Chapter 1 Overview Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt: “The Gift of the Nile” (Herodotus)

Egyptian Civilization: Geography as Destiny The Nile Flows from South to North Predictable annual flooding Stability and Unity Protected by deserts on the east and west Developed in relative isolation into a prosperous and stable kingdom Nile River Sahara Desert

The Annual Flooding of the Nile

More Benefits of Nile River The river served as a highway United villages along the river Travel was relatively easy on the river Currents carried barges downstream to the delta Sails used to catch winds to return upstream Additional benefits River attracted wildlife and provided fish for hunting & sport Papyrus grew along river Used to make paper

Bordered on the south, east and west by the Sahara Desert, and on the north by the sea, ancient Egypt was protected from outside influences.

Ancient Egyptian History Periods Time Frame Nile Culture Begins 3900 B. C. E. Archaic 3100 – 2650 B. C. E. Old Kingdom 2575 – 2134 B. C. E. Middle Kingdom 2040 – 1640 B. C. E. New Kingdom 1532 – 1070 B. C. E. Late Period 750 – 332 B. C. E. Greek Ptolemaic Era 332 – 30 B. C. E. Roman Period 30 B. C. E. – 395 C. E.

Menes: Unifier of Upper & Lower Egypt Originally two kingdoms developed along the Nile Lower Egypt Located along the northern Nile Good farmland Access to copper mines in Sinai Peninsula Upper Egypt Located along the southern Nile King Menes (~3000 BCE) conquered lower Egypt, unifying the kingdom and establishing the first dynasty Capital at Memphis

Three Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt Powerful pharaohs created a large empire that reached the Euphrates River. Hatshepsut encouraged trade. Tutankhamen: boy-king 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. Khufu and others built pyramids at Giza. Power struggles, crop failures, and cost of pyramids contributed to the collapse of the Old Kingdom. NEW KINGDOM (1532-1070 BCE) MIDDLE KINGDOM (2040-1640 BCE) OLD KINGDOM (2575-2134 BCE)

The Old Kingdom (2575-2134 BCE) Pharaohs organized a strong central state, were absolute rulers, and were considered gods. Khufu and others built pyramids at Giza. Power struggles, crop failures, and cost of pyramids contributed to the collapse of the Old Kingdom.

The Middle Kingdom (2040-1640 BCE) New capital Thebes in upper (southern) Egypt ~1600 BC ruler became known as the pharaoh Came to an end when the Hyksos, a people from western Asia, invaded. The Hyksos had Bronze Weapons and Horse Drawn Chariots The Hyksos ruled Egypt for 110 years

New Kingdom (1532-1070 BCE) Early female ruler Hatshepsut (1473-1458 BCE) Had a tomb built as part of a major building project Succeeded by stepson, Thutmose III Thutmose established Egypt as an empire, gains wealth Through trade and conquest, Egyptians learned other ideas and blend cultures (movement)

New Kingdom (cont.) (1532-1070 BCE) Amenhotep IV – aka Akhenaten (1353–1335 BCE) makes many unsettling changes Makes Egyptians monotheistic Aten the sun god Claims to be equal to Aten Weak ruler, lost part of empire Priests & soldiers unhappy w/ changes Egypt returned to old ways after his death Tutankhamen (1333–1324 BCE) Ramses II (1290-1224 BCE) Long rule: 66 years Many children (52 sons, plus daughters…) Had many temples and tombs built May have been the pharaoh associated with Moses Mummy of Ramses II Tut

Pharaohs organized centralized state Built enormous tombs, the pyramids Power struggles, crop failures and cost of pyramids caused collapse Corrupt government suffered frequent rebellions Land drained for farming Hittites invaded and conquered Pharaohs created a large empire Traded with lands along eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea Nubians, then others invaded Old Middle New Government Decline Achievements

Some Famous Egyptian Pharaohs Thutmose III 1504-1450 B. C. E. Ramses II 1279-1212 B. C. E. Tutankhamon 1336-1327 B. C. E.

Scenes of Ancient Egyptian Daily Life

Women in Egyptian Society Status of Women Relatively high status for that time in history Could buy and sell property Could seek divorce (although rare) Property inherited through female line Role of wife & mother important Girls did not attend school A woman’s status increased when she had children Sometimes women considered property, but were treated kindly Queen might rule with pharaoh If pharaoh had more than one wife, the first wife was most important Her son would be the next pharaoh

An Egyptian Woman’s “Must-Haves” Perfume Whigs Mirror

Ancient Egyptian Housing Middle Class Homes Peasant Homes

Education Original purpose of schools was to train priests Subjects taught Reading & writing Math Religious ceremonies & rituals Eventually temple schools provided more general education Usually schools attended only by the wealthy Girls did not attend school Taught domestic skills at home Students took notes on scraps of pottery - Papyrus was expensive & only used by advanced students Strict discipline

Egyptian Math & Draftsmenship What number is this? 1 10 100 1000 10,000 100,000 1,000,000

Papyrus  Paper Papyrus Plant Hieratic Scroll Piece

Champollion & the Rosetta Stone 1822- French scholar Jean Chapollion cracked the code of hieroglyphics because he could read Greek

Hieroglyphics “Alphabet” 24 “letters” + 700 phonetic symbols

Egyptian Gods & Goddesses: “The Sacred ‘Trinity’” Osiris Isis Horus

The Circle of Life Osiris God of the underworld Judges the dead Rise & fall of the Nile believed to be the death & rebirth of Osiris Set God of chaos (desert) who killed Osiris Believed to cause failed harvest Isis Wife of Osiris Brought Osiris back to life Nile floods and brings renewe d life

Religion and Government About 2,000 gods in the Egyptian pantheon All powerful kings were believed to be human incarnations of gods Only the king could express the ultimate truth and justice, or ma’at

Preparations for the Underworld Priests protected your KA, or soul-spirit ANUBIS weighs the dead person’s heart against a feather.

Preparation for the Afterlife

Journey to the Underworld A boat for the journey is provided for a dead pharaoh in his tomb. The dead travel on the “Solar Bark.”

The Final Judgement Anubis Horus Osiris

Shabtis: The Pharaoh’s Servants in the Afterlife

“ Bent” Pyramid of King Sneferu

Plan of the Great Pyramid of Khufu

Archaeologist, Howard Carter (1922)

Entrance to King “Tut’s” Tomb

King Tutankhamon’s Death Mask 1336-1327 B. C. E.

The Valley of the Queens Temple of Queen Hatshepsut 1473-1458 B. C. E.

Ankhenaton: First Monotheist? 1353-1335 B. C. E.

The Ankh – The “Cross” of Life

Queen Nefertiti (Wife of Ankhenaton)

Abu Simbel: Monument to Ramses II 1279-1213 B. C. E.

Routes of the “Sea Peoples” The end of the Bronze Age!

Comparison of Mesopotamia and Egypt Mesopotamia Egypt Agriculture +“Land between the rivers” (Tigris and Euphrates forms Fertile Crescent +Artificial irrigation +”Gift of the Nile” +Artificial irrigation Specialization +Pottery, textiles, woodworking, leather, brick making, stonecutting, masonry +Pottery, textiles, woodworking, leather production, stonecutting, masonry Cities -Numerous, densely populated city-states (Ur and Babylon) -Fewer cities with high centralization (Memphis and Thebes) Social Hierarchy -Noble class -Patriarchal +Slaves -Absolute authority of the pharaoh made a noble class unnecessary (had bureaucrats instead) -Patriarchal, but the presence of Queen Hatsheput may indicate greater opportunities for women +Slaves

Comparison of Mesopotamia and Egypt (cont.) Mesopotamia Egypt Religion and Education -Polytheism -afterlife was bad -Polytheism, but brief period of monotheism under Akhentan -Afterlife and judgment - could be good or bad (mummification) New Technologies -Superior in metallurgy -Papyrus, shipbuilding, pyramids Economic exchange -Trade by land and water -Trade principally by water along the Nile -Trade more important because Egypt lacked natural resources beside the Nile Art and Writing -Cuneiform -Hieroglyphs (more pictorial than cuneiform)

Chapter 1 Overview Ancient Egypt

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Chapter 1 Overview Ancient Egypt