Ancient Egypt: The Rule of The God King

The Old Kingdom 2700-2181 B.C.

The Middle Kingdom: 2060- 1785 B.C.

The New Kingdom:1570-1085 B.C.

The Nile Valley

Chapter 4 Lesson 2 VocabularyDiplomacy- relations between countries

Nation-State- region with united people and single government

Dynasty- series of rulers from the same family

Vizier- chief advisor (works for King)

Hieroglyphs- picture symbols

Papyrus- paper-like material used for writing

Pyramids- largest stone structures in the world; served as tombs for Egyptian rulers

Egypt Unites 3500-3100 BC

- King Narmer united Upper/Lower Egypt - Named Memphis the capitol- First established nation-state- King controlled all land, economy, and

government- Unified all of Egypt and allowed Kings to

maintain authority- Members of royal family held highest public

offices

Crowns of Egypt

Upper LowerUnified

The Old Kingdom:Sacred Writings

Influenced by Sumerian writing-Egyptians introduce Hieroglyphs

Hieroglyphs or “scared words” were called so because it was believed that the symbols represented a real or mythical power

Hieroglyphs had three meanings It signified an object An idea associated with the object A sound associated with the object

The Old Kingdom:Sacred Writings

Hieroglyphs carved on stone but everyday records written on papyrus

Papyrus was a paper made from the papyrus reed

Pharaoh Egyptians believed that their

kings were gods Pharaoh’s were rulers of Egypt Pharaoh’s purpose was to

bring truth, justice and order to Egypt

Egyptians were expected to follow a code of order as well

This order was called ma’at a concept of justice or social order based on the balance or reconciliation of conflicting principles

The Old Kingdom:Prosperity

Soil rich fields provided a surplus of food which could be used for trade

Rich deposits of mineral resources such as Silver Gold Turquoise

Copper was Egypt's most profitable resource because it was in demand for tools

Abundance of food surpluses and minerals helped Egypt trade for goods like textiles for clothes and timber for ships and housing

Prosperity was responsible for the growth of families

The Old Kingdom: The Family

Families were large and encouraged to be so

Families were loving and caring

Wives had equal relationships in households

Wealth still had it’s privileges in respect to life opportunities and experiences

The Old Kingdom: Egyptian Society

Housing design (small v. spacious), construction (brick v. stone) and placing (city v. countryside)

Jewelry showed wealth Women protected by

laws but could still be beat

Food consumption based on social rank

The Old Kingdom: Egyptian Society Egyptian Society was ranked by

importance Pharaoh High Priest,Nobles and generals Engineers, doctors and Priest Scribes Craftsmen and merchants Soldiers, farmers and tomb makers

Possible to move up one’s social rank

The Old Kingdom: Pyramids and the Afterlife

Pyramids were vast funeral monuments which held dead pharaoh remains and served as the center of worship to the dead king

Size of pyramids symbolized the the Pharaoh’s immortality and length of order he brought to the land

Great Pyramid of Giza took twenty years to construct and required 100,000 workers to complete

The Old Kingdom: Pyramids and the Afterlife

The Old Kingdom: Pyramids and the Afterlife

Egyptians introduced the version of a pleasant afterlife

On death of Pharaoh an embalmer would remove internal organs and preserve them as well as body

Tomb was then stocked with items the dead would need in the afterlife

Used Book of the Dead as their guide to the afterlife

The Old Kingdom: 2200-1570 B.C.

Pepi II (2270-2180 B.C.) ruled for 90 years (longest) by consolidating power through marriage and favorable appointments (made people loyal to him)

Following rulers were weak and indecisive

Droughts and infighting signal an end to the Old Kingdom