Week 2 Ancient Civilizations

 Ancient Civilizations

This week we learned about some of the ancient civilizations. the book mostly focuses on Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Nubia. We have all heard of Egypt and Mesopotamia from the bible. But Nubia was a new one for me. So it was cool to learn about it!

Egypt 

Egypt is most known for its monuments the the kings, the pyramids. But we learned the most about what was found in those pyramids. these things are tablets to give us a glimpse into their artwork and furniture. the oldest surviving pieces of furniture were found in the pyramids. The pieces of furniture I found the most interesting were their armchairs and Queen Hetepheres bed that were found. 

Egyptian armchair:  

Modern armchair:

There are obvious similarities between the Egyptian chair and the armchairs we have today. they both have similar shapes, four legs, two arms, and a back. the differences are that the Egyptian chair has a much more elaborate design and the modern one is very simplified because that is what people want nowadays. We have also figured out how to add cushions. this makes the chairs more comfortable. 

Queen Hetepheres bed:

Modern bed 

there are similarities between these beds as well. There are four legs holding them off the ground with a frame that holds the softer part that you lay on. The difference is that in a Queen Hetepheres bed, you sleep the opposite way that we sleep now. what looks like a headboard is actually and footboard and they did not use pillows they held their heads up with a metal stand-like thing, which seems very uncomfortable in my opinion!

Mesopatamia 

Mosopatmia is a city that was in between the Tigres and Euphrates rivers. This means they had very fertile land and many people wanted to take it over so they had large walls protecting the city from intruders. One of the things I found most interesting was when the book talked about the palaces and how they were made. I loved the emphasis on the entrances. They would put sphinxes at the entrance to show their power and guide people through the space 

Mesopotamian sphinxes:

modern-day lions:

Both if these are carvings that are put at entrances to show the power of the person who lives there. The only difference is the sphinxs often have the head of a person and the body of an animal and the modern lions are just the lion. 

Nubia 

It is a city that is also along the e Nile River that had many similarities to Egypt. They were even run by Egypt at one point. They also have pyramids with artifacts inside which is why we study them. The thing I found the most interesting was their stools. they used these stools in the palace but also for everyday use for the workers. I think it's cool that we are able to see things that normal people during that time used rather than just the royalty. 

Nubia stool:

Modern-day folding stool:

these have similarities as well. the Nubia stool folded up and had some sort of cloth on the top to sit on and so does the modern stool. But same as the armchair the Nubia stool has a much more elaborate design and the modern-day still is very sympathetic. 

One step further 

Hassan Ragab is an architect who takes inspiration from Egyptian
times. He is Egyptian but lives in America. In the summer of 2022, he started HSNRGB Studio. Ragab uses AI to explore ideas. His project, Modernity Through Tradition is a very good example of his work. here are some images of it.