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Ancient Egypt
The giant pyramids, temples, and tombs of ancient Egypt tell an excitin
g story about a nation that rose to power more than 5,000 years ago. This mighty civilization crumb
led before conquering armies after 2,500 years of triumph and glory. The dry air and drifting deser
t sands have preserved many records of ancient Egypt until modern times.
The ancient E
gyptians lived colorful, active, and eventful lives. Many were creative artists, skilled craftsmen,
and adventurous explorers. Bold Egyptian warriors won many battles, and their rulers governed wide
areas of the known world. The ancient Egyptians loved nature and had a lively sense of humor. The
y were among the first people to try to find answers to questions concerning man, nature, and God.
They also considered the relationship of man to society, but regarded other people as savages. They
captured and enslaved thousands of men and women from other lands.
The Greek historia
n Herodotus called Egypt the gift of the Nile, because floodwaters of this great river deposited ric
h, black soil on the land year after year. Egyptian farmers planted their crops in this fertile soi
l. Sandy plateaus and towering cliffs bordered the river valley. Beyond these waters stretched the
barren wastes of the Sahara desert. On the edge of the desert, the Egyptians built giant pyramids
as burial places for their pharaohs. They carved the Great Sphinx out of solid rock as a guardian o
f King CheopsÕ Great Pyramid at Giza. The ancient Egyptians called their country Kemet, which means
black (after the land). The Greeks called the country Aigyptos, from the name Ha-ka-ptah, the main
temple of the Egyptian capital at Memphis.
Many modern beliefs and ideals, as well as
much of manÕs knowledge, had their origin in Egypt. The ancient Egyptians developed the worldÕs fi
rst national government. Their religion was one of the first to emphasize a life after death. They
produced an expressive art and literature. The Egyptians introduced stone architecture and made th
e first convenient writing material, papyrus. They developed a 365-day year and set up the basic me
thods of geometry and surgery.
The boundaries of ancient Egypt changed many times dur
ing its history. When the Kingdom of Egypt was formed in about 3100 B.C., it occupied only the fert
ile valley of the Nile River in northeastern Africa. The kingdom extended south about 680 miles fro
m the Mediterranean Sea to the First Cataract (rapids) of the river. It averaged only 12 miles in w
idth from the Nile delta to the First Cataract. Egypt covered about 8,000 square miles and was a li
ttle smaller than the state of Massachusetts.
In later years, ancient Egypt usually co
ntrolled neighboring areas around the Nile Valley, including oases (fertile green patches), in the d
esert to the west. It usually governed part of the Nile Valley south of the First Cataract, the Red
Sea coast, and the western part of the Sinai Peninsula in Asia. At the height of its power, around
1450 B.C., Egypt claimed an empire that reached as far south as the Fourth Cataract in Nubia, a par
t of ancient Ethiopia, and as far northeast as the Euphrates River in western Asia.
A
ncient Egypt was a lot less crowded than Modern Egypt. Historians believe that from one to eight mi
llion people lived in ancient Egypt. In Roman times, estimates set the figure at about six million.
Most Egyptians lived near the Nile, with an average of 750 people per square mile. Today, the val
ley averages almost 2,400 people per square mile, although Egypt as a whole averages only 85.
The black-haired, dark-skinned ancient Egyptians were short and slender. The belong to the
Mediterranean race of the Caucasoid (white) stock. As time went on, the Egyptians mixed with people
from Asia, Negroes from other parts of Africa, and people from lands around the Mediterranean Sea.
The Egyptians were divided into four social classes. They were from most important: t
he royalty and nobles; artisans, craftsmen, and merchants; workers; and slaves. The professional ar
my gradually became almost a separate class. Egypt had no fixed caste system. A person of the poor
est class could rise to the highest offices in the land.
The ancient Egyptians spoke
a mixed language. It included words from the Semitic language group of southwestern Asia and the H
amitic group of languages of northeastern Africa. The language died out of everyday use about a tho
usand years ago but the Coptic (Christian) Church still uses it.
No one knows just how
the spoken language of ancient Egypt sounded. Written Egyptian developed from picture writing into
an elaborate system of symbols called hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics consisted of 24 alphabetic char
acters for consonants and semi-consonants. These characters were used in combination with many phon
ograms (sound-signs) and idiograms (sense-signs). Vowels were not written out. Hieroglyphic writin
g was carved or painted. Its ornamental character was particularly suitable for inscriptions on mon
uments. For everyday purposes, a simplified cursive form of hieroglyphics called hieratic was used.
Hieratic could be rapidly written on light, easy-to-carry materials, such as papyrus and leather.
The Egyptians called their writing the words of the gods. They claimed that on of their gods, Thot
h, had invented it. Modern scholars first learned to read when they translated the writings on the
Rosetta Stone. In Egyptian, the word pharaoh originally meant great house, but in the late 1300's B
.C. it came to mean ruler of Egypt.
Education was seen as a different level of import
ance between classes. Most young boys learned their work from their fathers, or as apprentices in v
arious trades. Boys of royal and wealthy families were trained to become priests or government offi
cials. At an early age, they were placed in the schools for scribes at the capital. Priests contro
lled the schools. They required the students to memorize classic texts, take dictation, and learn t
o use the 700 characters of the Egyptian language. They also taught literature. Schoolboys practic
ed their writing by copying stories and proverbs. Archaeologists have found copybooks that these bo
ys used for practicing their handwriting, although the number of people who could read and write was
apparently quite small.
Religion appeared in every part of life in ancient Egypt. Th
e Egyptians believed that gods and goddesses took part in every human activity from birth to death.
For the Egyptian, the good life depended on obeying the commands of the gods. After someone died,
the gods would judge how well the person had obeyed their directions. The Egyptians believed that t
heir king was a god who could keep the country prosperous by his divine powers.
In the
earliest period, the Egyptians worshipped the forces of nature, such as wind and fire. As towns gr
ew up, each adopted its own special god. In one part of the delta, the people worshipped Horus, the
god of heaven. In another district, the people worshipped Osiris, the god of vegetation, who later
became the god of the dead. Heliopolis, near Cairo, was the center for the worship of the sun god
Re, or Ra. Heliopolis means city of the sun in Greek. About 2500 B.C., priests at Heliopolis devel
oped the worship of Re as the nationÕs first state religion. Other members of ReÕs divine family in
cluded Osiris, and his wife, Isis; Set, the evil brother of Osiris, and his wife Nephthys; Shu, god
of the air; Tefnut, goddess of moisture; Geb, god of earth; and Nut, goddess of the sky.
The people of Thebes worshipped Amon, or Ammon, the god of the air and fertility. When Thebes be
came the political center of the empire, the people worshipped Amon and Re together as Amon-Re.
The Egyptians believed that certain animals might serve individual gods in a special way.
For example, they regarded the ram as acceptable to Amon, and chose on ram to be the temple animal
of that god. Other sacred animals included the baboon, bull, cat, crocodile, and jackal.
The people of ancient Egypt took great care in preparing for life after death. They denied that
death ended the existence of a person who had led a good life. They believed that the next world w
ould be like Egypt in its richest and most enjoyable form. They built stone tombs and filled them w
ith clothing, food, furnishings, and jewelry for use in the next world. They embalmed their dead an
d wrapped the bodies in layers of cloth. Preserved bodies were called mummies.
The Eg
yptians caved inscriptions on the walls of their tombs. They also wrote on the insides of the coffi
ns. They placed papyrus copies of the Book of the Dead in the tombs to protect the spirits of the
dead. The Book of the Dead contained spells and prayers.
The priests conducted the r
ituals and guarded the temples. They acquired much political power. For example, the king did not
make them pay the corv e, a tax in labor that furnished the government with workers. The priests us
ed thousands of people to work in the temples and divine lands.
Egyptian discoveries
in mathematics and other sciences were rudimentary. The Egyptians used a system of counting by tens
, but their system had no zeros. They could multiply and divide whole numbers, and reduce simple fr
actions. They used a series of simple fractions, such as 1/2, 1/5, and 1/10 to build up complex one
s, such as 4/5. The Egyptians could determine areas and calculate the volumes of objects. They wer
e among the first people to survey land. The floodwaters of the Nile washed away the boundaries of
farms every year, and new ones had to be fixed by surveying. The Egyptians measured distances accur
ately with equally spaced knots tied in long ropes. They used a cubit, the length of a manÕs forear
m, as a standard of measurement. They worked out the foundations of geometry and arithmetic.
The Egyptians also pioneered in the field of astronomy. They distinguished between planets
and stars, and devised a 365-day calendar.
In medicine and surgery, the Egyptians reco
gnized the importance of the heart and its relation to other parts of the body. They related the sp
eed of a personÕs heartbeat to his general physical condition. They also know how to sew and dress
wounds.ancient egypt giant pyramids temples tombs ancient egypt tell exciting story about nation tha
t rose power more than years this mighty civilization crumbled before conquering armies after years
triumph glory drifting desert sands have preserved many records ancient egypt until modern times egy
ptians lived colorful active eventful lives many were creative artists skilled craftsmen adventurous
explorers bold egyptian warriors many battles their rulers governed wide areas known world egyptian
s loved nature lively sense humor they were among first people find answers questions concerning nat
ure they also considered relationship society regarded other people savages they captured enslaved t
housands women from other lands greek historian herodotus called gift nile because floodwaters this
great river deposited rich black soil land year after year egyptian farmers planted their crops this
fertile soil sandy plateaus towering cliffs bordered river valley beyond these waters stretched bar
ren wastes sahara desert edge desert egyptians built giant pyramids burial places their pharaohs car
ved great sphinx solid rock guardian king cheops great pyramid giza called country kemet which means
black after land greeks called country aigyptos from name ptah main temple egyptian capital memphis
modern beliefs ideals well much knowledge origin developed world first national government religion
first emphasize life death produced expressive literature introduced stone architecture made conven
ient writing material papyrus developed year basic methods geometry surgery boundaries changed times
during history when kingdom formed about occupied only fertile valley nile river northeastern afric
a kingdom extended south about miles from mediterranean cataract rapids averaged only miles width ni
le delta cataract covered square miles little smaller than state massachusetts later years usually c
ontrolled neighboring areas around valley including oases fertile green patches west usually governe
d part south cataract coast western part sinai peninsula asia height power around claimed empire tha
t reached south fourth nubia part ethiopia northeast euphrates western asia less crowded than modern
historians believe that eight million people lived roman times estimates figure million most lived
near with average square mile today averages almost square mile although whole averages only black h
aired dark skinned were short slender belong mediterranean race caucasoid white stock time went mixe
d with asia negroes other parts africa lands around mediterranean divided into four social classes m
ost important royalty nobles artisans craftsmen merchants workers slaves professional army gradually
became almost separate class fixed caste system person poorest class could rise highest offices lan
d spoke mixed language included words semitic language group southwestern hamitic group languages no
rtheastern africa language died everyday thousand coptic christian church still uses knows just spok
en sounded written developed picture writing into elaborate system symbols hieroglyphics hieroglyphi
cs consisted alphabetic characters consonants semi consonants these characters used combination with
phonograms sound signs idiograms sense signs vowels written hieroglyphic writing carved painted orn
amental character particularly suitable inscriptions monuments everyday purposes simplified cursive
form hieroglyphics hieratic used hieratic could rapidly written light easy carry materials such papy
rus leather words gods claimed gods thoth invented scholars learned read when translated writings ro
setta stone word pharaoh originally meant house late came mean ruler education seen different level
importance between classes most young boys learned work fathers apprentices various trades boys roya
l wealthy families trained become priests government officials early placed schools scribes capital
priests controlled schools required students memorize classic texts take dictation learn characters
also taught literature schoolboys practiced copying stories proverbs archaeologists have found copyb
ooks these boys used practicing handwriting although number could read write apparently quite small
religion appeared every life believed gods goddesses took every human activity birth death good life
depended obeying commands someone died would judge well person obeyed directions believed king keep
country prosperous divine powers earliest period worshipped forces nature such wind fire towns grew
each adopted special delta worshipped horus heaven another district worshipped osiris vegetation la
ter became dead heliopolis near cairo center worship heliopolis means city greek priests heliopolis
worship nation state religion members divine family included osiris wife isis evil brother osiris wi
fe nephthys tefnut goddess moisture earth goddess thebes amon ammon fertility when thebes became pol
itical center empire amon together amon believed certain animals might serve individual special exam
ple regarded acceptable chose temple animal sacred animals included baboon bull crocodile jackal too
k care preparing death denied ended existence person good next world would like richest enjoyable fo
rm built stone tombs filled them clothing food furnishings jewelry next embalmed dead wrapped bodies
layers cloth preserved bodies mummies caved inscriptions walls tombs also wrote insides coffins pla
ced papyrus copies book dead protect spirits book contained spells prayers conducted rituals guarded
temples acquired much political power example king make them corv labor furnished government worker
s thousands work temples divine lands discoveries mathematics sciences rudimentary system counting t
ens zeros multiply divide whole numbers reduce simple fractions series simple fractions such build c
omplex ones determine areas calculate volumes objects among survey floodwaters washed away boundarie
s farms every ones fixed surveying measured distances accurately equally spaced knots tied long rope
s cubit length forearm standard measurement worked foundations geometry arithmetic pioneered field a
stronomy distinguished between planets stars devised calendar medicine surgery recognized importance
heart relation parts body related speed heartbeat general physical condition know dress woundsEssay
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