THE OLD KINGDOM

The Scorpion King

The (Real) Scorpion King

Narmer, First Pharaoh

First Dynasty

A DYNASTY is a family of rulers whose right to rule is passed on within the family

Narmer unifies Upper and Lower Egypt in 3150 BC as the first pharaoh

PHARAOH was the title of the king (or queen!) of Egypt They ruled as an absolute monarch, as a living

god, and son of Horus

The Old Kingdom, 2700-2200 BC

A time of peace and prosperity, and great building projects

The Third and Fourth Dynasties are the Golden Age Mummification comes into use Height of building PYRAMIDS!!!

Step-pyramid of Djoser, Saqqara

Sneferu, The Collapsed Pyramid

Sneferu, The Bent Pyramid

Sneferu, The Red Pyramid

Khufu

Khufu rules from 2589-2566 BC

Learns from his father Sneferu on how to build

Enlists close to 100,000 workers over 20 years to build a true masterpiece and a wonder of the world

The Great Pyramid at Giza

The Great Pyramid of Khufu

480 feet tall: was the tallest building in the world for 3800 years (Surpassed by the Lincoln Cathedral in AD 1300!)

Each side is 755 feet long Weighs 5.9 million tons Has virtually perfect alignment to true north Stones fit together so perfectly that it is

impossible to slip a credit card between them Remains the largest man-made stone structure

on Earth 2.3 million blocks (each block about 10 tons): 12

an hour every hour, non-stop, for 20 years

Khafre, Son of Khufu

The Necropolis at Giza

Mummies

Only the pharaoh and the wealthy could afford mummification

Lungs, liver, stomach, and intestines are dried and placed in four Canopic Jars

The body is packed with natron, a type of salt to dry

Heart is left inside while brain is removed with a hook through the nose

Body is washed and perfumed and wrapped: the whole process takes 70 days!

Death is Only the Beginning

Pharaohs would have professional wailers at their funerals!

Pharaohs are buried with all of their favorite possessions, foods, and clothes for eternity

Given a special book of spells called The Book of Going Forth by Day to protect and guide them to the afterlife We call this book The Book of the Dead

Journey to Paradise

Egyptians believed that the journey began at sundown and lasted all night

The heart of the dead was weighed against the Feather of Ma’at, goddess of truth An evil heart was heavier and the heart

and soul would be devoured by a crocodile!

A good heart was lighter than the feather and would enter paradise at sunrise of the new day.