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EGYPT
Ancient Civilizations
EGYPT
 How is Egypt divided?
 The biggest struggles
were over water.
 Why would water
control and usage lead
to such conflict?
 Mesopotamia
experienced more
change than Egypt.
Why?
GEOGRAPHY
 More security and peace
 Isolated
 Sea and cataracts (large waterfalls)
 Desert
 Natural resources to sustain itself
THE PHARAOH
 Ruled by a pharaoh
 Term means “great
house” or “palace”
 No codified set of laws
 nomarchs = Egyptian
governors
RELIGION DOMINATED EGYPTIAN LIFE
 Polytheistic
 740 gods in Egypt;
“blended” or combined
gods
 Egyptian gods took
various forms
 Animals, humans, nature
forms (sun, moon, etc.)
 Pharaoh: gods’
spokesman – or deity
himself
EGYPTIAN ERAS
OLD KINGDOM
OLD KINGDOM
 Royal power
unchallenged
 Pharaoh ruled
through family lines
 Pharaoh appointed
leaders
 Pharaoh considered a
god
THE PYRAMIDS
EGYPTIAN PYRAMIDS
Tombs for pharaohs
 Took over 100,000 people
over 20 years to build
A POSITIVE VIEW OF THE AFTERLIFE?
Archaeologists believe the ancient Egyptians had positive beliefs about the afterlife.
What is it about the pyramids that leads to this conclusion?
MUMMIFICATION
EGYPTIANS BELIEVED THE DEAD NEEDED THEIR BODIES IN THE NEXT LIFE.
THEY PRESERVED BODIES THROUGH MUMMIFICATION.
THE PROCESS TOOK ABOUT 70 DAYS.
THE BRAIN WAS HOOKED AND THEN PULLED OUT THROUGH THE NOSE.
OTHER ORGANS WERE STORED IN CANOPIC JARS.
THE HEART WAS LEFT IN THE BODY SO IT COULD BE WEIGHED IN THE NEXT LIFE.
INSIDE THE PYRAMID
INNER WALLS OF THE PYRAMIDS COVERED WITH PICTURES ABOUT PHARAOH BURIED THERE
HIEROGLYPHS “SACRED CARVINGS” – TERM COINED BY GREEKS
OVAL-SHAPED DESIGNS: CARTOUCHES REFER TO PHARAOH OR ROYAL FAMILY
IMHOTEP
DESIGNED THE FIRST PYRAMID
 Priest
 Served Pharaoh Djoser
 Egypt’s most famous architect
 Designed the stepped pyramid
THE STEPPED PYRAMID
The first pyramid – designed by Imhotep
THE GREAT PYRAMID
PHARAOH KHUFU (CHEOPS)
WORLD’S OLDEST STRUCTURE,
BUILT DURING OLD KINGDOM
2,300,000 STONE BLOCKS (EACH 2 ½ TONS!)
KHAFRE
PYRAMIDS AT GIZA
BUILT THE PYRAMIDS AT GIZA
THE SPHINX
KHAFRE ALSO BUILT THE SPHINX, WHICH IS PART LION - PART HUMAN.
THE GREEKS NAMED THIS CREATURE THE “SPHINX.”
MENES
MENES
 Founded first Egyptian dynasty
 Unified Upper and Lower Egypt
 Founded Memphis; became his
capital
 Reigned 62 years
 Killed by a hippopotamus
MENES’ UNIFIED CROWN
Created new crown
when he ascended to
the throne
How did this crown
represent a “unified”
Egypt?
How would this help
Menes to rule his
people?
HATSHEPSUT
HATSHEPSUT
 Female pharaoh
 Ruled for approximately 22 years
 Co-regent with Thutmose III
 Wore a false beard
HATSHEPSUT’S ACHIEVEMENTS
 Extended Egyptian trade
 Sent delegates to Punt
 Sailors returned with myrrh
and frankincense trees
 Led successful military
campaigns
HATSHEPSUT THE BUILDER
COMMISSIONED 100S OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS
LATER PHARAOHS CLAIMED PROJECTS AS THEIRS
THE TEMPLE OF KARNAK
AMENHOTEP IV
AMENHOTEP IV
 Opposed priests who worshipped
Amon-Re
 Monotheistic
Worshipped Aton (sun’s physical
disk)
 Changed name to Akhnaton (“It
pleases Aton”)
 Moved capital from Thebes to
Akhaton
AMENHOTEP IV:
AN INTOLERANT RULER
Amenhohtep IV worshipped Aton.
The people worshipped him.
How would this arrangement serve
his purpose as a ruler?
NEFERTITI
QUEEN NEFERTITI
 Wife of Amenhotep I
(Akhnaton)
 One of the world’s most
beautiful women
 Worshipped Aton; people
worshipped her and husband
KING TUT
TUTENKHAMEN
 Replaced Akhnaton’s successor
 “The boy king”
 Married daughter of Akhnaton
and Nefertiti
 Restored old religion – erased
memory of Akhnaton
 Moved capital back to Thebes
KING TUT
THIS MODEL, MADE FROM TUTENKHAMEN’S
MUMMY, SHOWS WHAT HE MAY HAVE
LOOKED LIKE IN REAL LIFE.
TREASURES FROM KING TUT’S TOMB
RAMSES II
RAMSES II:
THE PHARAOH OF THE BIBLE?
 Believed to be Pharaoh
referred to in Exodus
 Lived during the New
Kingdom
ANOTHER GREAT BUILDER
RAMESSEUM ABU SIMBEL
EGYPTIAN ERAS
MIDDLE KINGDOM
THE MIDDLE KINGDOM
Upper and Lower Egypt
reunited
Capital moved from
Thebes back to
Memphis
MIDDLE KINGDOM: A NEW KIND OF PHARAOH
FUNERARY MASK
 More directly concerned
with his people
 Unlike earlier pharaohs
(absolute, distant, god-king)
 Art shows change in
pharaoh’s attitude
 More careworn, brooding
EGYPTIAN ERAS
NEW KINGDOM
NEW KINGDOM
LION TEMPLE IN SUDAN
 Foreign expansion
 Temples built in Sudan
(1,300 miles away)
 Egypt’s economic,
political power at its
height
 Luxury, cosmopolitanism in
royal court
NEW KINGDOM: FAME & WONDER
63 TOMBS IN VALLEY OF THE KINGS
 Reign of famous pharaohs:
 Hatshepsut
 Amenhotep IV
 Tutankhamen
 Ramses I and II
 Many pyramids built
 Valley of the Kings
NEW KINGDOM: HYKSOS INVADE EGYPT
 Name means “chief of
foreign lands”
 Ruthless invaders from
the East
 Conquered Nile Delta
 Probably Amorites
NEW KINGDOM: WAR AND DEVASTATION
 Hyksos brought new
weapons and military
techniques
 Egyptians more
militaristic after contact
with Hyksos
 Egyptians probably
drove out Hyksos during
Moses’ time