Chapter 31: The Middle Kingdom of Egypt
readx;? The Aegean region's influence grew and spread far and wide, for example, trade with Egypt was very considerable, and Aegean objects and their imitations could be found in Syria, in the interior of Asia Minor, and in the central and western regions of the Mediterranean: Sicily, Sardinia, and Spain. There is no doubt that at that time www.biquge.info a powerful force had developed firmly in the middle of the Aegean Sea, and the whole region was under its political, social and artistic influence.
This power is located in Crete, but it is constantly energized by the fresh blood of the North, a supplement that is sufficient to stir up fresh ingredients within the civilization, but not yet strong enough to fundamentally change the inner essence of the civilization. There was a more pronounced progress in all art forms, especially sculpture (especially relief works of various sizes), carved stone vessels, and gold, silver, and copper metallurgy.
The reign of the "Shepherd King" Xi'an was the heyday of the Minoan Dynasty. The Minoan dynasty of Knossos ruled not only Crete, but also the Cyclades. Knossos, the capital of Crete, has a population of 80,000 and more than 100,000 people in addition to the seaport.
The main body of the city of Knossos is a large and complex palace complex, because it has the most powerful navy at that time, the palace of Knossos is almost free of external troubles, so there are no strong walls and castles, and the appearance is not as tall and magnificent as the palaces in Egypt and other places, and people who walk into it will not feel depressed, but will only be curious and relaxed about its characteristic internal structure.
At this time, various art forms, including frescoes, vessel paintings, and gem carvings, stood at the pinnacle of Aegean art, and were not surpassed until the year.
The making, shaping, and painting of glazed pottery, as well as the technique of setting many materials, were no strangers to the Aegean craftsmen, and in their works they showed a strong sense of nature, a quest for idealized images and decorative effects, echoing the same qualities that characterized the best period of late Hellenistic art.
Shaped works, such as stone or ivory carvings, cast or forged metal (gold, silver, bronze and bronze), or models made of clay, glazed pottery, paste, etc.; no large standing statues have been found, but there are many small statues; vases of all kinds, carved in marble or other stone, cast or forged in metal, There are those made of clay, especially the latter, which are of many varieties and in large quantities, decorated with elaborate polychrome motifs, sometimes with decorative shapes, paintings on transparent or opaque stones, a large number of engravings such as rings and precious stones, and a large number of clay impressions reprinted from them.
The architectural decoration has also been greatly developed, and the rich variation of the capitals and bodies of the Aegean columns can be seen in the "Treasures of Atreus" in the British Museum, as evidenced by the Mycenaean and Minoan fragments of the cornice art, as well as Minoan paintings. Fine goldwork from the late period has been preserved in Mycenae and Wafio, and the mention of their names is convincing enough. In conclusion, the achievements of Cretan art in its heyday were by no means inferior to any art of its time.
The palaces of Knossos and Faistos were destroyed at the same time, due to a volcanic eruption of unprecedented scale on the island of Thera and the resulting tsunami. Later, the Greeks migrated to the deserted island of Crete, where they became the new rulers of Crete, and the Cretan civilization came to an end.
A volcano on the island of Thira erupted violently, sending plumes of smoke into the air and ash drifting into Greenland, China and North America.
The eruption also triggered a tsunami that swept through Crete, more than 100 kilometers from Thira, destroying coastal ports and fishing villages. Moreover, volcanic ash floated in the air for a long time, creating a "nuclear winter" effect similar to that after a nuclear war, resulting in successive crop failures in the following years. As a result, the Cretan civilization suffered a devastating blow and quickly declined.
The name of the king of the Minoan dynasty is unknown, and it lasted for many years.
> Twelfth Dynasty was the most stable period of rule before the New Kingdom.
In the twelfth dynasty, Amun amun, became the most important god of ancient Egypt. The promotion of the belief in the god Amun is inseparable from the efforts of Amenemhat I, whose name itself contains the name of Amun, showing infinite loyalty to the belief in the god Amun. It may also refer to the fact that he is an incarnation of the god Amun.
The kings of the Twelfth Dynasty skillfully maintained a balance between central and local power in favor of their own rule. They also ruled the northern region of Nubia in the south (southern part of Sudan and the first falls of the Nile in Egypt).
They built magnificent castles on the northeastern border of the Nile Delta to protect the trade routes to the Sinai Peninsula from the West Semites, but in fact after thousands of years of infiltration, the West Semites had already lived in the Nile Delta, but they did not have a dominant position.
Steady wealth and political stability allowed the Twelfth Dynasty to achieve great artistic brilliance, with the appearance of high-quality sculptures, reliefs and paintings.
Amenemhart I, reigned: years.
His father was a Theban priest named Senuseret and his mother was Nefret from Elphantina in southern Egypt> Amenemhat I was originally a minister of Mentuhoteb IV, the last king of the Eleventh Dynasty. In the latter part of the reign of Mentukhateib IV, he was co-ruled with Amenemhat I, which may indicate that he chose Amenemhat I as his successor.
The Horus name of Amenemhart I was Wihomem Mesut, which means "born again", and Armenemhardt was his name at birth. His royal name was Sehotai Pibra, which means "the heart of the god Ra is satisfied".
Amenemhat I had three wives, two of whom were the queen and his sister, who gave birth to his son Neferrut, and the other queen, Nevrita Tetien, who was the mother of Sinusel I.