Nereidas y bailarinas en el arte egipcio del período romano tardío: estilo, contexto y lenguajes de representación

Abstract

Late Middle Egyptian reliefs, with mythological and Christian repertoire, show relevant material for analyzing changes in artistic productions between the Upper and Lower Empire. In the mythological imaginary abound goddesses that can be related to the universe of Aphrodite. These images illustrate two fundamental aspects of dance in ancient times – sacred liturgy and entertainment – and show the existence of zones of intersection between the funerary figurative language, theatre and liturgical drama. Some of them allow us to establish a comparison with images of neighbouring cultures such as Hindu-Buddhist Kushan, and to argue that the late Greco-Roman art of Egypt used archetypes that transcended the poetic meaning and conveyed mystical content. These archetypes can also be traced in the representation of heroines of the Christian community