Egyptian Civilization

World StudiesOctober 21

Bell Ringer

• Write for 5 minutes what you know about Egypt. Don’t be afraid to put something that you aren’t sure is correct.

The Nile River

• The Nile begins in the heart of Africa and flows north 4000 miles.

• It is the longest river in the world.• It empties into the Mediterranean Sea, but

before doing so, it splits into two major branches.

• This split creates a delta, called Lower Egypt, and the land south, Upper Egypt.

• The important cities developed at the tip of the delta.

The “Miracle” of the Nile

• Yearly flooding was referred to by Egyptians as the “miracle”.

• The river rose in the summer, due to heavy rains in central Africa.

• These floods, reaching their heights in autumn, left a deposit of mud on both sides of the river.

• This mud land, called “Black Land” was fertile. The “Red Land” was the name given to the desert outside the fertile land.

The Nile Valley• Farmers grew a surplus of food, which made

Egypt prosper.• Transportation was made easy by winds from

the north pushing sail boats south and the current running north.

• Natural barriers protected Egypt: desert to the west and east, Red Sea to the East, the cataracts, or rapids, on the southern part of the Nile, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north.

With the Nile floods…

• came a sense of comfort to Egyptians.• The floods gave them confidence that

everything was going the same as always.• This helped create a degree of continuity over

thousands of years.

Growth of Religion

• Even though they didn’t have a word for religion, they believed it represented an inseparable part of the entire world order (why and how things happen).

• They were polytheistic.• Many gods were associated with heavenly bodies and

natural forces.• Two groups of gods had special importance to Egyptian

well-being: sun gods and land gods (including river gods) were responsible for the fertile land.

The sun god

• The sun was the source of life.• The sun god took on different forms and

names.• Egyptian rulers took the title “Son of Re” – Re

is the name given to the sun god.• Rulers were seen as an earthly form of Re.

Land gods

• River and land gods included Osiris and Isis.Ancient Egyptian Myth:– Osiris, who brought civilization to Egypt, had a evil

twin brother Seth. – Seth cut Osiris up into pieces and threw him into

the river.– Osiris’ wife, Isis, found the pieces and, with help of

other gods, put Osiris back together.– Osiris became a symbol of resurrection, or rebirth.

Meaning of Osiris

• By identifying with Osiris, Egyptians hoped to gain new life after death.

• Dead were placed in tombs (pyramids for kings) and through ritual, would become Osiris and be reborn.

• The river flooding and Isis bringing Osiris back to life symbolize new life for Egypt.

Egyptian Kingdoms

• Egypt’s history begins around 3100 b.c. when King Menes united Upper and Lower Egypt into a single Kingdom.

• This created the first royal dynasty (ruling family).

• The river connected and united Upper and Lower Egypt physically, the king united them politically.

Three Kingdoms of EgyptOld Kingdom• 2700-2200 b.c.• Prosperity and splendor• Ruled by powerful pharaoh• Pharaoh had absolute power but had help ruling – in

the beginning, their family helped• Eventually, a government bureaucracy

(administration with officials) was created to help.• Egypt was divided into 42 provinces, each with a

governor who reported to the vizier (steward of the whole land) and pharaoh

Achievements of the Old Kingdom

• Pyramids were built as part of a larger complex of buildings, dedicated to the dead.

• Large pyramids were for the pharaoh’s burial, smaller pyramids for his family, and other buildings for officials.

• Tombs were stocked with supplies (things needed in the rebirth), and even though the physical body was gone, the spiritual body could be surrounded by earthly comforts.

Mummification• To preserve the physical body after death, Egyptians

practiced mummification.• Mummification is slowly drying a dead body so it doesn’t rot.• Primarily, mummification was used by wealthy families, and

carried out by priest.• Internal organs were removed and placed in jars in the tomb.• The brain was extracted through the nose.• The body was covered with salt so the body’s water could be

absorbed.• The body was filled with spices and wrapped in layers of

linen soaked in resin.• Lastly, a lifelike mask was placed on the head and shoulders

of the mummy and sealed in the tomb.

Great Pyramids

• The great pyramids were tombs for the mummified bodies of pharaohs.

• The largest and most magnificent of all was built under King Khufu at Giza.

• 13 acres, 756 feet wide and 481 feet high• Believed to take 100,000 Egyptians 20 years to build• Speculation still surrounds the Great Pyramids and how

they were built.• The Great Pyramids still represent the power of the

Egyptian pharaohs and is a constant reminder of the glory, power, and wealth of Egyptian civilization

The Great Sphinx

• Guarding the Great Pyramid at Giza is 240 foot long, 66 foot high statue of a lion body with a human head.

• This Great Sphinx is believed to be the likeness of King Khufu’s son, Khafre.

• Many believe the sphinx guards the sacred burial sites.

The Middle Kingdom

• With the collapse of the Old Kingdom, about 2180 b.c., brought about a 150 year period of instability and disorder.

• A new dynasty began with the Middle Kingdom, 2055 b.c. to 1650 b.c.

• This new kingdom was considered a golden age of stability.

Middle Kingdom

• Egypt begins a period of expansion.• Nubia was conquered.• Fortresses were built to protect Egypt.• Armies were sent to Palestine and Syria.• Traders were sent to Kush, Syria,

Mesopotamia, and Crete.

Change from Old to Middle Kingdom

• In the Old Kingdom, pharaohs were seen more as god-kings, removed from the people.

• In the Middle Kingdom, the pharaohs were seen as shepherds of the people, working for the public good.

• They were expected to provide public works and provide for the public welfare.

• Examples: drained swampland to open up 1000s of acres of farmland. Dug a canal from the Nile River to the Red Sea aided trade and transportation.

After the Middle Kingdom

• The Middle Kingdom came to an end around 1650 b.c. with the invasion of Egypt by the Hyksos (western Asia).

• The Hyksos used horse drawn chariots to overwhelm the Egyptian armies and their donkey carts.

• The Hyksos ruled Egypt for almost 100 years.• Egyptians learned how to use bronze to make

tools and weapons and better military techniques from the Hyksos.

The New Kingdom

• The newly learned military techniques and weapons allowed the Egyptians to finally defeat the Hyksos.

• The pharaohs that led this successful ouster started a new dynasty that lasted from 1550 b.c. to 1070 b.c.

• Under this new dynasty, Egypt became the most powerful empire in the region.

The New Kingdom

• Massive wealth boosted the new pharaohs.• This wealth was displayed by building new

temples.• Hatshepsut was one of the first women to

become pharaoh.• Amenhotep IV brought problems to the New

Kingdom when he introduced Aten, god of the sun disk, as the only god.

• This change went against the thousands of years of polytheistic thought.

King Tut

• After pharaoh Amenhotep IV (he changed his name to Akhenaten to be closer to the god Aten) died, the boy-pharaoh takes over.

• King Tutankhamen, or King Tut, restores the old gods removed by his predecessor.

Loss of Egyptian Empire• After Amenhotep IV made his changes, Egypt’s

empire was weakened.• Ramses II, 1279 b.c to 1213 b.c. led an

offensive attack to re-strengthen Egypt.• They regained control of Palestine but

couldn’t expand on their empire.• The “sea peoples” drove them back to their

original borders and the New Kingdom collapsed in 1070 b.c.

The end of the Egyptian Empire

• Egyptians are dominated by various groups: Libyans, Nubians, Persians, and finally Macedonians, who were led by Alexander the Great.

• Ptolemy XII (Cleopatra’s father) dies and leaves the throne to his two children, Cleopatra and Ptolemy XIII.

• Egypt faced economic troubles, famine, and floods and the sibling rulers begin to fight and plot to remove each other.

Cleopatra• Cleopatra flees to Syria and forms an army

to defeat her brother.• Around the same time, Julius Caesar, the

Emperor of the Roman Empire, was in Egypt to catch his rival Pompey.

• In 48 b.c., Cleopatra meets Julius Caesar and they fall in love.

• With Caesar's support, Ptolomy XIII flees Egypt and eventually drowns in the Nile.

Cleopatra and the Roman Empire• Cleopatra takes sole possession of the throne

to Egypt.• 47 b.c. Cleopatra bores Caesar a son, even

though he never acknowledged the boy as his.• Cleopatra follows Caesar to Rome but returns

to Egypt after his assassination in 44 b.c.• In 41 b.c. Marc Antony, the Emperor of Rome,

summons Cleopatra to Rome to answer questions about Caesar and the allegiance with Egypt.

Cleopatra and Marc Antony

• Cleopatra makes a grand arrival and Marc Antony is captivated by her beauty and personality.

• They fall in love and have three children.• Marc Antony, in a fight with Octavian, sees

financial and military support in Cleopatra.• Marc Antony adopts Cleopatra’s son with

Caesar and announces him as the real heir to the Roman Empire.

Cleopatra and Marc Antony fight Octavian

• Octavian, still after Marc Antony, ignites a firestorm by telling the Roman people that Marc Antony turned over Roman possessions to Cleopatra and Egypt.

• In 31 b.c., Cleopatra and Marc Antony combine armies to fight Octavian.

• They have a costly defeat and return to Egypt.

The End of the Egyptian Empire

• Marc Antony returns to battle with his army and is told, falsely, Cleopatra has died back in Egypt.

• So distraught, he commits suicide by stabbing himself.

• When Cleopatra hears of his fate, she commits suicide by allowing an Egyptian cobra (Asp) to bite her.

• The last pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire, Cleopatra dies August 12, 30 b.c. and the Egyptian Empire is no more, instead becoming a Roman province.

Life in Ancient Egypt

• Society was highly structured.• Class was important in determining individual

rights.• There was a large poor class or peasants and a

small upper class (pharaohs and nobles).

Egyptian Class StructurePharaohs, nobles, priest, and government

officials were in the upper classIn the middle class were merchants, artisans,

scribes, and tax collectors

The largest group was the lower class. This peasant group worked the land, served in the

military, were forced to build the pyramids and other buildings

Daily Life

• Egyptians had positive attitudes towards their life on earth.

• They married young, girls at 12 and boys at 14.• They had monogamy(one person)

relationships unless the first wife couldn’t produce a child.

Daily Life for women

• Husbands were the masters in the house but wives were very well respected.

• Wives were in charge of the household and educating the children.

• Women were allowed to own property and have an inheritance, even in marriage.

• Most public offices were for men only but some women operated businesses.

• Peasant women worked long hours in the fields.• Four queens became pharaohs.

Marriage

• Parents arranged their children’s marriages.• The main purpose of marriage was to produce

children, especially sons.• Sons could carry on the family’s name.• Daughters weren’t ignored.• An unhappy couple could get a divorce and

the wife would be compensated.

Egyptian accomplishments

• The best known form of writing was hieroglyphics, even though most people didn’t use it.

• Hieroglyphics, meaning “priest carvings” or “sacred writings”, was a complex system of writing using pictures and other abstract forms.

• Mostly, hieroglyphics were carved into the tombs or written on the temple walls.

Writing

• A version of hieroglyphics that came about was called hieratic script.

• This more common system of writing was a more common form of writing.

• Records and literature would be written on paper made from papyrus reeds, which grew along the Nile River.

• Wealthy boys went to school to learn to read and write.• Girls stayed home and learned housekeeping skills from

their mother.

Arts and Science• The architectural achievements are evident from the

pyramids and temples.• Artist used a particular formula when depicting a

person (head and legs facing the side while the upper body is straight).

• Mathematics helped them build the massive pyramids.• They could calculate area and volume and use

geometry to survey flooded land.• They developed an accurate 365 day calendar by using

the moon and stars.• Medical knowledge was evident with the embalming

techniques. Also, other civilizations acquired medical skills from the Egyptians.

Homework

• Create a three column chart that addressed the three kingdoms of Egypt.

• Date of kingdom• Important pharaohs• Major events that strengthened the kingdom• Major events that weakened the kingdom.• Important details from the kingdom