Do Now!

•Examine the “Archaeological Exercise” you received when you came in.

•On your index card, describe what is happening in the picture!

•HW: Read the Egyptian Creation Story and complete the questions

DO NOW!

Egyptian Civilization: A Long Haul

Egyptian Religion: An Overview

1. Traditional Polytheism: pray to benevolent gods for success; Pharaoh is god’s representative on earth

2. Moral Polytheism: proper moral conduct insures a good afterlife for all

3. Monotheism: makes a brief appearance & then disappears

Traditional Polytheism• Local Deities: Different

cities & towns worshipped different gods.

• Diversity: Different gods provided various services & protections.

Thoth: god of writing & knowledge.Worshipped by scribes

Ptah: god of craftsmen. Worshipped byskilled workers

Hathor: goddessof love & joy.Local goddess of the town of Dendera

Traditional Polytheism: Combined Gods

Amun: God of the elements

Ra: God of the Sun

Amun-Ra: a “super-god”of all creation. Worshipped across Egypt & considered the “god of the gods.”

Polytheistic Temples:The Temple of Amun-Ra at Karnak

The Temple of Amun-Ra at Karnak

• This temple held a hypostyle hall: a great room with a ceiling supported by many columns. Each column had decorations honoring the gods and the pharaohs who built them. This construction type was unique to Egypt.

When first built, every column was painted and decorated.

Polytheism: Pharaohs as Gods

The Great Pyramid @ Giza• Built c. 2,589 BCE for Khufu• Construction time: c. 20 yrs• 2.3 million blocks of

limestone & granite

Inside the Pyramid: The pharaoh and his goodswaited for transport to the

afterlife.

Polytheism II: Pharaohs as Gods

• Khufu ruled for roughly 63 years, spending 1/3 of that time on his tomb, the Great Pyramid.

Khufu:Ra on Earth

Khufu:Burial Chamber & Sarcophagus

(his coffin)

Inference Time!What can you infer about ancient Egyptian

religion from the facts below?

1. Many gods received offerings from people on a daily basis.

2. 30 Pharaohs built the Temple @ Karnak over a period of 1,500 years.

3. Khufu spent 23 of his 63 years in power (37% of the time) building his tomb.

Moral Polytheism: Only the good live forever…

The Book of the Dead: the gods judge the dead.

The dead &

Anubis

The dead’s heart Feather of truth

Thoth

The dead & HorusOsiris Isis &

Nephthys

Ammut

Scale

Reaching the Afterlife: Procedures

• Anubis weighs your heart against the feather of justice.

• If your heart outweighs the feather (b/c it’s heavy with sin), Ammut eats your heart. Game over: you’re dead.

• If your heart is lighter, Horus takes you to meet Osiris in the afterlife. You made it! Eternal life is yours!

Follow-up Question:

How does the death ritual from the Book of the Dead

exemplify

“moral polytheism”?