'Scènes de Gynécées' Figured Ostraca from New Kingdom Egypt
eBook - PDF

'Scènes de Gynécées' Figured Ostraca from New Kingdom Egypt

Iconography and Intent

  1. 136 pages
  2. English
  3. PDF
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - PDF

'Scènes de Gynécées' Figured Ostraca from New Kingdom Egypt

Iconography and Intent

About this book

'Scènes de Gynécées' Figured Ostraca from New Kingdom Egypt: Iconography and intent examines images of women and children drawn on ostraca from Deir el-Medina, referred to in previous scholarship as 'Scènes de Gynécées'. The images depict women with children either sitting on beds in a domestic setting or in outdoor kiosks. The former are likely to show celebrations carried out in the home to mark the birth of a child. This may have included the bringing of gifts, mainly consumables and small household items. It is possible this was recorded in hieratic texts, also on ostraca, described in earlier research as gift-giving lists. The kiosk scenes may have depicted the place women gave birth in or more likely the place of confinement after birth. However, given the dense nature of settlement at Deir el-Medina it is possible these scenes were symbolic evoking the protection of Isis who nurtured Horus in the papyrus thicket of the Delta. In order to understand the purpose and intent of these images, repeat motifs are considered and their similarities to wall paintings within the village are examined. The objects are important as they represent rare examples of regional art, found only at Deir el-Medina. Also, women are the main protagonists in the scenes, which is unusual in Egyptian art as women are generally depicted alongside the male patron of the work, as his wife, daughter or sister. This publication represents the first systematic study of this material and it brings together ostraca from museums worldwide to form a corpus united contextually, thematically and stylistically.

Frequently asked questions

Yes, you can cancel anytime from the Subscription tab in your account settings on the Perlego website. Your subscription will stay active until the end of your current billing period. Learn how to cancel your subscription.
At the moment all of our mobile-responsive ePub books are available to download via the app. Most of our PDFs are also available to download and we're working on making the final remaining ones downloadable now. Learn more here.
Perlego offers two plans: Essential and Complete
  • Essential is ideal for learners and professionals who enjoy exploring a wide range of subjects. Access the Essential Library with 800,000+ trusted titles and best-sellers across business, personal growth, and the humanities. Includes unlimited reading time and Standard Read Aloud voice.
  • Complete: Perfect for advanced learners and researchers needing full, unrestricted access. Unlock 1.4M+ books across hundreds of subjects, including academic and specialized titles. The Complete Plan also includes advanced features like Premium Read Aloud and Research Assistant.
Both plans are available with monthly, semester, or annual billing cycles.
We are an online textbook subscription service, where you can get access to an entire online library for less than the price of a single book per month. With over 1 million books across 1000+ topics, we’ve got you covered! Learn more here.
Look out for the read-aloud symbol on your next book to see if you can listen to it. The read-aloud tool reads text aloud for you, highlighting the text as it is being read. You can pause it, speed it up and slow it down. Learn more here.
Yes! You can use the Perlego app on both iOS or Android devices to read anytime, anywhere — even offline. Perfect for commutes or when you’re on the go.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Yes, you can access 'Scènes de Gynécées' Figured Ostraca from New Kingdom Egypt by Joanne Backhouse in PDF and/or ePUB format. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Information

Publisher
Archaeopress Archaeology
Year
2020
Print ISBN
9781789693454
eBook ISBN
9781789693461
Topic
History
Index
History
Archaeopress 
Egyptoloy 
www.archaeopress.com
‘
Scènes 
de 
Gynécées
’
Figured 
Ostraca 
from 
New 
Kingdom 
Egypt:
Iconography 
and 
intent
examines 
images 
of 
women 
and 
children 
drawn 
on 
ostraca 
from 
Deir 
el-Medina, 
referred 
to 
in 
previous 
scholarship 
as 
‘
Scènes 
de 
Gynécées
’
.
The 
images 
depict 
women 
with 
children 
either 
sitting 
on 
beds 
in 
a 
domestic 
setting 
or 
in 
outdoor 
kiosks. 
The 
former 
are 
likely 
to 
show 
celebrations 
carried 
out 
in 
the 
home 
to 
mark 
the 
birth 
of 
a 
child. 
This 
may 
have 
included 
the 
bringing 
of 
gifts, 
mainly 
consumables 
and 
small 
household 
items. 
It 
is 
possible 
this 
was 
recorded 
in 
hieratic 
texts, 
also 
on 
ostraca, 
described 
in 
earlier 
research 
as 
gift-giving 
lists. 
The 
kiosk 
scenes 
may 
have 
depicted 
the 
place 
women 
gave 
birth 
in 
or 
more 
likely 
the 
place 
of 
confinement 
after 
birth. 
However, 
given 
the 
dense 
nature 
of 
settlement 
at 
Deir 
el-Medina 
it 
is 
possible 
these 
scenes 
were 
symbolic 
evoking 
the 
protection 
of 
Isis 
who 
nurtured 
Horus 
in 
the 
papyrus 
thicket 
of 
the 
Delta. 
In 
order 
to 
understand 
the 
purpose 
and 
intent 
of 
these 
images, 
repeat 
motifs 
are 
considered 
and 
their 
similarities 
to 
wall 
paintings 
within 
the 
village 
are 
examined. 
The 
objects 
are 
important 
as 
they 
represent 
rare 
examples 
of 
regional 
art, 
found 
only 
at 
Deir 
el-Medina. 
Also, 
women 
are 
the 
main 
protagonists 
in 
the 
scenes, 
which 
is 
unusual 
in 
Egyptian 
art 
as 
women 
are 
generally 
depicted 
alongside 
the 
male 
patron 
of 
the 
work, 
as 
his 
wife, 
daughter 
or 
sister. 
This 
publication 
represents 
the 
first 
systematic 
study 
of 
this 
material 
and 
it 
brings 
together 
ostraca 
from 
museums 
worldwide 
to 
form 
a 
corpus 
united 
contextually, 
thematically 
and 
stylistically. 
Joanne 
Backhouse
completed 
her 
PhD 
at 
the 
University 
of 
Liverpool 
in 
2016. 
Her 
research 
interests 
focus 
on 
depictions 
of 
non-royal 
women 
in 
ancient 
Egypt, 
both 
two 
and 
three-
dimensional. 
She 
also 
has 
a 
wider 
interest 
in 
the 
art 
of 
ancient 
Egypt 
and 
the 
evolution 
of 
style 
over 
time. 
She 
teaches 
in 
the 
Continuing 
Education 
department 
at 
the 
University 
of 
Liverpool 
and 
at 
a 
variety 
of 
educational 
venues 
in 
the 
North 
West 
of 
England, 
focusing 
on 
the 
material 
culture 
of 
ancient 
Egypt. 

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Contents
  5. List of Figures
  6. General Abbreviations
  7. Acknowledgements
  8. Introduction
  9. Deir el-Medina: The History of Excavation and the Nature of the Site
  10. Catalogue of Painted Wall Decoration Found in the Village
  11. Catalogue of ‘Scènes de Gynécées’ Figured Ostraca and Comparative Evidence
  12. ‘Scènes de Gynécées’: The Corpus
  13. ‘Scènes de Gynécées’: Repeat Motifs
  14. Conclusions
  15. Bibliography
  16. Index