Egyptian Revival

エジプシャン・リヴァイヴァル / late 18th–19th century / Style / Historical Styles

A revival style in late-eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe and the United States that transferred ancient Egyptian architecture and ornament to modern monuments, cemeteries, theatres and furniture. Obelisks, pylon-shaped entrances, papyrus and lotus capitals, and winged sun disks were organized into massive symmetrical compositions to project permanence, exoticism and the authority of discovery.

Tapering obelisks and pylon-shaped entrances with battered walls / Bundled columns with abstracted papyrus or lotus capitals / Bands of winged sun disks, sphinxes, cobras or hieroglyphs / Heavy walls with small openings and a symmetrical monumental front

Egyptian Revival — AI-generated interpretation
AI-generated interpretation, not a reference work

Dictionary entry

Best used for
Concentrating ideas of excavation, memory and permanence into an architectural front for an exhibition or cultural venue · Using Egyptian references in packaging or displays as a structure of columns, gates and bands rather than a layer of gold ornament
Type
Set a short title in broad capitals. If hieroglyphs are used, verify the actual text and direction with specialist references.
Composition
Center a pylon gate within low, heavy symmetry and use only one pair of obelisks or bundled columns.
Material
Build from rough sandstone color, dark blue-green and oxidized metal, limiting winged disks and lotus forms to shallow relief.
Caution
Do not confuse ancient Egyptian art with a modern Western revival of it. Do not collect pyramids, sphinxes and invented hieroglyphs without meaning; acknowledge the histories of archaeology, empire and collecting.
Further study
Getty AAT — Egyptian Revival / The Met — Egyptian Revival / Egyptomania, archaeology and colonial collecting

Related entries

More from Historical Styles

Continue through styles in the same Historical Styles family, prioritised by shared effects.

Browse all Historical Styles entries

Cite this entry

The dictionary is meant to be linked to. Take whichever form fits where you are writing.

Link
https://indexstyle.org/styles/egyptian-revival
Markdown
[Egyptian Revival — IndexStyle](https://indexstyle.org/styles/egyptian-revival)
HTML
<a href="https://indexstyle.org/styles/egyptian-revival">Egyptian Revival — IndexStyle</a>

Back to index position