Here is the focus for the artwork:
Khepri , the Egyptian god of sunrise (and one of three gods associated with the sun) was represented as a human body with the head of a scarab beetle. It was believed that Khepri was responsible for rolling the sun from the underworld to the Eastern world every morning, similarly to how scarab beetles roll dung into balls (1). The scarab served as a symbol for multiple qualities that incorporated both life and death, such as immortality and resurrection (2).
The ancient Egyptians saw a very clear relationship between the emergence and setting of the sun every day and the emergence and setting of death. They are both cyclical and inevitable, and so the symbol of the scarab (used to represent the cycle of the sun) was also commonly used in art which celebrated life and embraced death. In fact, the very first record of the mention of Khepri was in the Pyramid Texts. These were a collection of engraved notes that were funerary in nature (“funerary” means commemorative of the deceased). The pyramid texts were dated around 2350 B.C., however they may have been created as long ago as 3100 B.C (3).
The piece of artwork that is illustrated above depicts Khepri in a boat (he is in the center) along with other Egyptian gods, perhaps rowing on a journey to move the sun. The specifics of this piece of artwork are unknown; however we can form a reasonable speculation. It was an honor to be a skilled artesian, so it was probably a person higher up on the socioeconomic ladder who painted this work and since Khepri is one of the oldest gods and is mentioned in texts from the 5th Dynasty (4), it was most likely produced at some time after 2400 BC. Images of the Khepri were extremely common and work like this could have been seen anywhere from a pyramid inscription to a metallic scarab beetle necklace to hang around the neck in the hopes of offering protection to the wearer.
The Khepri was an extremely common symbol in ancient Eqypt because it could be related to so many things and was popular among the young and old, poor and rich. In fact, Khepri was so well recognized and respected that many Egyptian kings incorporated the name "Khepri" into their own names, probably with the hope that their namesake would grant them immortality and protection over the course of their lives (2). So many rationales could have existed for the creation of a piece of artwork like this: to appease a ruler, to simply show appreciation for a god, or to inscribe the walls of a pyramid.
The ancient Egyptians saw a very clear relationship between the emergence and setting of the sun every day and the emergence and setting of death. They are both cyclical and inevitable, and so the symbol of the scarab (used to represent the cycle of the sun) was also commonly used in art which celebrated life and embraced death. In fact, the very first record of the mention of Khepri was in the Pyramid Texts. These were a collection of engraved notes that were funerary in nature (“funerary” means commemorative of the deceased). The pyramid texts were dated around 2350 B.C., however they may have been created as long ago as 3100 B.C (3).
The piece of artwork that is illustrated above depicts Khepri in a boat (he is in the center) along with other Egyptian gods, perhaps rowing on a journey to move the sun. The specifics of this piece of artwork are unknown; however we can form a reasonable speculation. It was an honor to be a skilled artesian, so it was probably a person higher up on the socioeconomic ladder who painted this work and since Khepri is one of the oldest gods and is mentioned in texts from the 5th Dynasty (4), it was most likely produced at some time after 2400 BC. Images of the Khepri were extremely common and work like this could have been seen anywhere from a pyramid inscription to a metallic scarab beetle necklace to hang around the neck in the hopes of offering protection to the wearer.
The Khepri was an extremely common symbol in ancient Eqypt because it could be related to so many things and was popular among the young and old, poor and rich. In fact, Khepri was so well recognized and respected that many Egyptian kings incorporated the name "Khepri" into their own names, probably with the hope that their namesake would grant them immortality and protection over the course of their lives (2). So many rationales could have existed for the creation of a piece of artwork like this: to appease a ruler, to simply show appreciation for a god, or to inscribe the walls of a pyramid.