Download Ancient Egypt: Crucible of Civilization

From yesterday
1. What factors helped Egyptians feel stable
and secure? (pg 34)
2. How did the Nile affect life in ancient
Egypt?
3. What were the 2 types of writing in ancient
Egypt? What activities was each used for?
From yesterday
1. Regular floods of the Nile river, prosperity,
isolation from invaders, religion
2. The Nile flooded regularly creating fertile
soil on both sides of the river. It also made
travel easier.
3. Hieroglyphics – Religion and Tombs
1. Hieratic script – business transactions,
record keeping, and general needs
Egypt’s Old Kingdom
World History I
Ch. 2
pp. 47-49
*Old Kingdom (3100-2200 BCE)
*King Menes (Narmer)
unified Upper and Lower
Egypt; created the world’s
first national government.
Menes wore two crowns to
symbolize the unification of
Upper and Lower Egypt.
*Menes established the first
dynasty in Egypt and was
the first Pharaoh.
*Pharaoh meant “palace”
or “great house” in the old
Egyptian language!
The Narmer Tablet (3100 BCE)
Narmer Tablet
31st century BC, containing some of the
earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions ever found
unification of Upper and Lower Egypt
under the king Narmer.
king is depicted with the White crown of Upper
(southern) Egypt
king wearing the Red Crown of Lower
(northern) Egypt
*Old Kingdom
Accomplishments
Era of Greatest Cultural
Advance
*Pyramids were built
*Hieroglyphics—(writing)
*Mummification(embalming)
Complex Social Order
Sophisticated Economy
Unique Civilization
developed due to isolation
*Egyptian Civilization lasted
for 3,000 years!
*Life in Old Kingdom Egypt
*Capital was the city
of Memphis
*Focal point was on
the fertile Nile Delta
region
*Cities made out of
Mud-brick
Nile River was center
of life for
transportation,
irrigation; *Nile was
life itself!
*Egyptian Cultural Life
*Pharaoh was both King and God;
unification of political and religious
authority!
Egyptian Religion:
*Re- Sun God; giver of life; rules by day
*Osiris- God of the dead, lord of the
Underworld; rules by night
Anubis- jackal-headed god of embalming
Ma’at- balance; rightness in the universe;
universal harmony! Often portrayed as a
goddess balancing a feather on her head!
*Horus- the falcon-headed god; pharaoh is
Horus when he is alive; becomes Osiris when
he dies; endless cycle of rebirth!
*Political Structure of Egypt
Pharaoh was supreme political
ruler; absolute king and god!
*Vizier- Pharaoh had an executive
assistant called the Vizier who acted
on the Pharaoh’s instructions; 2nd
most powerful man in Egypt!
*Dynasty System—a dynasty is a
ruling family; Egypt had 30 over
3,000 years!
Nomes- Egypt was broken up into
provinces called nomes; there
were 42 Nomes ruled by
Nomarchs who answered to
Pharaoh!
*Daily Life in Ancient Egypt
Family Life
People valued family life and children
Mother was responsible for raising children
*Men and Women enjoyed relative equality in
Egypt
Children took care of elderly parents; social
security!
Marriage
Girls married around the age of 12; Boys a few
years older
Marriages were arranged
Prenuptial agreements protecting the Woman’s
property were common
Divorce was an option, but rare; a statement
annuling the marriage in front of witnesses was
sufficient!
Daily Life in Egypt Continued . .
Food and Cooking
Cooking was done in clay ovens.
Food was baked, boiled, stewed,
fried, grilled or roasted
Beer was consumed
Bread was a staple commodity
Ate barley, wheat, lentils, beans,
vegetables, fish; little red meat, no
dairy products
Cosmetics
Men and women wore make-up
Men and women wore perfumed oil
No Soap! Cleansing cream made of
oil, lime and perfume was used!
More Daily Life in Egypt . . .
Hair
Hair worn short by both sexes
Men and women used wigs
Jewelry
Rings and amulets were common, jeweled or
beaded collars, necklaces and pendants were worn
by both sexes
Clothing
Made of linen; men wore loose fitting skirt like a
kilt
Sandals were made of papyrus
Housing
Homes made of mud brick
Most people had some furniture
Most people slept on the roof in the summer!
Daily Life in Ancient Egypt . . .
Education
Young boys learned a craft or trade from
their fathers or from apprenticeship to
an artisan
Wealthy boys went to a formal school to
learn religion, reading, writing and
arithmetic
Girls were taught primarily domestic
skills by their mothers
Entertainment
Parties, banquets--wealthy
Board games (Hounds and Jackals)
Music—stringed instruments, singing
Festivals—religious, harvest, seasonal
*Death in Ancient Egypt:
Funerary Rites for Pharaoh
*Mummification
*Occurs naturally in Egypt’s hot,
dry climate
Millions of natural mummies exist
in Egypt!
*Egyptian Mummification
*70 day process
*Goal: Preservation of the body as
a home for the Ka (spirit, or body
double)
Achieved through complete drying
of the body
Avg. weight of mummy: 35 pounds!
Mummy Song
From Yesterday
1. What were the 3 main parts of Egyptian
Bureaucracy?
2. How was Egyptian society like a pyramid
(pg 41)
3. Which gods were the most important to the
Egyptians?
4. What is a dynasty? Why can Egypt be
considered a dynasty?
1. Pharaoh – in charge of Govt and religion, Vizier
– executive assitant, 2nd most powerful person,
carried out orders of Pharaoh, Nomarchs – in
charge of nomes, answered directly to Pharaoh
2. The top of society was small, only one person the
pharaoh, like the tip of a pyramid. The base of
society was large, with most of the people in the
lower classes like the base of pyramid
3. *Re- Sun God; giver of life; rules by day
1.
2.
*Osiris- God of the dead, lord of the Underworld; rules by night
*Horus- the falcon-headed god; pharaoh is Horus when he is
alive; becomes Osiris when he dies; endless cycle of rebirth!
4. a dynasty is a ruling family; Egypt had 30 over 3,000
years!
*Process of Mummification
*Removal of Internal Organs
Removal is accomplished thorough
incision in the left hand side of the
body
*Desiccation of the Corpse
*Drying out of corpse is achieved using
Natron Salt; process takes 30 days
Skin and Body Form
Sand, animal fat, sawdust are packed
under the skin; makeup is applied to
make the corpse look life-like!
*Mummification continued
*Final Stages
Body is swathed in resin soaked linen
bandages (20 layers).
Head is fitted with a death mask resembling
the deceased.
Body is placed in a ceremonial coffin and
often placed in nesting coffins.
Goal: eternal life for the Ka of the dead!
Ramses II
Pyramids: Tombs for the Pharaoh
Built to house the body of the dead Pharaoh as a home for the
Ka, or body double, of the king. Built by conscripted, paid labor
during the Inundation using a ramp system over a period of
years. The Pyramids are the enduring symbol of Ancient Egypt!
The Pyramids at Giza:
A Necropolis (City of the Dead)
The shape of the pyramid represented the sun’s rays which the dead king
would use as a ramp to the heavens. It also represented the primordial mound
from which, according to Egyptian mythology, the god Re created the world.
On a practical level, the pyramids represented the Pharaoh’s power and
wealth. They were built between 2700-2500 BC.
The Pyramids: One of the 7
Wonders of the Ancient World
The Khufu Pyramid
“Great Pyramid” or “Pyramid of Cheops”
Dimensions:
Base—sides are 755 feet long
Height—455 feet tall
Contains 2.3 million blocks of stone with an average weight of 2 tons
Khufu pyramid weighs six million tons
There is enough stone in the Great Pyramid to build a wall 10 feet high
and 1 foot thick around the entire country of France.
Construction:
Most massive building ever constructed in the world
Four corners of the pyramid line up with the true directions of the
compass!
100,000 laborers worked for 20 years to build it!
Achieved over 4,500 years ago with a simple ramp system
Plan of the Great Pyramid
Khafre Pyramid
The Pyramid of Khafre
Original Height: 143.5 m
(470.79 ft)
Current Height: 136.4 m
(447.50 ft)
Length of Side: 215.25
(706.19 ft)
Angle: 5310’
Estimated Volume:
1,659,200 cu m
Only Pyramid with
limestone casing stones still
visible (on top)
The Sphinx: Guardian of Giza
The Sphinx has the
body of a Lion, head of
Khafre and a temple
240 feet long
65 feet high
Mostly carved from a
single stone!
Sphinx guarded the
Giza pyramid complex
Made of limestone and
sandstone; heavily
eroded and in danger
of falling apart!
Pyramid Construction
No machines,
animal power or
complex tools were
used.
Built without the
wheel, iron tools or
the help of aliens!
Constructed
completely by
human labor using
ramps and gangs
of men!
Cross-Cultural Ties between
Ancient Egypt and the USA
Pyramid and symbol of the god Re
are on the dollar bill; represents
masonic tradition (pyramid) and the
principle of light and vision (Re)
Washington Monument: is in the
shape of an obelisk, the Egyptian solar
symbol
Symbol of Justice: blindfolded lady
symbolizing the search for truth.
Easter- Egyptians celebrated the death
and resurrection of Osiris 5,000 years
ago; Christian Easter mirrors this
celebration in every detail!
Cross-Cultural Ties Continued
Medical Prescriptions: the origin of the Rx
abbreviation that doctors use came from the eye
symbol of Horus!
The Cinderella Story- mirrors an ancient
Egyptian story called the Girl with the Red Rose
Slippers; a falcon (Horus) scoops up the girls
slipper, drops it off near the prince; the prince
declares the owner will be his bride. Sounds
familiar?
Architecture- fluted, Doric style columns are
used on Federal buildings in Washington DC;
were used in Egypt thousands of years before
the Greeks used them!
The Civilization of Ancient
Egypt
Highly organized civilization
centered around the Nile River valley
Agriculture based with a theocratic
style government featuring an
absolute monarch
Featured a system of writing, cities,
organized labor, monuments,
sophisticated government and
complex religion