Episode Five

Alastair Sooke continues to tell the epic story of Egyptian art by looking at how, despite political decline, the final era of the Egyptian Empire saw its art enjoy revival and rebirth. Alastair is in Egypt's deep South travelling back to a time known as the new kingdom, when the land of the Pharaohs was at the height of its powers. Ramesses the second or Ramesses the Great ruled for 67 years in the 13th Century before Christ, and he's known as the great builder pharaoh. His name was incised on more monuments than that of any other pharaoh in ancient Egyptian history.