Transcript Slide 1

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The Egyptian Empire About
1450 B.C.
Ancient Egypt
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app. 10,000 sq. miles
the same as Sumer and Akkad
radically different in shape
a ribbon of fertile land 600 miles long
– half a dozen miles wide for most of its length
• compared to 165 miles in Mesopotamia
Egypt, con’t
• more arid and more fertile than
Mesopotamia
• divided into two parts
• the Delta (Lower Egypt) and the Upper
Nile
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Geography of the Ancient Nile
Valley
“Egypt is wholly the gift of the Nile.” – Herodotus
People settled and established farming villages along the Nile.
Egyptians depended on annual floods to soak the land and deposit a
layer of silt, or rich soil.
Egyptians had to cooperate to control the Nile, building dikes,
reservoirs, and irrigation ditches.
Rulers used the Nile to link and unite Upper and Lower Egypt.
The Nile served as a trade route connecting Egypt to Africa, the
Middle East, and the Mediterranean world.
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Three Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt
OLD
KINGDOM
Pharaohs organized a
strong central state,
were absolute rulers,
and were considered
gods.
Egyptians built
pyramids at Giza.
Power struggles, crop
failures, and cost of
pyramids contributed
to the collapse of the
Old Kingdom.
MIDDLE
KINGDOM
NEW
KINGDOM
Powerful pharaohs
Large drainage project
created arable farmland. created a large empire
that reached the
Euphrates River.
Traders had contacts
with Middle East and
Hatshepsut
Crete.
encouraged trade.
Corruption and
Ramses II expanded
rebellions were
Egyptian rule to Syria.
common.
Hyksos invaded and
occupied the delta
region.
Egyptian power
declined.
Historian have divided Egyptian history into three major periods: the Old
Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom and the New Kingdom. These were long
periods of stability characterized by strong monarchical authority,
competent bureaucracy, freedom from invasion, much construction of
pyramids and temples, and considerable intellectual and cultural
development and activity. These major periods were punctuated by ages
of political chaos known as the Intermediate Periods, which were
characterized by weak political structures and rivalry for leadership,
invasions, a decline in building activity, and a restructuring of society.
Early Dynastic Period
c.a. 3100-2700 B.C.
The Old Kingdom
c.a. 2700-2200 B.C.
First Intermediate Period
c.a. 2200-2050 B.C.
The Middle Kingdom
c.a. 2050-1652 B.C.
Second Intermediate Period
c.a. 1652-1567 B.C.
The New Kingdom
c.a. 1567-1085 B.C.
Post-empire
c.a. 1985-30 B.C.
Two Kingdoms, 3,500 B.C.
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two kingdoms
upper and lower Egypt
same culture
same language
same gods
Unification
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tradition is the only source
Date? around 3000 (3200?) B.C., or so....
Menes (Namar) the first pharaoh
reigned for 62 years
killed by a hippopotamus (ah, well...)
A mural of Narmer or Menes
conquering Lower Egypt (c.a. 3100
B.C.)
Culture and Civilization
• Egyptian culture distinctive and peculiar
• already set prior to unification
• continued to evolve through the Old
Kingdom period
• by the Pyramid Age (3-4th dynasties, ca.
2700 B.C.)
• it was set and would not change for 2,000
years
The first pyramid built was the
graded one of Zoser, which
exists even today, in Sakkarah,
the necropolis of Menphis. Built
in the year 2650 BC by the
architect Imhotep, initially it was
supposed to be a mastaba but
later floors were added until they
reached six. It is the oldest
monumental work in stone
known to man that exists. Its
exterior walls, of white
limestone, measures 545 metres
from North to South and 227
metres from East to West. The
wall has 14 doors, 13 of them
false. Its height is 66 metres. In
its interior, lies the sepulchral
chamber of the Pharaoh Sneferu
with cladding of pink granite and
sealed with a block of stone of
three tons weight.
The Pyramid of Meydum
The Great Pyramids of Giza
The Bent
Pyramid
The new pharaoh established their
capital at the strategic site of
Memphis, just south of the delta, and
over the next several centuries
consolidated their rule. Probably no
other dynasty in history has been so
successful in creating an effective yet
apparently timeless form of
government. For thousands of years
Egyptian pharaohs were able to
convey to their subjects a sense of
permanence and eternity while
constantly adjusting the system to
meet new needs. (Nagle, 23)
For administrative purposes, Egypt was divided up
into provinces, or nomes. A governor, or nomarch,
was at the head of each nome and was responsible
to the pharaoh. These governors tended to amass
large holding of land and power within their nomes,
creating a potential rivalry with the pharaohs. Of
special importance to the administration of the state
was a vast bureaucracy of scribes who kept records
of everything. Armed with the knowledge of writing
and reading, they were highly regarded and
considered themselves a superior class of men.
Their high standard of living reflected their exalted
status.
Seated Scribe, from
Saqqara. c.a. 2400 BC.
The End of the Old Kingdom
Relief showing men, women, and
children suffering from the
effects of severe famine
Professor Fekri Hassan examining
ancient hieroglyphs which tell of
appalling suffering. A third of the
population died and the most ordered
of empires was brought to chaos.
PHARAOHS CROWNED WITH
SHEPHERD’S CROOK AND FLAIL
The Middle Kingdom (2050-1653 B.C.) was
characterized by a new concern of the pharaohs for
the people. In the Old Kingdom, the pharaoh had
been viewed as an inaccessible god-king. Now he
was portrayed as the shepherd of his people.
The Hyksos were the source of the new horse-drawn war-chariots
introduced to Egypt in the second half of the Hyksos rule. This invention,
never seen before in Egypt, was instrumental in the continued power of the
Hyksos in this region. The Hyksos utilized superior bronze weapons,
chariots, and composite bows to help them take control of Egypt, and by
about 1720 BC they had grown strong enough, at the expense of the Middle
Kingdom kings, to gain control of Avaris in the north eastern Delta. This
site eventually became the capital of the Hyksos kings, yet within 50 years
they had also managed to take control of the important Egyptian city of
Memphis.
Starting in 1567 B.C., the pharaoh Ahmose I eventually managed to defeat and
expel the Hyksos from Egypt, reuniting Egypt and establishing the New
Kingdom (c. 1567-1085 B.C.). The New Kingdom was characterized by a new
militaristic and imperialistic path. A more professional army was developed.
Ahmose and his army driving out the Hyksos.
Amenhotep IV (c. 13621347 B.C.) introduced the
worship of Aton, god of the
sun disk, as the chief god
and pursued his worship
with enthusiasm.
Changing his own name to
Akhenaten (“It is well with
Aton”), the pharaoh closed
the temples of other gods
and especially endeavored
to lessen the power of
Amon-Re and his
priesthood at Thebes.
Invasion of the “Sea Peoples” around 1200 B.C.
The days of Egyptian empire were ended, and the New Kingdom expired with the end of the
twentieth dynasty in 1085 B.C. For the next thousand years, despite periodic revivals of strength,
Egypt was dominated by Libyans, Nubians, Persians, and Macedonians.
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Egypt and Nubia
For centuries, Egypt traded or fought with
Nubia.
During the New Kingdom, Egypt conquered
Nubia.
• Nubians served in Egyptian armies and
influenced Egyptian culture.
• Egyptian art from this period shows
Nubian soldiers, musicians, or prisoners.
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Egypt and Nubia
When Egypt declined, Nubia conquered
Egypt.
• Nubians did not see themselves as
conquerors. They respected Egyptian
traditions.
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Section 1 Assessment
Why were the Nile floods so important to the Egyptians?
a) They created a much needed supply of drinking
water.
b) The Egyptians held religious ceremonies when the
floods came.
c) The floodwaters deposited silt, which made the land
rich for farming.
d) The floodwaters kept away potential invaders.
Which of the following was an achievement of the Middle
Kingdom?
a) The Egyptians drained land for farming.
b) The Egyptians built the pyramids.
c) Ramses II expanded Egyptian rule to Syria.
d) The Egyptian empire reached the Euphrates.
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Egyptian Religious Beliefs
• Belief that many gods and goddesses
ruled the world and the afterlife.
• Amon-Re was the sun god.
• Osiris was the god of the underworld
and of the Nile.
• The pharaoh was believed to be a god
as well as a monarch.
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Egyptian Religious Beliefs
• Belief in eternal life after death.
• Relied on the Book of the Dead to help
them through the afterworld.
• Practiced mummification, the
preservation of the body for use in the
next life.
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Ancient Egypt: A Center of Learning &
Culture
Advances in Learning
Developed a form of picture writing
called hieroglyphics.
Doctors diagnosed and cured
illnesses, performed surgery, and
developed medicines still used
today.
Developed 12-month calendar on
which modern calendar is based.
Astronomers mapped constellations
and charted movement of the
planets.
Developed practical geometry.
Skilled in design and engineering.
Advances in the Arts
Statues, paintings, and writings tell
us about ancient Egyptian values
and attitudes.
Developed painting style that
remained unchanged for thousands
of years.
Wrote hymns and prayers to the
gods, proverbs, love poems, stories
of victory in battle, and folk tales.
Built pyramids and other great
buildings, such as temple of
Ramses II.
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Class System in Ancient Egypt
PHARAOH
Earthly leader; considered a god
HIGH PRIESTS AND PRIESTESSES
Served gods and goddesses
NOBLES
Fought pharaoh’s wars
MERCHANTS, SCRIBES, AND ARTISANS
Made furniture, jewelry, and fabrics for
pharaohs and nobles, and provided for other needs
PEASANT FARMERS AND SLAVES
Worked in the fields and served the pharaoh
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Section 2 Assessment
Who was the Egyptian god of the underworld?
a) Amon-Re
b) Osiris
c) Isis
d) Nefertiti
What is one reason the Egyptians developed
practical geometry?
a) to help in the mummification process
b) to create large sculptures
c) to please the gods
d) to survey the land