Mosaic Club

The Icon of Akhenaten and the holy family

The word Icon is mainly a Greek word derived from a word that means I see or I resemble,It was mainly used in Coptic art depicting the holy family with other religious scenes.In Coptic art an icon represents the ecclesiastical that depicts mainly the holy family along with other religious scene.
In Egyptology the word or architectural element of the icon may slightly in concept from that in coptology. The term icon is applied here mainly because the very special characteristics of the stelae that do not apply here and because of the depiction of Akhenaten and his family together reminding us with the holy family scenes. Thus it could be mentioned that according to some scholars the term icon could be applied on this monument because the very special characteristics of the Stela that not applied here, while others agreed on the similarity in subject between the royal family of Akhenaten and the holy family that was considered the main subject in most of the Coptic icons.
The difference between the Stela and the icon can be mentioned in the following points :
The first difference is the theme that they both depict as the Stela depicts funerary, religious, or dedicatory scenes as we knew from the different types of Stela, while on the other hand the icon depicts religious, daily life or even secular scenes. The second difference between the Stela and the icon is the main parts of each of them as for the Stela it was usually divided into the lunette followed by the main scene that in turn was followed by the text, those parts are missed in the icon. The third difference is that this sort of Egyptian icon was kept in private chapels of Amarna houses, while stelae on the other hand were kept either in tombs or temples. Thus the icon could be defined as a frame which takes either square or rectangular shape and it includes a religious scene.
The importance of this icon / Stela as it is showing an intimate moment from the daily life of the royal family under the protection of god Aten.
We called the Stela of the royal family here as a holy family because this Stela is considered a personification of god Aten into this family since the people used to worship god Aten through the royal family, as the family of Akhenaten was the only link between Aten and people on earth.

The Amphitheater

One of the most important features of Roman architecture , it was a circular or oval building used for gladiatorial combats to the death, as well as for fighting with wild animals. Prisoners and those condemned to death were also brought there to witness the bloodshed. This type of building was of course, a product of the Romans' military nature.

- Its primary location:

This type of building was typically located outside the walls of the Roman city due to the large spaces it required, as well as to protect citizens from wild animals and violence. One example is the Colosseum, built by Emperor Vespasian, whose name means "lofty building," which was located within the city walls.

-General layout of amphitheater buildings:

These consist of seats for spectators, built or sculpted in an oval or circular shape. These seats may consist of more than one level and are called Cavea. The arena, which is in the middle of these seats and also has the same shape, is called the Arena. For the safety of the spectators, the arena was sunken down to protect the assistants in the lower seats, in addition to the construction of an iron fence with gates for the entry and exit of predators.

The Ptolemaic Gate : Egypt's Gift to Germany !

This magnificent gate, with its beautiful inscriptions , once stood in the temple of Kalabsha , south of Aswan, before adorning the Egyptian wing of the Berlin Museum in Germany.

Yes... this Ptolemaic gate was transported from the Temple of Kalabsha in Egypt to Germany in recognition of its efforts in saving the Nubian temple ! The Temple of Kalabsha , as is well known , is one of the most famous Roman temples in Egypt, dating back to the reign of Emperor Augustus , although it is believed to have been built on older structures dating back to the reign of Ptolemy IX. The temple was built in the Egyptian-Nubian style and was dedicated to the worship of Mandulis, the Nubian sun god. However, the current location of the Temple of Kalabsha is not the original site, which was located on the west bank of the Nile, 55 km south of Aswan. Like other Nubian monuments , the temple was threatened with submersion after the construction of the Aswan High Dam , so it was moved in 1970 to its new location on the banks of Lake Nasser as part of the Nubian Monuments Rescue Project. The Ptolemaic gate from the Temple of Kalabsha was sent to Germany as a gift from President Gamal Abdel Nasser in appreciation of Germany's efforts in saving the Nubian temples. It now rests permanently in the Berlin Museum in Germany, having been one of the most beautiful artifacts of the temple of Kalabsha. 😞

A portrait of Muhammad Ali Pasha with a plan of the Cairo-Suez railway station in front of him. ❤
One of the most beautiful works by the Italian artist Lecce.

General Forms and Names of Greek Temple Plans:

The names of Greek temples varied according to their plans, specifically regarding the placement and number of columns, as follows:

- In Antis : This name refers to columns located between the shoulders. If there is only one column between the shoulders, the temple is called a Temple in Antis.

- Double Anta Temple : This name is given to a temple with two columns between the shoulders, and these columns are repeated between the shoulders of the rear chamber of the temple.

- Prostyle : This name is given to a temple with a row of columns in front of its entrance. The name is further defined by the number of columns in this front row, which is usually at least three.

- Amphi Prostyle : This name is given to a temple with a row of columns repeated at the rear. Peripteral Temple: A temple is called peripteral if it is entirely surrounded by a row of columns , forming a rectangular area around the rectangular temple. The outer rectangle enclosed between the columns and the temple wall is then called the pteron.

- Dipteral Temple : This term is used for a temple surrounded by two rows of columns instead of one, with the columns wrapping around the temple to form two pterons.

- Pseudo Dipteral Temple : This follows the same pattern as a double-enclosed temple, but without the inner row of columns, leaving an empty space. It is a temple surrounded by a row of columns as usual , but the distance between the building and the outer row of columns is double the usual distance.

- Tholos : These are circular temples that share the names of the previously mentioned temples, but they do not fulfill the primary function of a temple , which is to house a worshipful statue of the deity to whom the temple is dedicated.