Dan Daley December 5, 2011
Dr. Lindgren Museum Visit Paper
Outer Coffin Of Khonsu 86.1.1 A-B During my visit to the Metropolitan Museum of art I saw many amazing pieces of amazing art. The Egyptian pieces stood out to me in particular because of my new background knowledge that I have acquired from this class. This was my first time at the museum and basically my first time seeing this type of art up close. Seeing images of the art on slides in class or in a textbook doesn’t really do the art justice or show the actual intricacy or detail of the figures. To be honest I don’t know which amazed me more, seeing the massive structures sculpted out of solid stone or the amazingly detailed figurines that were no bigger then two inches. At first I was going to choose a small figurine that was probably smaller then my finger. It amazed me just for the reason that it was so small but when I looked at it closely I was shocked with the detail. It was right there when it really hit me, how amazing these people were to be able to craft such detailed items without the tools that we have today. Everything was made by hand, yet it appeared to come straight out of a factory just by the way it looked. Ultimately I chose the Outer Coffin Of Khonsu for the reason that it appeared so life like and it was preserved so well that it looked like it had just been crafted. Even though a majority of the art in the museum was life like and very impressive, something about this one really caught my eye. I remember as I walked by I had the feeling that I was being watching and when I looked over it was this piece. The eyes and face of Khonsu were so well preserved that he looked as if he was about to walk off the stand. When I took a better look, I saw that the detail of his body was also kept in amazing condition and the intricate detail, once again blew me away. His arms and middle torso had been not only painted but also carved away in addition to being painted. A worker at the museum explained to me that this type of design was more exclusive and due to the detail it took much longer. Every part of his body had been etched away and then covered with paint to have an even more life-like feel. The same worker at the museum also pointed at to me that there was more to this Outer Coffin then I thought. He explained that what I had been looking at was the Third and final covering. There had been two others before this and this coverings represented his younger years. One of them portrayed him as a man in his young adults years and the first one was him as a teenager. I then learned that these were like Russian stacking dolls that fit one inside another and that was why they were getting bigger and bigger. This was very interesting to me, especially the way that the figures appeared to show the aging of Khonsu. The actual outer coffin was around six feet tall and decently wide but mainly for the reason that the other layers had to fit inside the coffin. Basically there wasn’t a part of the coffin that was left without a detailed mark. Everywhere I looked on the coffin I could find more and more amazing detail. What this piece really said to me was that the people in highest power of Egypt were treated as gods until the day they died and even beyond that point. This wasn’t something that I didn’t already know but seeing this amazing detail up close was something that I wasn’t expecting. The detail on these coffins was something I will never forget. The detail made this Coffin so life like that I felt like I was standing next to someone from the past. This feeling is something you rarely ever get to have and it was with me standing next to Khonsus coffin. Ultimately, this experience was one that I will remember for a long time. Seeing all of these pieces of art in the Met for the first time after taking this class was the perfect time for me. After seeing so many pictures in class and in the textbook I had an idea of what to expect but when I saw the art in person I couldn’t believe how amazing it really was. I already intend on going back very soon