Ancient Egyptians

By: Robin, Bridgette, Arya, and Carter

Introduction

• Birthplace of 1 of the world’s 1st civilizations • Arouse 5,000 years ago • Ruled from 3,000 B.C.- 30 A.D.

• Advanced in arithmetic, had a 365 day calendar, and established the 1st national government

Geography

• Developed along the Nile River Valley • Divided into upper and lower Egypt – Upper: South – Lower: North • Area around Nile & current Israel

Food, clothing, and shelter

• Food – Bread major part of diet – Beer was a popular beverage – Other foods • Vegetables, fruit, cheese, milk, butter, and duck and goose meat – Food of the rich • Other meat (beef, gazelle, and antelope) – Ate with fingers

• Medicine – only cure is to keep clean and stay away from illnesses – Herbs • opium, cannabis, myrrh, frankincense, fennel, cassia, senna, thyme, henna, juniper, aloe, linseed and castor oil • Garlic found in tombs and burial sites • Clothing – Jewelry • Necklaces, bracelets, and rings • Cosmetics – red lip powder – dyed hair

– painted fingernail – outlined their eyes – Men wore just as much make up as women • Hair styling – Matted and tangled hair – Royalty were bald and wore wigs and large crowns • Clothing – Wore light clothes due to heat – Cloth made from plant fibers – Royalty- silk and feathers

• Houses – Built out of bricks and dried mud – City- narrow buildings w/ 3+ floors – Poor Egyptian • Small huts • 1-3 rooms – Typical Egyptian • 2-3 story house • Several rooms – Wealthy Egyptian • Up to 70 rooms • Large estates w/ pools, orchards, gardens, etc.

– Furniture • Stools, chairs, oil lamps, beds, and chests

Family life

• Marriage – Civil marriage – Had marriage contracts – Main point was to get money and property • Family Life – Head of family- father • If father died oldest son took over – Women had many rights • could own and inherit property, buy and sell goods, and make a will. • Wife could get divorced

Leisure and Travel

• Transportation – boats or ships • handy because of location along the Nile made boats that were shaped like a canoe – for the shallower parts of the Nile • Leisure time – Played mostly board games and sports – Wealthy- bidding and betting games

Education and Writing

• Writing – Hieroglyphics • form of writing where picture symbols are used instead of words • are usually used to refer to Ancient Egyptians.

• borrowed the idea from Mesopotamia • Egyptian hieroglyphics generally included about 800 symbols.

– Papyrus • A type of paper • 1 st use around 4000 B.C.

• very important • helped transform Egyptian society

Education and Writing continued

• Schooling – Not many boys/girls went to school – Mostly rich people to become scribes • if they didn ’ t want to become scribes – be an apprentice and learn from people that did their future job

Potters and Farming

• Potters – Hired by royal family – Pottery • Important product • Used to cook, store, and serve food • Farming – Workers • Got crops as pay

– Crops • Main- wheat and barely • Beans, onions, figs, lettuce, dates, grapes, melons, and cucumbers – Animals • Raised- beef cattle, goats, ducks, sheep, geese, donkeys, and even bees

The Arts

• Music – God of Music- Thoth – Sang religious songs – Invented Ney (flute) and Oudh (like a guitar) • Art – Told stories – Architectural features

• Festivals – Large feasts – Celebrated gods

Social classes and slavery

• Social Classes – Different families, different expectations – Ruling elite at top – Farm laborers at bottom • Slavery – Slaves • Worked all day and all night • Got little or no pay • Built pyramids and worked on farms

Trade

Weapons and Hunting

• Weapons – didn ’ t have very many – Made out of metal and wood – threw sticks at birds in hopes that it hit them right – threw spears and shot arrows – nets used for capturing fish and some types of birds

Mummies and Cats

• Mummies – Preserved dead – Believed in an “afterlife” • Cats – Known as Miw – Kept down Vermis Bast

Pyramids and the Great Sphinx

• Pyramids – Built from 2650- 1800 B.C. by slaves – Tombs for pharaohs – Built entirely from stone – Giza Pyramids • Pyramid of the pharaoh Khufu- largest of 3 Great Pyramids • Took 20+ years to build • Built out of limestone

• The Sphinx – Has lion’s head and man’s body – Appears to be guarding pyramid of Khufu

The Rosetta Stone and Re

• Rosetta Stone – Tablet w/ hieroglyphics – Key to translating language of ancient Egypt • Re – All powerful god

Eye of Horus and the Valley of the Kings

• Valley of Kings – Rocky gorge that was a cemetery for kings – Ramesses, Menkeptah, Seti, Tuthnosis, etc.

• Eye of Horus – Represented with 6 parts corresponding to the six senses.

– senses are in the order of their importance.