Download Kasha Korwek

Kasha Korwek
Mr. B
World U
9/7/10
Proof of Civilization
Egypt did have a civilization. These people knew what to do. Either from when
the Nile would rise and they would use it for irrigation or building great pyramids at
Giza. These Egyptians knew what to do, they were a civilization. Although their
civilization isn’t like what it is today, they still did the same things we do today, just
differently.
The first form of writing or communicating in Egypt was writing in the form of
Hieroglyphics, which are pictograms that depict objects (ideogram). They were used to
keep important records. Hieroglyphics would be cut into stone, wood, or other materials.
Egyptians used more than two thousand characters. Hieroglyphics is read from left to
right and their written in columns.
Egyptians had many jobs to choose from. Many although, were farmers or
“peasant” farmers. They would normally work on the land of nobles or higher people.
Instead of being paid in money, like today’s time, they were paid in food, clothes, and
shelters. Many of the farmers were the slaves of the person they were working for.
Another job opportunity for Egyptians were artisans. Usually artisans were special
because they were able to make and create. When artisans came into view, it gave Egypt
new opportunities because of all the trade. They usually made fine jewelry, furniture, and
fabrics. Also Scribes were very important people or workers. They were important to the
society because they were able to read and write and not many people knew how to do
that. They could work for higher people like Pharaohs and read and write for them. There
were schools for children to learn to read and write, they were scribal schools. Just some
other jobs in Egypt include blacksmiths, soldiers, priests, and fisherman.
Rulers in the old kingdom were Pharaohs. They were political and religious
leaders of Egypt. They were known as “god.” Laws back then were based on right and
wrong. If you committed a crime, serious punishment could be given depending on the
crime you broke. A punishment Egyptians used to use was 100 strokes of a cane. And
noxious punishments included: beheading, drowning, and even burning alive. Their
government was called a theocracy. In the theocracy was the clergy who controlled the
laws. The only people who could take a command from the pharaoh and tell the people
were the pharaoh’s advisors and misters. A law in Egypt just like today is paying taxes
but taxes were paid in goods and labor.
There were many examples of Advance technology in ancient Egypt. One
example was mummification. Ancient Egyptians found out that the buried dead would
decay so they came up with mummification. Mummification is when the body is
embalmed and then wrapped with strips of linen. They thought if they did this, the body’s
soul would keep alive. Embalmers were to work in a clean place while the process was
happening and they had to wear the mask of the god, Anubis, who is the god of surgeons.
The entire mummification process took about 70 days. An important example of advance
technology is the creation of clothing for people. Clothing was made from flax which
produced linen. Linen was the most common material for clothing. Cotton and wool were
sometimes used. Of course, animal skins were used but they were worn by priests and
pharaohs. There were some shops that made clothing by noblemen but it was common
that the woman made the clothing. Clothing was a difficult and hardworking process to
do. Another example of advance technology in ancient Egypt was their calendar. It’s the
calendar, which we, even now, use. The calendar is based on the phases of the moon.
There is 360 days in the calendar for a year. Also, 3 seasons, each including 4 months and
each month includes 30 days. The months followed the cycles of the Nile. Technically
there was 365 days in the calendar because in the beginning of every New Year, they had
5 additional days to have big feasts and celebrations.
There were many cities in ancient Egypt that concluded that ancient Egypt was a
civilization. One of the cities is Heliopolis. Heliopolis was the called the “city of sun”
and they worshipped the sun god. In the time of the Old Kingdom, it was the center of
astronomy. They city was more of a religious city than a political centre. Memphis,
another ancient city, was created by Menes, to protect the city from the Nile. They used
dikes to stop the water from flooding in. It was a cosmopolitan community which is the
idea that everyone belongs to a single community. Memphis is one of the largest and
most important cities. Even now, Historians are still not sure why there isn’t much left of
the city.