Art and storytelling go hand in hand in many cultures. The art ancient Egyptians, early Christian’s and the Muslims were designed to help tell the viewers a story about what that culture found important. There are similarities which connect these three distinct cultures’ works of art, but each’s specific iconography directed and distinguished the art to their own culture, and thus reflects the storytelling needs of each culture. An example of ancient Egyptian art is The Funerary Stele of Amenemhat, c.2000 BCE is an 11”x15” piece of painted limestone housed in the Cairo Museum. The background is painted gray. Across the top of the Stele, between two incised horizontal lines, are engraved hieroglyphics inviting food offerings for the deceased. The names of Amenemhat, his wife Iyi, son Antef and daughter Hapy are also etched into the limestone just beneath the line that separates the hieroglyphics from the carving itself. Shown on the left side of the Stele, Amenemhat, Iyi and Antef are seen sitting atop a white padded, black lion-legged bench. Antef sits between his mother and father, facing and embracing his father, while his mother is embracing him. Under the bench is a light tan basket holding a black instrument. At the right of the Stele is Hapy. Her right hand is on her chest while her left arm is at her side. Between Amenemhat, Iyi, Antef and Hapy is a white table zigzagged with black lines that holds enormous food offerings. The creator of the Stele must have wanted to signify the importance of the food offerings because not only is the food in the middle of the frame, but the food is also nearly the same size as the people depicted. Stacked on top of the table is meat painted in pink and white with a basket of green onions at the top almost reaching the hieroglyphics. Under the table are two tan jars. The jars are decorated with two painted ribbons composed of black horizontal lines, one ribbon at the top and that other at the bottom of the jars. As typical of late eleventh Dynasty Egypt, the heads and lower torso are in profile while the chest and shoulders are in frontal view. The men are dark red-brown and the women are lighter yellow-ocher showing the gender difference. The women have long black hair while the men have black hair that is formed like a helmet on their heads. Everything is outlined with thin black lines except the lines around the eyes, which is thicker. They all wear the same green bracelets and necklaces, and the two women are shown with ankle bracelets. The iconography of this Stele is unique in that it presents a united loving family embracing and celebrating together. The Flight into Egypt, from the Infancy of Christ Window is a 20 ½” x 19 ¾” section of stained and painted glass from the Abbey Church of Saint-Denis, c. 1140-1144. This specific style of iconography was a very popular source for twelfth-century artists. The Flight into Egypt panel is completely filled with forms and color. The use of vibrant reds, blues, greens and yellows seems reminiscent of Persian style, along with the use of almond shaped eyes and the haloes around the head of baby Jesus and Mary. White and brown pieces of glass were also used, cut and arranged like jigsaw pieces, joined by thick black pieces of lead called “cames” to create the solid panel of glass. Very little white space is used. Only the wave of a cloud, at the top right, the staff and horse reins Joseph is holding in each hand, and the horse itself are white. Vitreous enamel was painted on the stained glass to add features such as facial expressions and drapery folds and texture for hair and foliage. The only overlapped items to suggest any depth are the horses back legs, date palms, staff and reins. Otherwise everything seems to be set in the foreground. Blue and green semi-circles line the bottom of the panel and are seen under Joseph’s feet and the horses’ hooves helping break up the flat black line. The pyramidal form keeps the eye moving from the left with Jesus on Mary’s lap atop the horse, to the yellow date fruit she is reaching for in the center of the panel to Joseph holding the reins of the horse Mary and Jesus are riding, and is seen walking out of the frame on the right. Jesus, Mary and Joseph’s bodies seem to be facing us while their heads are turned looking at each other. Everything is set against a red background emphasizing the weary journey the three of them took towards Egypt. The Tile Mosaic Mihrab from the Madrasa Imami, c. 1354 is located in Isfahan, Iran is an 11’3”x7’6” niche filled with glazed and cut ceramic tile. Islam’s iconography forbids depictions of divine beings, prophets or religious figures. This tradition has extended to all depictions of people and animals, especially in religious art. Every inch of this Mihrab is filled with intricate forms set in a blue tone, guiding the viewer around the borders to the very center. The dazzling surface includes calligraphy along with organic and geometric forms to tell the viewer a story. The outer border of calligraphy is in cursive muhaqqaq. This white cut tile is made to look like bold brushed strokes as if written by hand. It is set against beautiful cobalt blue with a thin turquoise boarder. These inscriptions inform the viewer of his or her duties as believers as well as telling of the heavenly rewards for the builders. Thin bands of geometric shapes line the cursive muhaqqaq script. The alternating white and cobalt blue contrast each other nicely on a turquoise background. Inside this is another border of geometric shapes. This time, alternating white and turquoise diamonds are set against a cobalt blue background. The top of the wall is filled with beautiful organic forms in white, turquoise, cobalt blue, dark yellow and green contrasting each other to form intricate overlapping designs. The curved surface on the rim of the niche is decorated in a simpler script known as Kufic. It informs the viewer of the Five Pillars of Islam. It’s blocky and angular script is cobalt blue against a white background. The ceiling of the niche is also decorated with organic forms in the same colors. The lower parts of the niche are filled with geometric forms in white, turquoise, cobalt blue, dark yellow and green. There is a framed inner panel that states, “The mosque is the house of every pious person.” Its dark yellow and white cursive muhaqqaq stand out against cobalt blue and turquoise. The script is surrounded by alternating bands of color that is set in intricate organic forms. Both the Funerary Stele of Amenemhat and Mosaic Mihrab have script to inform the viewer. The Funerary Stele’s inscriptions inform the viewer of the names and food offerings, while the Mihrab informs the viewer of important items for Islamic faith and the heavenly rewards of the builders. In contrast to the Funerary Stele of Amenemhat and the Flight into Egypt, the Mosaic Mihrab has no animal or human portraits. The pictures are used to tell the story unlike the Mosaic Mihrab which uses decorative script to tell the story. The Funerary Stele of Amenemhat and the Flight into Egypt are both two-dimensional pieces of art, not utilizing shadows or much overlapping to create depth. They also use almond shapes for the eyes, and black outlines to distinguish forms. All three used contrasting colors so that important forms stand out. These pieces were not originally made as art as we currently use the word. These three pieces were created to be used and facilitate learning. Being viewed and experienced in their original setting to inundate the senses of the viewer. Now all of these pieces are only viewed behind panes of glass or guardrails, out of their original settings leaving us with only a small piece of what the creator intend on having the viewer experience. The artists whom filled the Mosaic Mihrab brought together beautiful script and intricate forms to write about the important beliefs of Islam. It is quite literal in its storytelling because of Islamic belief in iconoclasm. The words are skillfully set into delicate artistic forms that draw the eye around the boarders to the center, instructing the viewer the entire way. Just like the pyramidal form of the Flight into Egypt, central figures draw the eye around the entire glass panel emphasizing certain areas. The artist used vibrant pieces of stained glass to contrast central figures with the background so the focus is on the people involved in the story. Ancient Egyptian, early Christian and Islamic storytelling did more than inform or provide a lesson, it was important in conveying and passing along their religious beliefs, to help the deceased reach paradise, set guidelines of what was acceptable and right, to guide families as well as to keep valuable traditions alive. The majority of people during these time periods were not literate, so leaders and priests used these pieces to inform the masses. Oral storytelling was used to pass along important beliefs along with pieces of art. Artists used their cultures’ popular iconography for these time periods, providing the art was used as a reminder to all. Figurative representation is essential in communicating religious messages because in all religions there are symbols for items associated with that religion. Islam uses the very decorative script for their Qur’an writings. This has led Islamic artists to catapult geometric shapes and stylized calligraphy into a high art form. It is used as decorations in their mosques and in the Qur’an itself. Even though they do not have pictures, the importance of their teachings are symbolized with this type of embellishment. For Christians, the symbols for communicating religious messages can be as simple as a picture of the cross or Christ. The symbols can also be more discreet as in the halos encircling baby Jesus’ and Mary’s heads, showing divinity or a dove to symbolize the Holy Spirit. Ancient Egyptians also had several symbols for communicating their religion. The ankh or a depiction of a sun where the sun’s rays are represented as ending in hands, symbolized blessings from the gods. There were also symbols that represented one specific god over another, being as the ancient Egyptians worshiped several gods. From very early times, people have used art and storytelling to convey their religions, be it the ancient Egyptians, early Christians or early Muslims. The iconography used depended on the religion, but similarities can be found. Their cultures were different and their dependence on storytelling varied, but all of these religions used art to convey what was important. Passing on important information in simple, reinforcing ways to large groups of people.

References
Cothren, M. W., & Stokstad, M. (2012). Art a Brief History. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson.