Ancient Egyptian Décor

What is Ancient Egyptian Décor?

What comes to mind when you think of ancient Egypt? Everyone is familiar with the drama of Egyptian designs from this time period, whether it is through visiting, or seeing photos of, the great Sphinxes or from viewing Egyptian art in museums. The Egyptians are known for their bold, colorful designs, ornate carvings and of course, the intricacy of the patterns and hieroglyphics. Ancient Egyptian décor incorporates all of these elements, bringing the best of Egyptian style to a modern world. One of the easiest ways to introduce ancient Egypt into your interior design scheme is through accessories. Some common accessories inspired by this culture include:

• Bastet Cat statues/paintings of Bastet cats – Cats were considered to be sacred beings by the ancient Egyptians because they were believed to personify the goddess Bastet. Bastet was thought to be daughter or Ra and the goddess of pleasure and motherhood.

• Ankhs – The ancient Egyptian symbol of life force is often used in jewelry as well as being incorporated into interior design.

• Canopic Jars – Canopic jars were the jars Egyptians used to store the internal organs of the dead that were removed when bodies were mummified. They come in sets of four, representing the four sons of Horus, and each jar is decorated with a different god charged with protecting the organs of the dead so they could be used in the next life. Sound a tad gruesome for your home design? No internal organs involved in modern canopic jar versions – they essentially resemble Egyptian inspired Russian dolls and are exceedingly popular.

• Busts – The Egyptians loved to glorify their leaders and their gods with ornate and exceedingly complex busts, and so these designs have endured in modern Egyptian inspired designs. You can find busts of everyone from Cleopatra and Nefertiti to Bastet cats and the sun god Ra.

• Reliefs – Reliefs featuring both hieroglyphics and depictions of gods and rules are common.

• Mummies – Of course, you can’t discuss ancient Egypt without talking about mummies. Representations of mummies are used regularly in Egyptian inspired interior design. These representations can take many different forms, from statues of mummies to reliefs and paintings of mummies and mummification process to sarcophagus statues that open up to reveal a mummy resting inside. Like canopic jars, using mummies in your home décor might sound a little creepy to some readers, but remember that to the ancient Egyptians, death was very much a stepping stone into a different kind of life and was not a tragic event – hence the idea behind the process of mummification.

• Figurines – Like the busts, ancient Egyptians also liked to honor their gods and their leaders with small figurines depicting them in battle or simply in a regal pose.

In terms of colors and materials, ancient Egyptian inspired design tends to be very bold and colorful, with gold, marble, ivory and many varieties of wood being the common material bases.

Using Ancient Egyptian Décor in Your Home

Egyptian décor is quite bold and striking, and so it won’t blend easily with all interior design styles. For instance, if you already have a French Country design theme going, you’re unlikely to be able to add Egyptian style to your room seamlessly. On the other hand, styles like Art Deco work well with Egyptian pieces, since this kind of design was inspired in part by Egyptian works.

Also keep in mind that the colors used in Egyptian design tend to be rich and bold, and if your desire is a light and airy look, this isn’t the style for you. Likewise, the dark colors can make a small room feel even smaller, so if you’ve got a tiny space, you might want to keep the Egyptian décor to a minimum.

There are tons of places online where you can shop for this kind of décor and learn more about the inspiration behind Egyptian designs. These sites are a few of our favorites:

• Egyptian Home
• eMuseum Store
• House of Egypt