Statue of Ramesses II, Ancient Egyptian New Kingdom (1279–1213 B.C.)

I. IDENTIFIERS

Artist/Attribution: New Kingdom 19th Dynasty

Date 1279-1213 B.C.

Medium: Aswan Red Granite

Location: Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), Giza, Egypt

Culture/Period: New Kingdom

II. HISTORICAL CONTEXT

One of the most iconic Egyptian pharaohs is Ramesses II who reigned for sixty-six years. Ramesses the Great is known for having engaged in aggressive military campaigns, architectural expansion and for his religious propaganda. Ramesses II fought at the Battle of Kadesh (1274 B.C), against the Hittite Empire in modern-day Syria. The Battle of Kadesh is the most famously documented battle in the ancient world. Even though the battle ended in a draw both Ramesses the Great and the Hittite King Hattusili III signed the world’s first peace treaty known as the Egyptian-Hittite Peace Treaty. 

During the rule of Ramesses II there was a great architectural expansion due to the immense wealth that came from control of the Nubian gold mines, the implementation of grain as currency, and military tributes. Due to the economic stability of Egypt at that time the pharaoh decided to begin the construction of monumental buildings such as the famous capital of Pi-Ramesses in which he moved the royal court from Thebes and created the capital city in the Nile Delta in order to have a strategic military connection to the kingdoms of Western Asia. Interestingly the Book of Exodus 1:11 mentions that the enslaved Israelites were building the city of Pi-Ramesses. Other important sites he built or expanded are Abu Simbel, The Ramesseum, Karnak and Luxor.

On a personal level, Ramesses II had over two-hundred wives and concubines with whom he had over one-hundred children. During this time in ancient history, Ramesses lived around his nineties and outlived many of his children. Religiously, Ramesses the Great declared himself as a living God. An example of this is through the art found at Abu Simbel’s deepest chamber which had four seated statues all of the same stature, material and position. The four statues were of the god Ptah (god of creation and craftsmen), the god Amun-Ra (king of gods), pharaoh Ramesses II, and the god Ra-Horakhty (god of the rising sun).  Through that comparison with the same gods people started to view him as a deity and a bridge between the gods and humans. 

III. SUBJECT MATTER

      The subject matter of this work is the divine and eternal nature of Ramesses II’s kingship. In this statue Ramesses II is idealized as he is portrayed in his physical prime during his youth with flawless facial features and he has symmetrical proportions and a relaxed facial expression. Through the removal of flaws, stress and aging the sculpture becomes an image of stability and immortality showing him as a divine ruler and a god. There are symbols that define his royal right such as the Nemes headdress or ceremonial false beard which reveal to the audience that he is the pharaoh and ruler of Egypt. At the base of the statue’s legs there are small low reliefs of his children such as Prince Khaemwaset and Princess Bintanath which strongly implies a dynastic succession and the survival of royal bloodline.

IV. ABOUT THE WORK

This sculpture was commissioned by Ramesses the Great to be placed at the entrance of the Great Temple of Ptah which was a tremendously important site due to King Narmer (the first pharaoh who unified Upper and Lower Egypt) having constructed it around 3,100 B.C. Ramesses II added the monumental gateways (Pylons) to create a more intimidating façade. Most importantly he created the colossal statue known today as the statue of Ramesses II which was at the southern gateway (pylon) of the Great Temple of Ptah which served as an intermediary because the temple was only accessible to the high priests and pharaoh. By having this sculpture place at a public courtyard common people could pray to it and they believed that the king’s spirit lived in that monumental red granite alongside their god Ptah. Simultaneously, this statue is a monolith meaning that it was carved from one single block of red granite which did not exist in the Lower zone of Egypt and had to be brought from Aswan, which meant that there were high transportation costs and the physical value of Aswan red granite which was a luxury material and is one of the hardest stones on earth which means that creating the statue required specialized tools and thousands of hours of intense labor. The work was unknown of until 1820 when Italian Egyptologist Giovanni Battista Caviglia uncovered it. The statue is now at the new Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) in Giza, Egypt. Upon the construction of the museum engineers had to place the statue before completing the walls and atrium roof due to its monumental height and 83-ton weight. 

V. PERSONAL CONNECTION

      I chose this work because it reminds me of my Egyptology books I would have as a kid and the obsession I developed towards Ancient Egypt and its grandiosity in the arts. The statue of Ramesses II also talks about the decaying of time because obviously Ramesses built the city of Pi-Ramesses and his colossal statue at Memphis. However, with the passing of time and the moving of the Nile those cities became abandoned and flooded. Meaning that the statue and temples were magnificent, but only at a certain time. This reminds me of the current world that we dwell in. There are modern skyscrapers, technological advances, and the tallest building in the world (the Burj Khalifa). But how long are these innovations going to stay around us? Just as this statue was considered to be one of the tallest ones to have ever been created so will the current world be that way; always considering itself to be eternal.