Ancient Egyptian civilization developed its own highly individual manner of expressing visible and invisible worldsGearth and the domain of the godsGthrough distinctive Glanguages.G These languages included both two-dimensional portrayals (paintings and painted reliefs) and three-dimensional figuresGforms that each must be skillfully deciphered in order to grasp its overt and covert meanings.

focuses on two-dimensional depictions in ancient Egypt, examining them as part of an elaborate code that was designed to maintain the MaatGor Cosmic Order, Truth-Justice, and Universal HarmonyGand that figured intimately in Egyptian lives and beliefs. The text conducts this examination through two different lenses: that of Western rational analysis, with its emphasis on methods and techniques, and that of ancient Egyptian spirituality, which these complex works have handed down to our own time. Accordingly, the first section of the book analyzes the technology, techniques, history, and cultural context of Egyptian art, while the second compares selected monumental works across different periods and places, detailing their artistic and spiritual significance.

Handsomely illustrated with 350 color plates, including numerous full-page details printed on a special matte paper designed to simulate the feel of the stuccoed limestone on which the original images were painted, illuminates an art, language, and culture of extraordinary richness.

The volume is also available in a slipcased version for those seeking an especially luxurious presentation for home or library. As the definitive treatment of its subject, is sure to appeal to art historians, Egyptologists, linguists, and connoisseurs interested in one of historyGs most complex and influential civilizations.