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Transcript
Chapter 2 The Land: Its Geography and Importance o The Nile River The Nile River is the second longest river at 4,160 miles The river runs from south to north eventually branching into a fan shaped delta and dumping into the Mediterranean Sea The ancient Egyptians built their civilization along a 750 mile stretch The flow from south to north made movings goods up land possible In 400 b.c. the greek historian Herodotus described the annual cycle of months long flooding Egyptian farmers worked around the floods Digging short canals to carry river water to their fields o Other Natural advantages Very fertile soil Contains deposits of granite, sandstone, and limestone Egyptians used these minerals as building materials The desert provided a natural protection for invaders The isthmus forms a land bridge btwn Africa and Asia Providing a route for trade and for the exchange of ideas btwn the Egyptians and their neighbors to the east o Early Steps Toward Civilization Hieroglyphics- form of ancient writing developed by nile river valley people by about 3000 B.C. 600 signs, symbols to represent words and sounds At first they carved them into stones or other hard materials Papyrus-kind of paper made by Egyptians from stem of the papyrus plant Rosetta Stone- black basalt stone found in 1799 that bears an inscription in hieroglyphics, demotic characters, and Greek; gave the first clue deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics o The Egyptian Kingdoms Menes- king of Upper Egypt Dynasty- family of rulers whose right is hereditary Pharaoh- Great House Egyptian rulers title Led the government, served as judges, high priests, and generals of the armies From 300 b.c. some 30 dynasties ruled Egypt Section Two The Achievements of Ancient Egypt o Architecture and arts Egyptians built pyramids as tombs for the pharaohs About 80 pyramids still stand today The great pyramid Tower above the sands of Gize Built in about 2600 B.C. Covers 480 ft high and was constructed with more than 2 million blocks of stone each weighing about 5,000 pounds Buildings were decorated with paintings of everyday life o Science, math, and medicine Egyptians realized that a bright star appeared above the horizon rising of this star and the next is 365 days The calendar had 12 moths of 30 days each the remaining 5 days were used for holidays and feasting The Egyptians used a number system based on 10 They used geometry to built pyramids and rebuild fields after floods Made important discoveries in medicine Used knowledge to treat illnesses and preserve bodies after death Treatments included magic spells and herbs and medicines Education and Religion Scribes- or clerks o The gods Villages had their own local god or gods These gods often had an animal symbol that people considered sacred Sacred animals included cat, the bull, the crocodile, and the scarab beetle The most important god was Amon Osiris who judged people after death o The Afterlife At first they believed that only pharaohs had an afterlife or life after the persons heart which would tell whether the person had lied murdered or been to proud was weighed on a great scale against a sacred feather if the heart balanced the heart had told the truth if it did not the heart was thrown to a horrible monster called the Eater of the Death Mummification-organs were removed from the body which was then treated with chemicals this process preserved the bodies Society and Economy o Farming Farmland in Egypt was divided into large estates Peasants did most of the farming using crude hoes or wooden plows Wheat and barely were the chief grain crops Flax was grown and then spun and woven into linen Cotton was grown for clothes Peasants could keep part of the crop the rest went to the pharaoh who legally owned all the land o Trade Was tightly controlled by the government Egyptians traded the extra food with other people Caravans- groups of people traveling together for safety over long distances Among the 1st people to built seagoing ships Egyptians sailed the Mediterranean and the red seas and traveled the African coast