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Ancient Civilization
Egypt
Egyptian Empire About 1450 B.C.
Civilization: Nile River
–Located in Africa
–Flows North
–The Nile cycle• Flood
• plant
• harvest
Specialized Workers
• Artisans specialized in various jobs, such as:
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Bricklayers
Blacksmiths
Mummifiers
Doctors
- Potters
- Architects
Job Specialization
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Created great architecture and art
monumental architecture
pyramids, ziggurats, big cities
huge temples and associated structures
to fill the needs of a god-oriented state
under the control of the priestly class
Complex Institutions Political
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Theocracy
–system in which the ruler is a
divine figure.
- Power was passed from one
dynasty to another and land
remained united.
Menes
• - united the two regions. He is believed to
have been the
–1st pharaoh of Egypt
– start the 1st national
government
–1st Egyptian Dynasty.
3 different Kingdoms (old, middle
and new)
• Old Kingdom 2700- 2200 BCE
• Old Kingdom- 3rd dynasty- pharaohs
(Egyptian rulers) were believed to be gods.
– Viziers- chief ministers
• Viziers also collected taxes, farming, etc.
– During this time the pyramids
(tombs
for eternity) were built. They believed in
life after death.
**Sphinx and
pyramids
Middle Kingdom 2050- 1800 BCE
• Middle Kingdomcorruption and rebellions,
but still was able to dig
canals for irrigation
New Kingdom1550-1100
BCE
 New Kingdom- regained
power and created a larger
empire.
King Tutankhamen
• 18 year old ruler
found in 1922, he was
a minor ruler. What
made him so famous
was that his tomb
was found completely
intact.
• Tomb found
completely intact
http://ambassadors.net/archives/images/King_Tut_fa
Complex Institutions: Religion
• Polytheistic - believed divine forces
ruled this world and the afterlife.
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Amon-Re- chief god, sun god
Osiris- god of the underworld and the Nile (controlled annual floods)
Isis- goddess taught women skills
Akhenation- tried to sweep away all gods except Aton, he failed. Due to
others being afraid to abandon their gods.
• Egyptians believed that gods
promised eternal life after death.
Book of the Dead
• Test- souls had to pass a test in order to
win eternal life.
–Book of the Dead- contains, spells,
charms for dead to use in the afterlife.
It was placed in the tombs.
Valley of the Kings
• pharaohs were buried here
Advanced Cities
Memphis
• Thebes
• Planned and usually walled cities
• Centers of worship and trade
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Advanced Technology
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Irrigation, levees – control of the Nile
Mummification-preservation of the dead
Pulleys
Levers
Architecture
Calendar
Numbers – geometry
Medicine
Record Keeping
• Papyrus- paper
like material, use
reed pens and ink
– Paper was not invented until
AD 100 in China
Hieroglyphics
• Scribes- kept records on all going- on
• Hieroglyphics- pictograms
that depicted objects
Rosetta Stone:
The stone was found
written in 3
languages:
Hieroglyphics, simple
hieroglyphics, and
ancient Greek. The
Greek could be
translated and allowed
us to translate the
hieroglyphics.