The art of ancient Egypt has never lost its power to inspire fascination and awe. Over some three thousand years the great civilization of the Nile Valley produced some of the finest works of art the world has ever known, whether exquisitely painted on tomb walls, carved in stone or wood, or cast in metal. Illustrated with over 250 remarkable objects from collections in Europe, the United States, and Egypt, this book traces the course of Egyptian art from its sudden initial flowering to its final resurgence during the rule of the Ptolemies. Gay Robins, who brings to the subject many fresh insights based on firsthand study in Egypt, explains how the ancient artists developed an artistic system that was perfectly adapted to expressing the Egyptians’ world view, encapsulated in their religious and funerary beliefs. She explores the different functions of artistic products in temples, tombs, and everyday life, and stresses the importance of understanding them within the context for which they were originally designed. Finally, she demonstrates that, contrary to popular opinion, Egyptian art was not unvarying down the ages but was adapted, through changes in proportion, composition, style, and subject matter, to meet the needs of different periods.