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Today’s Title: Egyptian Religion and Social Order
∆It is said that a pharaoh, named
Pharaoh Khufu, hired 100,000 men to
build the Great Pyramid. The men
worked 3 months a year for 20 years.
If the men had worked all year long,
without stopping, how many years
would it have taken to build the
Great Pyramid??
Mini-presentations:
After learning about the religion in Ancient
Egypt, students will do their own research
of important gods. Students will be in
groups of two, and they will look through
library books to find at least six facts about
a particular god. They will draw the head
of the god, cut it out, and then write the
facts on the back. Students will then
present their findings to the class, in order
to teach everyone about their important
god.
History Standard
6.2.6
Describe the role of Egyptian
trade in the eastern
Mediterranean and Nile
valley.
Today’s Agenda!!
∆Ancient Egyptian Social Structure
∆Ancient Egyptian Religion
∆Group Project and Presentations
∆Independent Activity
∆Homework
Glossary Builder
∆Underworld-the world of the
dead
∆Polytheism-the belief in many
gods
Recap…
∆ Who can remind me of what the social
order in Mesopotamia was like??
– Right!! There were three social classes.
Kings, priests, governors,
wealthy merchants,
large land owners
Farmers, skilled workers,
army men, fishermen,
musicians, scribes
Slaves
We need to
remember this, but
do not confuse this
with the social
structure in Ancient
Egypt!!
Social Structure in Ancient Egypt
∆ Ancient Egyptian social structure was also
shaped like a pyramid.
∆ There were five levels on this pyramid.
∆ Let’s take a look at who was in each one…
∆ The pharaoh was at the top!!
∆ In the level below, there were nobles, priests, and officials.
– They helped the pharaoh govern Egypt.
∆ Scribes were in the middle level. Soldiers were here also. They were
the ones who fought battles for the ruler.
– They kept the records for the government.
∆ Merchants and artisans made up the next level. Painters,
stonecutters, and builders spent their entire lives working on
palaces, temples, and tombs.
– Artisans-skilled workers who practice a trade.
∆ Farmers, servants, and slaves are at the bottom of the social
pyramid.
– Why were farmers at the bottom?? During the growing season,
they raised the food for Egypt. For the rest of the year, they
worked as laborers for the pharaoh’s building projects. They
freely did this because they believed it was a form of religious
devotion. They thought that if they helped the god-king during
his/her life, then they would be rewarded after death.
Social Pyramid
Pharaohs
Nobles,
Priests, and
Officials
Scribes and
Soldiers
Merchants and
Artisans
Farmers, Servants, and
Slaves
Quick Review
∆ How did Egyptians view their rulers??
– They believed that the pharaohs were like gods.
They considered them god-kings, and believed
that when they died, they would join the ranks
of the gods.
∆ How many social levels are in Ancient
Egypt??
– Five.
∆ How was the Nile River important to life in
Egypt??
– It provided Egyptians with rich farmland.
A little more on social structure
∆ Egyptian society was well
ordered and administered
by law-enforcers, courts,
and judges.
∆ All classes paid their taxes
in goods or services,
which were then used to
pay government officials
and the army.
∆ Scribes were the only
members of society who
could possibly rise
through the ranks to
become noblemen.
One last word on social structure
∆ Pharaohs were the wealthiest and most important
people in the country. The least important people
were the slaves, who were also the poorest people.
Everyone else was in between.
∆ There were rules about who could do each job.
Lawbreakers could lose their jobs. They became
slaves, or had to do the hardest, worst paid work.
What was religion like in Egypt??
∆ Like the Sumerians, Egyptians accepted
polytheism. Poly is a Greek word meaning
“many,” and theism is a Greek word
meaning “gods.”
∆ Religion played an important role in the
daily life of the people of Egypt. Their
beliefs affected how people behaved in life.
∆ Egyptians believed that their gods
controlled every aspect of life, from the
flooding of the Nile River to the death of a
child.
Whiteboard Game!
∆ You have one minute to take out a dry
erase marker and get a whiteboard from
the table
∆ Sit in professional posture
∆ Marker caps must be on until you are
ready to write your answer
∆ When I say go…
Question 1
∆ What did Egyptians make from the
minerals and stones they mined?
∆ Tools, weapons, and jewelry
Question 2
∆ What tools did Egyptians use for fishing
and hunting?
∆ Rafts, nets, harpoons, hammers, spears,
boomerangs
Question 3
∆ How did the Egyptians expand their
farmland?
∆ Irrigation canals carried river water to dry
areas
Question 4
∆ What kind of crops did Egyptians grow?
∆ Wheat, vegetables, fruits, flax
Question 5
∆ Why did Egypt develop along the Nile?
∆ The Nile provided fertile soil, water,
transportation, and food
Question 6
∆ How did trade along the Nile come about?
∆ People had more goods than they
needed. They built boats and sailed up
and down the Nile to trade with each
other
Question 7
∆ What were the religious beliefs that the
Egyptians had?
∆ The Egyptians believed in more than one
god called polytheism. They believed in a
happy afterlife. They created mummies
Question 8
∆ Can you identify three ways hieroglyphics
were used?
∆ As pictures for words, as symbols for ideas,
and as signs for sounds
Question 9
∆ Why might it be difficult to interpret
hieroglyphics?
∆ The symbols could represent different
things
Egyptian belief in gods
∆ Egyptians believed their gods could be
kind or dangerous.
∆ To keep the gods happy, Egyptians built
temples for the gods and offered them
prayers and gifts.
∆ Many villages had their own special gods.
The Egyptian Gods
∆ Egyptians worshiped
hundreds of gods, many of
whom were associated with
animals.
∆ Statues or other works of art
often show a god with the
body of a human and the
head of an animal.
∆ Egyptians believed that gods
shared the qualities of the
animals, such as their
strength, speed or bad
temper.
∆ Let’s take a look at a couple
of gods…
Amon-Re or Ra
∆ The most important god
was Amon-Re, or Ra, the
sun god.
∆ Egyptians believed that
Ra made a daily journey
across the sky.
∆ Each night, he died in the
west and the land grew
dark.
∆ Each morning, he was
reborn in the east as the
sun rose.
Osiris, Isis, and Horus
∆ Other popular Egyptian gods were Osiris, Isis, and
Horus.
∆ Osiris was the god of the underworld.
– According to legend, Osiris was killed and chopped into
pieces by a god name Seth.
∆ Isis, the wife of Osiris, was the mother goddess of
Egypt.
– She moved heaven and earth to help her husband.
– Isis represented love, caring, and protection of life and
death.
∆ Horus was the son of Isis and Osiris.
– Legends tell of great battles between Horus and Seth.
When Horus defeated Seth, he united the two lands of
Egypt; therefore, every pharaoh was thought to be Horus
in human form.
Isis
Horus
Geb
Pharaoah: Hatshepsut
What were some other gods??
∆ YOU are going to find out!!
∆ You are going to be in groups. Each group will
represent one Egyptian god.
∆ What you will do:
– You will design and cut out your Egyptian god’s
face.
– On the back, you will write at least six important
facts about your god.
– After you do the project, your group will present to
the class. YOU are teaching us about your god, so
make sure your information is clear and correct!!
Independent Practice
∆ You are going to receive a handout.
∆ Please read the front and back, and then
answer the two questions in your
notebook.
∆ You will have 15 minutes to do this. We
will go over the answers afterward.
Homework!!
∆Study your notes for a quiz on
Wednesday!!