aturalism under
Akhenaton resulted in some marvellous portraiture, of which the fragment
of a queen's head (Plate IV. fig. 43) is perhaps the most brilliant
instance; the fidelity in the delicate curves of the nose and around the
mouth is enhanced by the touch of artistic convention in the facing of
the lips. The only work of ability in the XIXth Dynasty is the black
granite figure (Plate IV. fig. 44) of Rameses II. at Turin. The ordinary
statuary of his reign is painfully stiff and poor, and there is no later
work in the period worth notice.

(B) The reliefs of the early XVIIIth Dynasty are closely like the scenes
of the tombs in the pyramid age, but soon carving was superseded by the
cheaper painting, and but few tombs in relief are known. The temples
were the principal places for reliefs; and they steadily deteriorate
from the first great example, Deir el Bahri (see ARCHITECTURE:
_Egyptian_), down to the late Ramessides. The portraiture is strong and
clear-cut (Plate IV. fig. 46), but somewhat mechanical and without
muscular detail: the sameness is rather more than is probable. There is
a good deal of repetition for mere effect, even in the fine work of
Kha-em-hat (Plate IV. fig. 47), under Amenophis III. That the artists
were conscious of their poverty of thought is shown by some precise
imitations of the style of early monuments. On reaching the age of
Akhenaton, the peculiar style of that school is obvious in every relief;
the older conventions were deserted, and, for good or for bad, a new
start from nature was attempted. After that the smooth finish of the
Seti reliefs at Abydos (Plate IV. fig. 48) shows no life or observation;
and only occasionally the artist triumphed over the stone-worker, as in
the portrait of Bantanta at Memphis, which is precisely like another
head of her found in Sinai. The innumerable reliefs of the XIXth-XXth
Dynasty temples are only of historic interest, and are all despicable in
comparison with earlier works.

(C) Painting was the art most congenial to this age; the lightness of
touch, abundance of incident, and even comedy, of the scenes are
familiar in the frescoes in the British Museum. And under Akhenaton this
was pervaded by an entire naturalism of posture, as seen in the two
little princesses (Plate IV. fig. 49). Drawing continued to be the
strong point of the art after the more laborious sculpture had lost all
vitality. The tomb of Seti shows exquisitely firm line drawing; and