Download Lesson 1 Gifts of the Nile: The Union of Two Lands

The Union of Two Lands
Palette of Narmer
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt had
two parts:
Upper Egypt
Lower Egypt
Upper Egypt
• Upper Egypt is
located in the south
part of Egypt
• Upper Egypt
stretched for over 500
miles from the first
cataract north to the
beginning of the Nile
Delta
Lower Egypt
• Lower Egypt is located in
the north of Egypt
• Lower Egypt was only
100 miles long but it was
much wider the Upper
Egypt
• Remember, the Nile River
flows from the center of
Africa north to the
Mediterranean Sea.
Red and White Crowns
• In 3300 B.C. Upper and Lower Egypt has
their own kings.
Upper Egypt
• The king of Upper Egypt wore a
tall, white pear-shaped crown.
• Art historians call this the bowling
pin crown
• The White Crown symbolized the
pharaoh's control over Upper
Egypt, and was worn on occasions
involving Upper Egypt only.
Lower Egypt
• The king of Lower Egypt
wore a short, boxy, red
crown with a tall spike at
the back and a curlicue at
the front
• The Red Crown
symbolized the pharaoh's
control over Lower Egypt,
and was worn on
occasions involving
Lower Egypt only.
Unification of Upper and Lower Egypt
• What we know about prehistoric Egypt is a
mixture of history and legend.
• One famous legend tell about Menes, a king of
Upper Egypt defeating the king of Lower Egypt
around 3100 B.C.
• This unified the two lands, Upper and Lower
Egypt became one unified empire.
• King Menes named himself the King of both
Upper and Lower Egypt.
A New Crown
• The legend tells how Menes designed a new
crown to celebrate this victory.
• The double crown stood for the union of the two
lands.
The First Dynasty
• Menes and his family formed the first
Egyptian dynasty.
dynasty- is a series of rulers from the same
family
• After Menes died, his son became king
and later his grandson.
• During its history, over 30 different
dynasties ruled ancient Egypt.
Memphis
• Menes chose the city of Memphis as his
capital city.
Menes= Narmer
• Historians believe the legend of Menes may
have been a real king.
• This real king was named Narmer.
• Historians believe it was not Narmer who first
wore the red and white crown, but a later king
did.
Palette of Narmer
• The Palette has a shieldshape and is decorated
on both sides
• It shows Narmer
defeating his enemies.
• The palette symbolizes
the event of the
unification of Upper and
Lower Egypt.
• The palette was used to
grind eye make-up, which
both men and women
wore
Palette of Narmer
• The composition of the Narmer Palette, the manner that
different figures and objects are arranged in the picture,
uses baselines and registers.
• Baselines are horizontal lines at set sections across the
entire area that is decorated.
• The baselines create a frame for the action in each
register.
• Baselines and registers give each figure a place to
stand.
• The sequence of actions in a clear and in logical order.
• The palette is a flat piece of shale or mudstone with a
circular depression, which was used to grind eye makeup, which both men and women wore.
Palette of Narmer
• The palette shows
King Narmer
conquering the ruler
of Lower Egypt.
• This piece of art gives
us information about
a historic event.
• The palette
commerates a very
important event.
Create your own palette
• You will design your own palette
• You will create a palette showing an
important that has occurred in modern
history or in your own life.
• You may use drawings or photographs to
show your event
• Use the three registers of the palette to
express different elements of your event.