Ancient Egypt is known for the pyramids of Giza, the Great Sphinx, and their mummies. But there are many artifacts from ancient Egypt that are very valuable and expensive.
The ancient Egyptians often buried their dead with gold jewelry, amulets and statues. Some of these treasures have been found intact, while others were discovered in tombs that had been plundered by robbers.
Even if the mummies and artifacts were not stolen, it would still be difficult to put a price on them. The art market is very fickle, and an art piece can be priceless one year and worth little the next.
Here are five of the most expensive pieces of ancient Egyptian artifacts:
1) The 3,300-year-old Mask of Agamemnon – $16 million
The Mask of Agamemnon is made of solid gold and weighs nine pounds. It was created during the Mycenaean period (1600-1100 B.C.). The mask was taken from Agamemnon’s tomb in Greece in 1895 during an archeological expedition. In 1901, it was sold to the Berlin Museum for $16 million—the most expensive artifact ever sold at the time.*
2) The 3,400-year-old
Ancient Egyptian art is among the most significant in the history of mankind and it has been created between 4,000 years ago to 100 A.C.
Ancient Egypt developed around 3000 B.C., according to some data and it is believed that this civilization ended with Roman rule over the country in 100 A.C. This period had a great influence on the cultural development of art and architecture, as well as on writing, literature, music and other forms of creativity. However, Egyptian culture had been very popular since before Christian Times (around 330-400 A.C.)
Ancient Egypt is one of the most famous ancient civilizations that left a mark on all the arts we know today such as sculpture, painting, architecture or literature. But not only that; they also influenced some aspects of our everyday lives nowadays and you might even have experienced something related to this ancient civilization without noticing it. For example, if you do Yoga or Meditation you are partaking in an activity which has been influenced by Ancient Egypt as well as if you go to the dentist because tools and techniques used nowadays can be found their roots back to Ancient Egypt.
The Ancient Egyptians were great sculptors which is proven by the 5 most expensive pieces of artifacts or statues that presently exist on Earth which are made by
Ancient Egypt is the home of many mysteries. It is a very interesting place to visit and learn more about our past. The tomb of Tutankhamen is one of the most famous archaeological discoveries in the world. The tomb was discovered in 1922 by a team of British archaeologists led by Howard Carter, who were allowed to enter the tomb for the first time since its sealing thousands of years ago. This discovery started the craze for Egyptian Artifacts and Ancient Egypt Artifacts.
I have put together for you a list of five most expensive ancient Egyptian artifacts ever sold at auction. These artifacts were sold at auction from 1999 to 2005.
1)Ancient Egyptian Queen’s Sarcophagus: $300,000
This ancient piece of art was sold at an auction held by Christie’s on December 12, 1999. It is believed to be one of the best examples of ancient Egyptian funeral art that has been found till date. The sarcophagus dates back to 1600 B.C and is made up of red granite and weighs around 127 tons. It was once used as a burial chamber for a queen named Sitre-In or Sit-Re In her abbreviated form who was probably the wife or mother-in-law of King Thutmosis III (1479 –
In the world of art and antiquities, there are collectors and then there are collectors. Some people collect because they want to own art that is beautiful and interesting, others collect for status and power, but the top echelon of collectors are those who collect for investment purposes. The antique business is a multi-billion dollar industry, and it’s not just about paintings anymore. It’s about ancient artifacts as well, some of which can fetch incredible prices.
Tutankhamun’s mask sold at auction in New York in 2007 for $23 million. The mask doesn’t even date back to Tutankhamun’s lifetime or reign; it was actually created over 300 years later during the Roman era. This piece is considered one of the most important pieces of ancient Egyptian art ever discovered. The mask is made out of solid gold and weighs almost five pounds. It’s also very fragile; if you were to drop it on a hard surface, it would break into hundreds of tiny pieces.
The second most expensive piece of ancient Egyptian art is another artifact from Tutankhamun: his golden funerary mask, which sold at auction for $16 million in 2002. The mask is 15 3/4 inches tall and 11 inches wide and made out of solid gold (
Ancient Egyptian artifacts are some of the most expensive objects in the world. They are among the oldest human made objects that have been discovered. Ancient Egypt was one of the most advanced civilizations and these artifacts reflect that. These ancient relics are some of the most expensive pieces of ancient art in the world.
5. The Rosetta Stone – $9,726,000
The Rosetta Stone (Decree of Ptolemy V) is a stele that has had an important impact on modern language and history. This artifact is a 7 foot tall, 2 foot wide tablet with Greek text inscribed on it. The stone was originally created by a Greek named Demetrios in 196 BC when he was working for King Ptolemy V. It was created to celebrate Ptolemy V’s coronation as well as his military victories over the Seleucid Empire and Cyprus. The stone was discovered by French soldiers near Rosetta, Egypt in 1799 during Napoleon Bonaparte’s expedition to Egypt. It was then brought back to France and put on display at the Egyptian museum at the Louvre where it remains today. In 1822 British forces under Admiral Edward Pellew captured Al-Rashid Fort in Alexandria, Egypt during his campaign
Ancient Egypt has given us with some of the best examples of artwork and artistry from the ancient world. While their art is not the only example, it is often what people think of when they hear the term. Their art was very important to their society and culture, as it demonstrated a high level of skill and detail that was unmatched in the rest of the world.
Tomb paintings were meant to be a record of a person’s journey into the afterlife and were created so that people who came to “visit” would recognize them. In this way, it was likely that these tomb paintings served as portraits for those who could not afford a self-portrait or had no artistic ability.
These five pieces have been considered some of the most valuable pieces in existence from Ancient Egypt and are on display at museums all over the world.**
Ancient Egypt is one of those civilizations that still fascinate people, thousands of years after the fact. There are many reasons for this, not the least of which is the incredible artwork created during this period. The Egyptian artists were masters of their craft and very creative in what they did. They were also very talented sculptors, who created some truly amazing works of art using stone, wood and metal.
Trying to compare ancient Egyptian artifacts with ancient Greek and Roman artifacts is a bit like comparing apples to oranges. While both groups used techniques that are considered artistic today, these techniques were used in different ways by each group. Furthermore, while the Greeks and Romans looked at beauty as being something that was sensual, where the Egyptians saw beauty as being more spiritual in nature.
There are many reasons why the ancient Egyptians were so interested in death and dying. Perhaps it goes back to their beliefs about the afterlife and how it worked. They believed that upon death, you would stand before the god Anubis whom you would have to list all of your sins against him so he could allow you into heaven or send you away to hell. This may be why some of their artwork depicted them as mummified corpses.
