Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt

Historical Overview Ancient Egypt was the

birthplace of one of the World’s greatest civilizations. It was far more advanced than European tribes of the same time period, who were still in the Stone Age.Located in the northeast corner of Africa, Egypt grew to be an important civilization for over three hundred years because of the Nile River.Egypt was originally divided into two kingdoms: Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt.

What was the “SOUL” of Ancient Egypt?

Click here for Creation Story

Geography: Populated AreasThere were three main areas that were populated

in Egypt:

1. The Nile Valley • sole source of water for Egypt• Predictable flooding provided rich fertile soil• Both revered and feared (too much flooding

or droughts)

The Nile Delta • Area were Nile empties into Mediterranean

Sea• Largest piece of fertile land• Encompassed major centres of Egypt

3. Faiyum• Lake Moeris lies at end of branch of Nile is

centre of oasis called Faiyum• Irrigation from Nile made Faiyum the third

most populated land

Geographic Effects on Egypt’s stability and

history

• Fertile soil

• deserts provided protection and shelter from outside influences

• Access to Mediterranean increased and expanded trade and culture

• culture was one of stability and not rapid change

• Deserts were an important source of minerals and building supplies (copper, tin, gold and natron, the drying agent used in mummification)

What determined Egypt’s economic prosperity?

Wealth

• Agriculture made up most of Egypt’s wealth

– grain, vegetables, fruit, cattle, goats, pigs and fowl• Abundance and management of food supplies

(not royal treasury) was the measure of Egypt’s wealth = full granaries, plenty of wildlife and fish, and thriving herds were the signs of prosperity. These were the images used in the tombs of the Pharaohs to illustrate the wealth of their reigns

Economy• Simple economy based on food production and minerals from desert• access to the Mediterranean their routes extended trade as far as Northern Europe, subtropical

Africa and the Near East• Trading was done by bartering goods (grain, oil, wheat)• Taxes, salaries and loans were all paid entirely on goods• extensive trading made Egypt a powerful influence on culture, art, ideas and technology (ie.

Western calendar was taken from the Romans who had borrowed it from the Egyptians)• Trade eventually grew and expanded, bringing new ideas and goods into Egyptian society

Egyptian Hierarchy and Government

Pharaoh

Pharaoh was believed by the Egyptians to be the supreme ruler chosen by the gods to lead his people. They believed that when a man became a pharaoh, he also became a god. To keep the bloodline of the gods pure, pharaohs often married their sisters, mothers, and cousins.

Politics

How did Pharaoh's rule?

•absolute rulers of the land

•believed to be the earthly embodiment of the god Horus who was the son of Amon-Re

•Therefore they had the divine right to rule

•This allowed them to move between god and their people

•People followed their orders because they believed they were from god

•No one would challenge the King’s authority and he could rule in relative peace

Politics

•The throne passed on to eldest son of Principal Queen who was usual the eldest daughter of the previous king therefore the king’s sister

•Pharaohs owned all the land – they had a hierarchy of government officials to help him rule

•Second to the Pharaohs were the scribes who would record the doings of the Pharaoh

Social Roles

Role of Women

• Well treated and had considerable legal rightscompared to other civilizations

• Same legal rights as men (land, property, divorce)

• Left women to be economically independent

• Primary role was in domestic life

• Common title for a married women in ancient Egypt was “nebet per” meaning “the lady of the house”

• Bear and raise children

Role of Men

• Head of the family

• Men could have numerous wives but economically men had only 1 wife

• Labourers, craftsmen

• Jobs were hereditary

Jobs

• Labour required for construction projects and was mostly filled by poor, serfs

• Stability of Egypt thrived as skilled trades were passed from father to son

• Children always learned the trade from parents; seldom could choose occupation

Major Time Periods of Egypt

The Old KingdomWhen the pharaohs built

the pyramids

The Middle KingdomWhen training and military explorers were sent out to expand Egypt’s boundaries

The New KingdomEnding with Queen Cleopatra losing her land to Augustus Caesar and Rome

Achievements• Pyramids There were about 80 along the banks of the

Nile River. The largest is the Great Pyramid, built by King

Khufu in about 2600 B.C. It stands about 481 feet high and covers 13

acres. The pyramids functioned as huge burial tombs

for the Egyptians’ dead pharaohs and queens.

• Ship-building They used the Nile River like a highway to

transport people and goods to foreign lands. The first ships were made out of bundles of

papyrus reeds tied together to make a canoe-like vessel.

As the ship trade flourished, the hulls of the ships were made of cedar, and oars and sails were added for greater speed.

• Hieroglyphics These were pictures and symbols that served

as one of the first written languages in the world.

• Calendar Calendars were developed in 4241 B.C. with

365 days in a year. It was based on the flooding of the Nile River. New Years was on June 1, not January 1!

Education

• Contributed to stability and continuity of Egypt• All children, regardless of social class, received some

education• Followed a moral and ethical guide “Instructions in

Wisdom”• Goal for education was to ensure youth exhibited self

control and good manners• At 14, young boys followed fathers in jobs, and girls

learned from mothers in the household• Children of priests were schooled more formally• Literacy was stressed for government jobs• Education respected for creating a well rounded individual

• History of Writing: 1) pictograms (sun= sun) 2) ideograms (sun = sun, daylight, warmth, light)3) phonograms: symbols that suggest a particular sound; related ideas and also sound (Sun = sun, son, Sunday)

• Each hieroglyph found in pyramids and tombs often symbolized more than one consonant. Not only that, but actual Egyptian hieroglyphs were a combination of sound-signs, pictograms, and ideograms. No wonder it was so hard to decode them!

Rosetta StoneWhat is the Rosetta Stone? • The Rosetta Stone is a stone with writing on it

in two languages (Egyptian and Greek), using three scripts (hieroglyphic, demotic and Greek). It was carved in 196 BCE.

Why is it in three different scripts? • The Rosetta Stone is written in three scripts

(hieroglyphs for religious documents; demotic- common script of Egypt; Greek- language of the rulers of Egypt at that time)

• The Rosetta Stone was written in all three scripts so that the priests, government officials and rulers of Egypt could read what it said.

When was the Rosetta Stone found? • The Rosetta Stone was found in 1799 by

French soldiers who were rebuilding a fort in Egypt (in a small village in Delta called Rosetta (Rashid)

What does the Rosetta Stone say? • The Rosetta Stone is a text written by a group

of priests in Egypt to honour the Egyptian pharaoh. It lists all of the things that the pharaoh had done that were good for the priests and the people of Egypt.

Vocabulary

1) cartouche – a tablet with a border, used as a nameplate

2) hieroglyphics – a sophisticated system of pictures and symbols used in ancient Egypt to communicate information

3) Nile River – river that runs through Egypt

4) Ankh – a symbol for life after death

5) pyramids – burial place for kings

6) Pharaoh – Ruler of Egypt

7) necropolis – the place of the burial tombs for the kings and the wealthy

8) papyrus – type of plant paper was made from

Daily Life of Workers

The poor worked long hours for goods that they could exchange in the marketplace for the products they needed.

Agriculture was a major trade and many workers were farmers.

Boys learned a trade from their fathers, and girls were taught to care for the home and family by their mothers.

Women and girls wore straight, sheath-like dresses of rough, unbleached linen.

Men and boys wore short cloth kilts. Their homes were usually one-story made out of sun-dried

brick. There would be a basement and four rooms. They had little furniture. Stairs led to the flat rooftop so that the family could enjoy the cool night air after the sun went down.

Daily life of the Wealthy Men were busy all day as merchants, trading along the Nile River.

Others supervised the daily workings of gigantic farms. Many of the wealthiest and most powerful men in Egypt were

priests. Boys were taught to read and write. Women could own land, run businesses, testify in court, and bring

charges against men. Women oversaw the running of the households and gave the

servants instructions for daily menus and child care. Children were allowed much playtime. Girls practiced singing and

dancing. Boys wrestled and played army. Women and girls wore straight dresses of beautiful lined and a lot

of jewelry. At parties, they wore cones of incense on their heads that melted slowly giving off a pleasant smell.

Men and boys wore linen kilts Both men and women wore eye make-up made from black ashes. Their homes were brick and wood containing many rooms, as well

as walled garden and a shrine for a favorite god.

Life after Death

• The ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife of beauty, peace, and contentment.

• Since most of their lives were filled with hard work, they looked forward to death as a release from this lifetime.

• They believed their souls would need to use their bodies again, so the Egyptians invented a process to embalm their bodies called mummification.

• Wealthy could afford better mummification than the poor

Steps in Mummification

• After the body was washed and covered with scented oils, the liver and kidneys were removed and placed in jars that would be put in the coffin later.

• The brains were removed carefully, but the heart was left in the body because they believed it was the mind and would be needed immediately in the next life.

• Then the body was wrapped in either linen or rough cotton strips and a sticky tar-like mixture was poured over the cloth strips forming a protective outer covering for the body.

• When the mixture hardened, the mummy was placed in a wooden coffin, which was carved and painted to resemble a person.

• Then the mummy was laid in its tomb, along with many objects the Egyptians thought it would need for daily use in the next lifetime, such as tools, jewelry, furniture, religious statues, and food.

Painting and Sculpture

• Egyptians reached a highly advanced level of sculpture. Beautiful figures sculpted from wood, ivory, bronze, gold, and turquoise have been found in tombs.

• One of the most famous sculptures in the world is the head of Queen Nefertiti.

• Another famous work of art is the Great Sphinx, a huge statue of a man’s head on a lion’s body, which guards the pyramids near Giza.

King Tut

• Tutankhamen, or King Tut, for short was called “The Boy King”.• He became pharaoh when he was nine years old. During the year

1350 B.C.• He lived in a beautiful palace in the city of Thebes. He had

servants who did everything for him. They believed him to be a god.

• A typical day for him began in the audience chamber of his palace, where he sat on a throne of gold, silver, and jewels, and wore a heavy gold headpiece shaped like a flame. Ambassadors from foreign countries came to bow before him and bring him riches. Egyptians came to him to settle their disputes. He led his people in a three-hour a day worship ceremony. He had a formal dinner in the evening, then visited with his wife, Ankheshamen, who was two years younger than he.

• King Tut died when he was only nineteen years old. No one really knows if he died from an accident, illness, or his enemies. His burial chamber was found by Britain's Howard Carter in 1922. The treasures of King Tut’s tomb can be seen today in Cairo, Egypt.

Questions to ReviewQuestions to Review1) Egypt is located in which continent?2) What is the famous river in Egypt?3) What were the name of the three period of times into which

Egypt was divided?4) What happened to Egypt when Pharaoh wouldn’t obey God’s

command?5) Name the four most remembered accomplishments from

the Egyptians.6) Discuss at least three likenesses and differences between

the workers and the wealthy.7) Briefly name the steps of mummification. You may list

them.8) Name two famous works of art by the Egyptians.9) How old was King Tut when he became Pharaoh?10) Who discovered his tomb and where is it located?