The Why Tombs Were Decorated were meant to work forever. To do that, every figure had to be complete and clear. Egyptian artists followed rules that made this possible, and the first rule is about how a body is shown.
Key idea
Artists drew each part of a figure from its most typical view: the face in profile, the eye from the front, the shoulders from the front, the legs and feet in profile.
| Part | Shown |
|---|---|
| Head, nose and mouth | in profile |
| Eye | from the front |
| Shoulders | from the front |
| Chest and waist | turning between the two |
| Legs and feet | in profile |
Why it works
Why combine views? The profile shows the shape of the nose, lips and chin best; an eye seen from the side is a sliver, so the eye is drawn whole, from the front. Shoulders seen from the front show both arms clearly. Legs in profile show the stride. The aim was not to copy what one viewer sees from one spot, but to show each part as it is known to be, complete. Scholars call this "aspective" (or composite) representation, as opposed to perspective.
The same rule applies to things. In a garden scene from the tomb chapel of Nebamun, the pool is drawn from above, as a rectangle full of fish and ducks, while the trees around it are drawn from the side. On an offering table, the loaves and jars are stacked above the tabletop so that none hides another.
Worked example: Reading a pool
A painting shows a rectangular pool seen from above, with trees lying flat around its edges. Is the painter confused?
- A pool is clearest from above, as its shape.
- A tree is clearest from the side.
- Each thing is drawn in its most typical view.
Answer: No: each thing is shown in its clearest view.
Worked example: Checking a figure
A drawing shows a man’s face in profile with the eye in profile too. Is that the classic convention?
- In the convention, the face is in profile.
- But the eye is drawn from the front.
- So this drawing breaks the rule.
Answer: No: the classic eye is frontal.
Common mistake
Thinking Egyptians could not draw perspective. They chose to show each part clearly, as they knew it to be; sketches on flakes of stone (ostraca) show they could draw freely. Quick check: ask what the rule makes clearer.