Ancient Egyptian Craftsmen
Ancient Egyptian Craftsmen are true original artisans, who are expert craftsmen, totally aware of their incredible skill and amazing capabilities. The ancient Egyptian craftsmen were responsible for the creation of some of the most enchanting pieces of art, showcasing the brilliance and allure of the ancient Egyptian civilization in infinite generations. These artists were considered to be more socially superior to common laborers thanks to their incredible gifts.
Ancient Egyptian Craftsman Materials
Ancient Egyptian craftsmen have existed in Egypt since prehistoric times the main materials used are stones, clay, wood, fibers, ivory, animal skins, bones, and feathers. Later on during the history of ancient Egypt metal was introduced in the crafting process, gold was found in its metallic state, silver was used as an adjunct of gold, and used after being smelted, they also used copper, tin, and iron.
Social Value of Ancient Egyptian Craftsmen
Most of the artifacts were made by craftsmen out of reach for the vast majority of the population. Their clients are mostly from the nobility or the wealthy middle class who can actually afford their services and their high-quality products. The economy and trade of ancient Egypt also played a role in the flourishing of craftsmen. The social class made all the difference when it came to the quality of certain products as the furniture of the rich was beautifully carved while the ones of the middle class less well-off made do with often crudely painted chairs and chests while the poor had excess to these materials.
Facts About Ancient Egyptian Craftsmen
The Egyptian craftsmen or artisans were organized by a system based on hierarchies as most of them were employed by pharaohs, the centralized government, or the temple priests. They learned their craft and art from their former masters who ensured the stylistic continuity of their legacy of beautiful art objects created for the world of the living or the dead and by upholding the principles of Ma’at of balance. These masters could have learned from one’s parents or neighbors or close relatives. They labored in a very organized workshop and special communities as
Ancient Egyptian Craftsmen /have shown by the builders of Dier el-Medina.
They honored their abilities during their time but they remained anonymous. Ancient Egypt was blessed with highly sophisticated craftsmen varying from carpenters, stonemasons, sculptors, builders, weavers, blacksmiths, spinners, dressmakers, glass-blowers, potters, foundry workers, and scribes. Most craftsmen worked as paid workers for temples, or royal institutions as not everyone could have set himself up to be an independent tradesman.
Tools and Products /Ancient Egyptian Craftsmen
The carpenters created a wide range of products from roofing beams to wooden statues to furniture, their tools included saws, axes, chisels, bow drills, wooden mallets, chisels, adzes, and wood were imported all the way from Lebanon. The sculptors shaped and smoothed the stone according to their designs with stone hammers, and copper chisels. Many majestic and immortal colossal or life-size statues and stone vessels were created. Brickmakers and potters used the mud of the Nile River banks to make whatever the ancient Egyptian civilization needed. The bricks were made by mixing the Nile mud with sand and then slapped into
Ancient Egyptian Craftsmen /wooden molds then dried in the sun.
Potters produced many utilitarian vessels using the potter’s wheel, the pots were covered with reddish slop or were decorated with a comb or stylus and then fired in kilns. The bead makers were also very creative while creating jewelry, as they broke stones together then roll them between other stones to shape them and make them abrasive, then a bow drill was used to make a hole in the beads and then rolled in an attached receptacle.
