arts Article Animals in Human Situations in Ancient Egyptian Ostraca and Papyri Azza Ezzat Writing and Scripts Center, Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Alexandria Governorate 21526, Egypt; [email protected] Abstract: It has been said that the ancient Egyptians were raised to tolerate all kinds of toil and hardship; they nevertheless also liked to amuse themselves with comic relief in their everyday life. For example, ancient Egyptian drawing can be quite accurate and at times even spirited. What scholars have described as caricatures are as informative and artistic as supposed serious works of art. Ancient Egyptians have left countless images representing religious, political, economic, and/or social aspects of their life. Scenes in Egyptian tombs could be imitated on ostraca (potsherds) that portray animals as characters performing what would normally be human roles, behaviors, or occupations. These scenes reveal the artists’ sense of comedy and humor and demonstrate their freedom of thought and expression to reproduce such lighthearted imitations of religious or funeral scenes. This paper will focus on a selection of drawings on ostraca as well as three papyri that show animals—often dressed in human garb and posing with human gestures—performing parodies of Citation: Ezzat, Azza. 2021. Animals human pursuits (such as scribes, servants, musicians, dancers, leaders, and herdsmen). in Human Situations in Ancient Egyptian Ostraca and Papyri. Arts 10: Keywords: animals; anthropomorphism; humor; parody; satire; ostraca; papyri; ancient Egypt 40. https://doi.org/10.3390/ arts10030040 Academic Editors: Branko F. van 1. Introduction Oppen de Ruiter, Chiara Cavallo and Depictions of animals in scenes of daily life are commonly found in ancient Egyptian Annetta Alexandridis tombs, mainly the Old Kingdom mastabas and the rock cut tombs of the New Kingdom Received: 14 April 2020 (Evans 2000, p. 73; Germond and Livet 2001, p. 7). Egyptians carefully studied animals, Accepted: 19 May 2021 understood their physical characteristics, and admired their nature. Animals that were Published: 22 June 2021 dangerous or had powers human beings lacked were especially respected. To be sure, many deities of the Egyptian pantheon we represented fully or partially as animals—often Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with an animal’s head (te Velde 1980, pp. 76–82). In addition, Egyptians represented with regard to jurisdictional claims in animal genera accurately in their hieroglyphic signs (McDonald 2009, p. 361; Germond published maps and institutional affil- and Livet 2001, p. 107). Modern scholars have divided Egyptian hieroglyphs into some iations. 25 categories, ranging from depictions of people, animals, and plants to those of common objects. Among about 700 hieroglyphs, about 170 take their inspiration from the animal kingdom (Germond and Livet 2001, p. 110). Animals were sacrificed, hunted, tamed, and raised, but also venerated and mummified. They served as a source of nourishment, a Copyright: © 2021 by the author. means of transportation, a source of medical remedies, companions, and objects of worship Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. (Betz 2015, p. 22). One example of animal representation is imagery of animals performing 1 This article is an open access article human professions found in New Kingdom papyri and ostraca. These animals are clearly distributed under the terms and depicted to have unusually human mannerisms. They are also portrayed in ways that are conditions of the Creative Commons not true to their own nature. This type of representation therefore anthropomorphizes Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// animals (Babcock 2014, pp. 120–21). When compared to the more familiar formal repre- creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ sentations on monuments of the majority of Egyptian “high” art, scholars have until very 4.0/). 1 Ostracon (plural: ostraca) is the Classical Greek term for “potsherd”; the term is used in Egyptological studies both for sherds of pottery and flat limestone flakes. In ancient Egyptian, the word used is nDr, nD (“splinter, break, sherd”); the literal meaning is thus “fragment,” but ostraca are whole works of art (Davies and Garis 1917, p. 234; Brunner-Traut 1979, p. 1). Arts 2021, 10, 40. https://doi.org/10.3390/arts10030040 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/arts Arts 2021, 10, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 20 Arts 2021, 10, 40 2 of 20 more familiar formal representations on monuments of the majority of Egyptian “high” art, scholars have until very recently considered such scenes on ostraca and papyri of lit- tle artisticrecently merit consideredand academic such interest—if scenes on they ostraca consider and papyri them ofat littleall.2 artistic merit and academic 2 Whatinterest—if these images they considercould have them meant at all. to the ancient Egyptians is impossible to de- termine withoutWhat written these images sources could to elucidate have meant their to thethoughts. ancient This Egyptians paper isaims impossible to shed to deter- light onmine the depiction without writtenof animals sources performing to elucidate human their professions thoughts. on This ostraca paper and aims papyri to shed light during theon theNew depiction Kingdom, of animalsfocusing performing on a selection human of drawings professions that on show ostraca animals and papyri paro- during dying humanthe New professions Kingdom, (such focusing as scribes, on a selection servants, of musicians, drawings thatdancers, show leaders, animals and parodying human professions (such as scribes, servants, musicians, dancers, leaders, and herdsmen). herdsmen). These scenes often portray animals dressed in human clothes, posing with These scenes often portray animals dressed in human clothes, posing with human gestures, human gestures, and engaging in human pursuits. I will differentiate “humor,” “satire,” and engaging in human pursuits. I will differentiate “humor,” “satire,” and “parody” to and “parody” to provide a better understanding of the comic intent of the artists. I will provide a better understanding of the comic intent of the artists. I will discuss why these discuss why these scenes were drawn without any texts. Additionally, I will address the scenes were drawn without any texts. Additionally, I will address the question of whether question of whether these drawings were indeed meant to mock elite society. these drawings were indeed meant to mock elite society. Understanding the exact meaning of these scenes is challenging due to the lack of Understanding the exact meaning of these scenes is challenging due to the lack of supporting archaeological or textual evidence. These images are not quite understood supporting archaeological or textual evidence. These images are not quite understood because of the lack of knowledge of the cultural habits of the ancient Egyptians; such because of the lack of knowledge of the cultural habits of the ancient Egyptians; such knowledge would have shed light on what these anthropomorphized animal behaviors knowledge would have shed light on what these anthropomorphized animal behaviors mean. Anothermean. Another problem problem is that the is thatexact the findspot exact findspot (called “provenance” (called “provenance” or “provenience” or “provenience” in specialistin specialist circles) circles)of the ostraca of the ostraca and pa andpyri papyri is often is unknown—a often unknown—a problem problem more more gener- generally ally facingfacing Egyptian Egyptian artefacts artefacts dispersed dispersed to various to various institutional institutional and and private private collections collections in in the the 19th19th and and early early 20th 20th centuries. centuries. Had Had the the find findspotspot been been known forfor allall thethe drawings drawings in in question, question,it wouldit would have have been been possible possible to to relate relate them them to to one one another another (Babcock (Babcock 2014 2014,, p. p. 1). 1). 2. The Artists2. The of Artists Deir ofel-Medina Deir el-Medina During Duringthe New the Kingdom New Kingdom (ca. 1550–1078/77 (ca. 1550–1078/77 BCE), EgyptianBCE), Egyptian artists living artists in living a village in a village near thenear Valley the Valleyof Kings of Kings drew drew sketches sketches base basedd on onexisting existing monuments. monuments. This This village, village, called called “The“The Place Place of of Truth” Truth” ( S.t Ma ῾at) at thethe time,time, isis nownow commonlycommonly knownknown byby the the Arabic Ara- name bic nameDeir Deir el-Medina el-Medina (“Monastery (“Monastery of of the the Town”),Town”), andand isis located on the the Western Western Bank Bank of the of the Nile acrossacross fromfrom Thebes Thebes (present-day (present-day Karnak Karnak and and Luxor). Luxor).3 Enlarged3 Enlarged in thein Ramessidethe RamessidePeriod Period (19th (19th and 20thand Dynasties),20th Dynasties), the village the village was inhabited was inhabited by successive by successive generations of generationsworkmen of workmen and their and families their families until the unti beginningl the beginning of the so-called of the so-called Third Intermediate Third In- Period termediate(Wilkinson Period (Wilkinson2005, p. 63). 2005, Workmen p. 63). Wo ofrkmen different of different talents living talents in living the village in the atvil- the time lage at thenormally time normally numbered numbered between between forty and forty seventy and seventy (Redford (Redford 2001, vol. 2001, 1, p.vol. 368). 1, p. Among 368). Amongthose workmenthose workmen were