Download Mesopotamia

Egypt
Characteristics of Civilization
TEKS Objectives
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WH(1) History. The student understands traditional historical points of reference
in word history
– (A) Identify major causes and describe the major effects of the following
events from 8000 BC to 500 BC: the development of agriculture and the
development of the river value civilizations
WH(2) History. The student understands how early civilizations developed from
8000 BC to 500 BC.
– (B) Identify the characteristics of civilizations
– (C) Explain how the major river valley civilizations influenced the development
o the classical civilizations
WH(15) Geography. The student understands the impact of geographic factors on
major events and processes.
– (A) Locate places and regions of historical significance directly related to
major eras and turning points in world history
– Analyze the influece of human physical geographic factors on major events in
world history, including the development of river valley civilizations […]
TEKS Objectives
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WH(17) Economics. The student understands the impact of the Neolithic and
Industrial revolutions and globalization on humanity
– (A) Identify important changes in human life caused by the Neolithic
Revolution and the inudstrial Revolution
– (B) Summarize the role of economics in driving political changes as related to
the Neolithic Revolution and the Industrial Revolution
WH (19) Government. The student understands the characteristiics of major
political systems throughout history.
– (A) Identify the characteristics of monarchies and theocracies as forms of
government in early civilizations
WH (24) Culture. The student understands the roles of women, children, and
families in different historical culture
– (A) Describe the changing roles of women, children, and families during major
eras of world history
TEKS Objectives
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WH (26) Culture. The student understands the relationship between the arts and
the times during which they were created.
– (A) Identify significant examples of art and architecture that demonstrate an
artistic ideal or visual principle from selected cultures
WH (27) Science, technology, and society. The student understands how major
scientific and mathematical discoveries and technological innovations affected
societies prior to 1750
– (A) Identify the origin and diffusion of major ideas in mathematics, science,
and technology that occurred in river valley civilizations, […]
Egyptian Timeline
• Old Kingdom (2700-2150)
– Hieroglyphics and religion
develop in Egypt
– Pyramids built
• Middle Kingdom (2040-1786)
– Extension of Egyptian control
into Nubia
• New Kingdom (1570-1075)
– Militaristic - Hebrews enslaved
– Mummification perfected
Politics
• The pharaoh was the absolute monarch of the
country
• Pharaoh was a God-King
• The pharaoh was the supreme military
commander and head of the government
• Relied on a bureaucracy of officials to manage
his affairs.
Politics
• Ancient Egypt was also a theocracy, controlled
by the clergy.
• The Pharaoh¹s advisors and ministers were
almost always priests, who were considered
the only ones worthy and able to carry out the
god-king¹s commands.
Economics
• The Nile provided excellent
transportation which
facilitated trade.
• Egypt needed to trade
because, beside the Nile, it
had few natural resources
• Much trade between Egypt
and Nubia
Daily Life
• Homes
– Close to the Nile
– Made of mud bricks
– Usually 2-3 stories high to avoid flooding
Daily Life
• Religion
– Ancient Egyptians practiced a polytheistic,
animistic religion.
Daily Life
• Examples of Egyptian Gods
Ra – the sun god.
He was the most
important god of the
ancient Egyptians.
Isis – the protective
goddess. She used
powerful magic to help
people in need.
Daily Life
• Food & Agriculture
– Most common job was farming
– Depended on crops
– Wheat and barley used to make beer and
bread
– Ate beef, pork, mutton, fowl and wild game
meat
– The commoners ate fish as a substitution for
meat
Daily Life
Daily Life
• Family & Gender
– For the ancient Egyptians, the prime purpose of
marriage was to establish a family.
– A suitable age for men to be married is at the age
of 20.
– Egypt’s society was typically male-dominated.
– Upper-class men often became scribes or priests.
– Lower-class man often were farmers, hunters,
potters, or craftsmen.
Daily Life
• Family & Gender
– Women took care of the daily needs of their
family.
– Women were able to own property and
celebrated more rights than women from
Mesopotamia
Daily Life
Social
Classes
Technology
• Mummification: Process of embalming &
drying corpses to prevent them from
decaying.
• Ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife.
They mummified the body so the soul could
return later.
Technology
Technology
• Papyrus
– The raw material came from the plant
Cyperus papyrus which grew along the
banks of the Nile
– Used not only in the production of paper
but also used in the manufacture of boats,
rope and baskets
Daily Life
• Development of Writing
– Papyrus
– Pictographs written on papyrus
– Allowed ideas to be transferred
Technology
• Shipbuilding
– Wooden boats
– Multiple-oars
– Sails
Architecture
• Why build the pyramids?
• Belief in the afterlife
• The need to protect the bodies demanded
good burial tombs
• First were mastabas, then came pyramids
Architecture
Mastabas
Architecture
• The Great Pyramid
– Tomb for Khufu
– --------------------------------------– An almost perfect square (deviation .05%)
– Orientation is exactly North, South, East West
– 2,300,000 blocks, 500ft high
– 20 years to build
– Average block weighs 2.5 tons
• Some weigh 9 tons!
Architecture
Architecture
Architecture
Architecture
Pyramids of Menkaure, Khafre and Khufu
Architecture
The Great Sphinx
• is a large humanheaded lion that
was carved from a
mound of natural
rock.
• It is located in
Giza
Technology
• Ramps and stone-cutting required to build pyramids
Technology
• Medicine
• Egyptian medical practice went largely
unchanged and was highly advanced for
its time
• Created first medical texts (7 medical
books)
• First surgeons in history
• Drugs from plant, mineral and animal
Geography
Geography
The Nile
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Geography
The Nile
Geography
• Egypt- located in North Africa near
Mediterranean sea, Red Sea, near Sinai
peninsula.
• Desert climate
Geography
• The Nile
– Yearly flooding
•Irrigation systems
•Encouraged trade, communication,
political unity