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Talatat

Talatat is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Talatat rather than just read about it. In short: Talatat are limestone blocks of standardized size (c. 27 by 27 by 54 cm, corresponding to 1⁄2 by 1⁄2 by 1 ancient Egyptian cubits) used during the 18th Dynasty reign of the Pharaoh Akhenaten in the building of the Aten temples at Karnak and Akhetaten (modern Amarna). The standardized size and their small weight made construction more efficient.

Talatat — main illustration
Talatat — illustration

Key takeaways

  • Talatat belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect Talatat to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of Talatat from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Talatat are limestone blocks of standardized size (c. 27 by 27 by 54 cm, corresponding to 1⁄2 by 1⁄2 by 1 ancient Egyptian cubits) used during the 18th Dynasty reign of the Pharaoh Akhenaten in the building of the Aten temples at Karnak and Akhetaten (modern Amarna). The standardized size and their small weight made construction more efficient. Their use may have begun in the second year of Akhenaten's reign. After the Amarna Period talatat construction was abandoned, apparently not having withstood the test of time.

The minority of blocks intended for a visible surface are often decorated in a variety of techniques to make up large scenes covering several blocks. Sunk relief, engraving paint, and sometimes added plaster are used, often in combination.

Amenhotep IV talatats

The blocks used in the Temple of Amenhotep IV in Karnak, and the other abandoned temples devoted to the deity Aten, were reused by Horemheb and Ramesses II as filler material for pylons and as foundations for large buildings. The Great Hypostyle Hall at Karnak is built on thousands of these blocks, as is the Second Pylon. Tens of thousands of the talatat have been recovered. The decorated stones are being photographed and the scenes they depict are reconstructed as part of the Akhenaten Temple Project.

Etymology The term talatat was apparently used by the contemporary Egyptian workmen and introduced into the language of archaeology by the Egyptologist H. Chevrier. There are two hypotheses as to the word's generally unknown ultimate origin in reference to the stones, perhaps not contradictory: The word may be derived from Italian tagliata, meaning cut masonry,

or may be derived from the Egyptian Arabic word تلاتة‎ (talāta, 'three'), indicating that each block is three hand-spans long.

References

Bibliography

External links

Talatat wall Scene Archived 2010-05-30 at the Wayback Machine www.usu.edu Akhenaten worshipping scene: Talatat Article euler.sle.edu

Illustrations

Talatat: Reconstructed Talatats from the Gempaaten
Reconstructed Talatats from the Gempaaten
Talatat: A group in the Louvre
A group in the Louvre
Talatat: Relief Depicting the Purification of Queen Kiya (?), Metropolitan, New York. Sunk relief and paint, the hair later changed by adding plaster.
Relief Depicting the Purification of Queen Kiya (?), Metropolitan, New York. Sunk relief and paint, the hair later changed by adding plaster.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Talatat

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Talatat claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Talatat before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Talatat ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Talatat

In research
Talatat appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses Talatat in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
Talatat is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Building stone, Egyptian artefact types, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Talatat outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.
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How to study Talatat in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what Talatat means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain Talatat out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Talatat in simple terms?

Talatat are limestone blocks of standardized size (c. 27 by 27 by 54 cm, corresponding to 1⁄2 by 1⁄2 by 1 ancient Egyptian cubits) used during the 18th Dynasty reign of the Pharaoh Akhenaten in the building of the Aten temples at Karnak and Akhetaten (modern Amarna). The standardized size and their…

Why does Talatat matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Talatat?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Talatat.

Tags

  • Building stone
  • Egyptian artefact types

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