Evidence suggests that a sophisticated culture existed before the Pharaonic AgeEgyptians cultivated wheat & barley, domesticated

goats, sheep, cattle, pigs, and domesticated the donkey & the cow

Egyptians made the first pottery, bricks, cosmetic palettes, and war maces

Predynastic History of Egypt:Egypt Before the Pharaohs

King Narmer (Menes)This double crown was there for the union of the two lands. King Menes and his family formed the first ever Egyptian dynasty. A dynasty is when you have a series of rulers who all come the same family. After King Menes died his son became king, when his son died his grandson became king.

A mural of Narmer (or Menes) conquering Lower Egypt

(c.a. 3100 B.C.E.)

Early Dynastic Period c.a. 3100-2700 B.C.E.

The Old Kingdom c.a. 2700-2200 B.C.E.

First Intermediate Period c.a. 2200-2050 B.C.E.

The Middle Kingdom c.a. 2050-1652 B.C.E.

Second Intermediate Period c.a. 1652-1567 B.C.E.

The New Kingdom c.a. 1567-1069 B.C.E.

Third Intermediate Period c.a. 1069-747 B.C.E.

Late Period c.a. 747-30 B.C.E.

The Historical Periods of Ancient Egyptian History

• Powerful pharaohs created a large empire

that reached the Euphrates River.

• Hatshepsut encouraged trade.

• Ramses II expanded Egyptian rule to Syria.

• Egyptian power declined.

• Large drainage project created arable farmland.

• Traders had contacts with Middle East and Crete.

• Corruption and rebellions were

common.

• Hyksos invaded and occupied the delta region.

• Pharaohs organized a strong central state, were absolute rulers, and were considered gods.

• Egyptians built pyramids at Giza.

• Power struggles, crop failures, and cost of pyramids contributed to the collapse of the Old Kingdom.

NEW KINGDOMMIDDLE KINGDOM

OLD KINGDOM

Characteristics of the Three Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt

The crook (heka) and the flail or flabellum (nekhakha), are two of the most prominent items in the royal regalia of ancient Egypt.

The Crook & Flail

The Old Kingdom: (c.a. 2700-2200 B.C.E.)

Golden Age of prosperity Witnessed the

construction of the first funerary monuments

Djoser most well-known pharaoh of 5 pharaohs of the 3rd Dynasty

4th Dynasty—Started with Sneferu and saw the power of the pharaohs reach its climax

Sneferu built 3 pyramids, but his son & successor, Khufu credited with building the Great Pyramid of Giza

Khufu’s son Khafra built another great pyramid & the Great Sphinx

Menkaura—built the last pyramid at Giza and the last pharaoh of the 4th Dynasty

Tomb Complex of Djoser: Second Pharaoh of the Old Kingdom Built the first step pyramid at Saqqara, the largest

necropolis in Memphis Designed by architect Imhotep as a stone replica of

Djoser’s palace Built entirely from cut cubic stone

- Built on the plateau of Giza at the edge of modern Cairo- Built for the pharaohs of the 4th Dynasty:Khufu, Khafra, & Menkaura

ArchitecturallyMost impressive of pyramids in EgyptCompletely made of cut stone & largely remain intact today

For administrative purposes, Egypt was divided up into provinces, or nomes.

A governor, or nomarch, was at the head of each nome and was responsible to the pharaoh.

These governors tended to amass large holding of land and power within their nomes, creating a potential rivalry with the pharaohs.

Of special importance to the administration of the state was a vast bureaucracy of scribes who kept records of everything.

Armed with the knowledge of writing and reading, they were highly regarded and considered themselves a superior class of men.

Their high standard of living reflected their exalted status.

Seated Scribe, from Saqqara. c.a. 2400 B.C.E.

The Vizier

Chief advisor of Pharaoh (P.M.)

 Viziers judged most of the cases in their capital courts. 

The Pharaoh appointed two viziers, one for Upper and one for Lower

The vizier was responsible for: civil law and order collection of taxes maintenance of

archives mobilization of troops,

Imhotep: famous Vizier that designed the step pyramid

Decline of the Old Kingdom: (c.a. 2700-2200 B.C.E.)

Old Kingdom: the most stable period

the Pharaoh dominated life forstalled the emergence of provincial

power but gradually lost power to royal

officialsgradual drying of the environment

failure of the Nile to flood on time

Professor Fekri Hassan examining ancient hieroglyphs which tell of appalling suffering. A third of the population died and the most ordered of empires was brought to chaos. 

Relief showing men, women, and children suffering from the

effects of severe famine

The End of the Old Kingdom

The Middle Kingdom: (c.a. 2050-1652 B.C.E.)

Pharaonic power reached its peak

Referred to country’s “Golden Age” due to great heights in pictorial art & literature

Capital in Thebes, not Memphis

Deir el-BahriMortuary temple of Hatshepsut from

above.

Reform in the Middle Kingdom: (c.a. 2050-1652 B.C.E.)

Successfully reduced the power of the nomarchs & the power over the nomes

Because the power & wealth of nomarchs rivaled that of the pharaoh, Senusret III abolished the nomes He established a new form of

regional government, thus consolidating power in the hands of the pharaoh

Senusret III

The Hyksos Ended the Middle

Kingdom in Ancient Egypt by invasion

Semite Peoples Introduced the wheel

and horse to Egypt

Ahmose and his army driving out the Hyksos.

Starting in 1567 B.C.E., the pharaoh Ahmose I eventually managed to defeat and expel the Hyksos from Egypt, reuniting Egypt and establishing the New Kingdom (c. 1567-1085 B.C.E.).

The New Kingdom was characterized by a new militaristic and imperialistic path. A more professional army was developed.

Egypt duringThe New Kingdom

(ca. 1450 B.C.E.)

Amenhotep IV (c. 1362-1347 B.C.E.) introduced the worship of Aton, god of the sun disk, as the chief. For the first time, Egyptians became ‘monotheistic’.

Changing his own name to Akhenaten (“It is well with Aton”), the pharaoh closed the temples of other gods.

Invasion of the “Sea Peoples” around 1200 B.C.E.

Egyptian Drawings of Two Different Tribes of Sea People

The days of Egyptian empire were ended, and the New Kingdom expired with the end of the twentieth dynasty in 1085 B.C.E. For the next thousand years, despite periodic revivals of strength, Egypt was dominated by Libyans, Nubians, Persians, and Macedonians.

Late Period (c.a. 747-30 B.C.E.)Alexander the Great as Pharaoh

In late 332 B.C.E., Alexander the Great drove the Persians out of the Nile Valley

Egyptians saw Alexander as a “liberator” & recognized him as a pharaoh

Alexander founded the city of Alexandria, which became a prosperous commercial center and seat of culture

Late Period (c.a. 747-30 B.C.E.)Cleopatra: Egypt’s Last Queen

The most famous Egyptian of all time

She conceived a child (Ptolemy Caesarian) with Julius Caesar

After Caesar’s death, she returned to rule Egypt where she forged a relationship with Marc Antony

Her suicide in 30 B.C.E. brought to an end the last chapter in the 3,000-year story of Ancient Egypt