Question

Ramses II ruled over Egypt from the years 1279 BCE to 1213 BCE. A famous statue was erected to him during his reign, and the statue was discovered by archaeologists in the early 1800s CE. Over time, it had fallen and broken into pieces. In 1817, the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was inspired to write a poem about a statue of an ancient ruler.
Read the poem "Ozymandias" by Percy Bysshe Shelley

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert … near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal these words appear:
'My name is Ozymandias, king of kings;
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

Once you have read the text, examine the following depiction of what the statue of Ramses II would have looked like during his reign.

Image depicts a large sand-colored stone sculpture of Ramses II. He stands several feet tall in an erect posture, clenched hands at his sides, staring straight ahead.
© Stephen & Donna O'Meara / Photo
Researchers / Universal Images Group
/ Image Quest 2018

The sculptor of Ramses II and Shelley both depict an ancient ruler, but there are details in visual art that cannot be communicated through text. In a short response of at least five sentences, describe at least one detail clearly shown in the sculpture that is not evident in the poem. Include at least one specific reference to each work in your response.

Answer 1

In her poem, Shelly said that this king had a cold command. She also said "The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed" which suggests that this king often looked down on others, and felt superior. On the other hand, she states how passionate the sculptor was and how the pedestal states, "My name is Ozymandias, king of kings; Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!". Using both of these resources we can determine that the sculptor sees the king as a very powerful figure, and that he looks up to and cares about this ruler. In other words, Shelly believes that rulers are harsh and cold, while the sculptor of this statue believes that rulers are great and powerful.

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