappears from history at this time and the line disintegrates.
Growing up as the son of the infamous “Heretic Pharaoh” at the centre of intense political strife must have been frightening. Circumstantial evidence has led some Egyptologists to a theory of murder to explain Tutankhamun’s early death. Whether this was true or not, the tragedy that surrounds the life of the young pharaoh continues to draw people to his story.
Inktober Day 18: Nefertiti
The iconic Bust of Nefertiti is a national symbol of Egypt. The Great Wife of the court of Akhenaten would have been a powerful figure during the Amarna Period. She is depicted in relief carvings of the era making offerings to the Aten and wielding authority alongside her husband.
The art of the Amarna period stands out amongst the rigorously conservative Egyptian art for it’s unconventional style and exaggerations. It could be that the dispensing of religious norms in this time may have allowed for more freedom for the artisans of this era to be more expressive and free. The statues and reliefs of this era are instantly recognisable when seen in a museum.
Inktober Day 17: Akhenaten
An austere Inktober today for one of the most mysterious pharaohs of them all. In summary, Akhenaten was born Amenhotep, but after his ascension to the throne, he dispensed with the polytheistic religion of Egypt and replaced it with the first monotheistic religion in history. He halted the offerings and worships at the temples of the old gods and instead built new ones in the name of Aten, the holy icon of the sun. In keeping with this, he changed his name to Akhenaten and, in his lifetime, built an entire new capital city and temple complex that he called “Akhetaten” and would become his home and the new spiritual centre of Egypt. The site is at modern day Tel el Amarna which gave this bewildering time in Egyptian history its name: The Amarna Period. Akhenaten earned the name “The Heretic Pharaoh”. In antiquity, his actions caused huge upheaval, imbalance of power and, most assuredly, much animosity. Egypt was weakened by the absence of anyone to fill the classical role of the pharaoh and there are recordings of great military losses in this period.
The truth of why he did what he did, how he considered the consequences of his actions, what inspired his idea for the birth of monotheism, and even who Akhenaten was as a person are all mysteries that continue to beguile Egyptologists. The draw of Akhenaten can not only be attributed to his astonishing actions, but to the notoriety of his immediate family.
Inktober Day 16: Amenhotep III (Delayed due to nasty cold)
Amenhotep III ruled Egypt at its peak of wealth and power. His building exploits were both extensive and grand. His expanded of Karnak Temple to include two new pylons and a long colonnade. Approximately 250 statues of Amenhotep III survive today, the largest of which are likely The Colossi of Memnon. They were erected to guard the entrance to his mortuary temple on the west bank of the Nile at Thebes. Today they are all that remain of the gigantic temple complex.
Some Egyptologists theorise that Amnhotep III’s reign saw a period of epidemic; some evidence for this being the great number of statues of the goddess Sekhmet that the pharaoh commissioned. Sekhmet was both the goddess of war and combat, and also of mercy and healing. Her task was to purge mankind of its evils and to absolve them. The theory includes the idea that a long period of plague, despite attempts by the pharaoh to appease the wrath of the gods, might have shaken certain individuals’ faith. It may even have inspired the actions of Amenhotep’s son...
Art note: There are SO many statues of Amenhotep from across the length of his reign and they are all incredibly idealised. This was not uncommon for pharaohs and the fact is, we have no way of knowing if he really did look like that or if he was taking artistic license. But personally, I like to think of Amenhotep being rather average. With Queen Tiye on the other hand, I had no such problems. A stunning wooden portrait of her exists in the Berlin museum that seems to speak volumes about what kind of person she was, i.e. not a woman to cross.
Inktober Day 15: Thutmose III
Considered by Egyptologists to be the greatest military pharaoh in Egyptian history, Thutmose III reign is mapped by a plethora of victories. During his 32 year reign (54 if you include the years of Hatshepsut’s regency) he lead dozens of successful campaigns out across the middle east (through Canaan, Syria and Lebanon) and far South, past the Fourth Cataract of the Nile into Nubia. This period of conquest resulted in an influx of wealth that propelled Egypt further in to the status of an international superpower.
Thutmose III’s successes can be seen displayed extensively on the walls of the Karnak temple complex.
Inktober Day 14: Hatshepsut
If I could ask you to take away any one pharaoh to research further, it would be Hatshephut. Of the handful of female pharaohs there have been in Egyptian history, none were as provably successful as Hatshepsut. Her legacy includes the incredible mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahari, complete with trees imported from Punt (likely modern day Eritrea) via the extensive trade routes she established. She erected several new temples an shrines and renovated more.
She came to the throne originally as regent to her step son/nephew, Thutmose III, who was too young to inherit at the time of his father (Hatshepsut’s husband), Thutmose II’s death. At some point during this regency, she named herself pharaoh in full, putting her name in a cartouche and showing herself as such, with the false beard and all the masculine trappings of the role, on the walls of her temples. Also, after Thutmose III came to the throne, her name was mostly erased from the inheritance records and temple paintings. As a result, it gave early excavators at Deir el-Bahari a challenge to reconnect the dots and figure out that this mysterious king Hatshepsut and Thutmose II’s queen were the same person.
Art note: Hatshepsut referred to herself as “the female Ra”, and worked hard to show herself as a pharaoh, regardless of her gender. Drawing her as such was immensely satisfying. Also, just a disclaimer, if I wasn’t putting this on instagram as well, I’d definitely have her nipple visible (damn it instagram). I’ll probably redraw her later without tactical hand placement and put it on my Patreon
Inktober Day 13: Thutmose I
I’ve skipped over the second Intermediate Period here and gone straight to the New Kingdom and the 18th Dynasty. Probably the most star studded dynasty of them all, I’m going to be focussing on a series of the more famous pharaohs from this line, starting with Thutmose I.
Thutmose I was the first pharaoh to be buried in the notorious valley of the kings, likely choosing the remote area as the last place ever likely to be stumbled across by tomb robbers and, some theorise, because of the prominent natural pyramid (possibly a symbol of the sacred mount) that overlooks the valley being seen as a good omen. There are 65 numbered tombs in the main valley and 4 more in the west valley, all of which were opened or robbed at some point before they were rediscovered.
Art note: Pharaoh hounds! I love them. My mum has a little dog who’s an Ibizan hound cross and she’s gorgeous!
Inktober Day 12: Senusret III
Probably one of the most recognisable pharaohs, due to the somber expression common to all his statues.
The British museum contains several great portraits of him and all have the distinct frown and tired look.
Inktober Day 11: Mentuhotep II
Mentuhotep fought a lot of battles to re-centre the power in Egypt. When his impressive mortuary temple, the first of it’s kind at the Deir el-Bahari temple complex site, went through further excavations for the Metropolitan Museum under Herbert E. Winlock, the bodies of 60 young men that Winlock believed to be Mentuhotep’s honoured soldiers were discovered.
Despite their militaristic culture, the Egyptians never colonised any foreign territories, likely because of their religion. Instead, the standing army would regularly raid neighbouring companies for whatever commodities could be carried off, often precious metals and stones that couldn’t be mined in Egypt.
Inktober Day 10: Horus
Horus’ everlasting battle against evil is likely the reason why his eye is such a popular amulet and is so commonly found among Egyptian remains, that he might protect the wearer from evil.
Horus’ saga is as epic and recognisable today as ever. You can find the same stock of characters and events in classic literature all over due to their timelessness and intrinsic reliability. Almost any myth, from any part of the world will contain those grains of truth or wisdom within the fantasy that make them so important to any culture.