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The Ancient Egyptian
Pharaohs
Introduction
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In 1922, archaeologists discovered the tomb of a pharaoh named King
Tutankhaten, or King Tut
Inside his burial chamber they found three coffins
The smallest coffin was made of solid gold and contained King Tut’s
mummy
He was wearing a gold mask, jewelry and good luck charms
Other rooms in the tomb contained statues, weapons and even a chariot
The treasures in his tomb taught historians many things about Egyptian life
Other pharaohs have also left behind many artifacts such as fabulous riches
and artwork
Many pharaohs built great monuments to celebrate their accomplishments
We will take a tour of some of these monuments from the different time
periods of Egyptian history
There are three periods of Egyptian history
– Old Kingdom
– Middle Kingdom
– New Kingdom
The Old Kingdom
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The Old Kingdom lasted from about 2700
to 2200 B.C.E.
During this time pharaohs set up a strong
central government
They also built great pyramids as tombs
for themselves
Some historians call it the Age of the
Pyramids
The Middle Kingdom
• The Middle Kingdom lasted from about
2000 B.C.E to 1800 B.C.E.
• It is often referred to as the Period of
Reunification
• The Middle Kingdom followed a period of
chaos and disunity in Egypt
• During this era Egyptians had many
achievements in literature, art and
architecture
The New Kingdom
• The New Kingdom is called Egypt’s
Golden Age
• It existed from about 1600 to 1100 B.C.E.
• During this time Pharaohs expanded trade
and built gigantic monuments
Khufu the Pyramid Builder
• Khufu ruled from about 2551 to 2528 B.C.E.
during the Old Kingdom
• He is best known as a pyramid builder
• Although not much is known some story tellers
say he was a cruel, harsh ruler
• He kept strict control over the food supply and
controlled governors who carried out his work
• Khufu wanted the Pharaoh to be Egypt’s
supreme ruler and so he declared himself a god
Khufu and Giza
• The Old Kingdom Pharaohs had huge pyramids built for
themselves and their families
• Khufu was responsible for building the Great Pyramid of
Giza
• It is one of the wonders of the ancient world
• It was made of more than 2 million stone blocks that fit
together perfectly
• Inside, tunnels led to several burial sites
• The king’s chamber had 6 roofs to hold the weight of the
stone blocks above it
• The pyramid took more than 20 years to build
• Khufu organized and fed thousands of workers to
complete the project
Pharaoh Senusret
• Pharaoh Senusret ruled from 1971 to 1926
B.C.E.
• He was a strong leader who ruled a unified
Egypt
• Art, literature and architecture flourished during
his reign
• Craftsmen thrived under his rule
• The pharaoh controlled mines loaded with gold,
copper, and gems such as purple amethyst
• Craftsmen made beautiful pieces of jewelry from
these materials
Senusret I and Literature
• Some of the greatest works of literature
were also created during Senusret’s rule
• “The Story of Sinuhe” was one of the most
famous
“The Story of Sinuhe”
This story tells of a young official named
Sinuhe who overhears a plot to kill the
Pharaoh. Fearing for his own life Sinuhe
flees Egypt. He thrives in his new land but
gets homesick. When a new Pharaoh
calls him home, he returns joyfully.
Senusret I continued
• Another great accomplishment of Senusret’s
reign was religious architecture
• He built and improved many temples shrines
and religious monuments
• His finest achievements was the White Chapel
• It was made of a white hard stone. Some
historians believed it was once covered in a thin
layer of gold.
• Beautiful artwork decorated the chapel’s pillars
• A later Pharaoh took the chapel a part to use
pieces in his own monument.
Pharaoh Hatshepsut: Promoter of
Egyptian Trade
• She ruled from 1473 to 1458 B.C.E.
• She was the first female Pharaoh
• One of her greatest accomplishments was
gaining power of Egypt. At first she had to
share it with her male relatives but later
was given full control
• During her reign trade along the Nile and
in the Middle East grew
Pharaoh Hatshepsut
• Hatshepsut strengthened her powers by
assigning loyal advisors
• She demanded the same treatment as
male rulers and sometimes even dressed
as a male
• Sometimes she even wore a fake beard
like the previous male Pharoahs
Pharaoh Hatshepsut and Trade
• Her biggest trade expedition was to the
African kingdom of Punt, at the southern
end of the Red Sea.
• Five ships with over 200 men sailed there
to take gifts and to trade goods in the
kingdom
Pharaoh Hatshepsut and
Monuments
• Hatshepsut left behind a great temple at
Dayr-al-Bahri
• The main part was built into a cliff above
the Nile
• At the entrance there were 2 tall
monuments called obelisks
• The entrance had 200 sphinx statues
• The sphinx is a mythical creature with the
body of a lion and the head of a human
Pharaoh Ramses II:
Military Leader and Master Builder
• Ramses II ruled from 1290 to 1224 B.C.E.
• He ruled during the New Kingdom
• He was called Ramses the Great and is
one of the best known Pharaohs
• He is best known for his military leadership
and the monuments he built
Pharaoh Ramses II
• Ramses II had over 100 wives and more than
100 children
• He had hundreds of statues of himself in Egypt.
Some of the statues were over 60 feet high
• He was a fearless soldier from a young age
• He fought along side his father in numerous
battles and became a captain in the army by age
10
Pharaoh Ramses II
• Ramses fought the Hittites who were
trying to capture territory in Northern Egypt
• Ramses was also a peace keeper
• He eventually convinced the Hittites to
sign the first known peace-treaty that
lasted until 1190 B.C.E.
Pharaoh Ramses II
• One of Ramses most impressive projects was
the temple complex at Abu Simbel
• The main temple was carved into a cliff on the
banks of Nile
• The smaller temple honored his favorite wife,
Nefertari
• Four giant seated statues of Ramses framed the
entrance to the main temple
• The figures were sculpted right out of the cliff
wall and are the finest example of Egyptian art
Pharaoh Ramses II : Temple
• Inside the temple was also remarkable
• Visitors passes through 3 large rooms called halls, to
reach the main room
• The room’s alters contained more statues of Ramses
and other gods
• The temple was built so that twice a year the sun lined
up perfectly with the entrance
• At those times the sun shines in and lights up the statues
• Ramses built more statues and temples than any other
Pharaoh in history
• When he died he was buried in the tomb he constructed
for himself
• He is one of the best preserved mummies ever found