Transcript Ancient Egypt

Nile River Valley Notes
I. Egyptian Geography
A. Location
1. Egypt is located on the Nile River.
2. The Nile begins in the Highlands of Ethiopia
with two branches:
a. The White Nile and the Blue Nile
I. Egyptian Geography
A. Location
3. These rivers unite and flow north where they
empty into the Mediterranean Sea.
4. Where the river empties into the Nile it forms
the Nile Delta, a rich area of alluvial (muddy)
soil.
I. Egyptian Geography
B. The Nile
1. The most important thing to the Egyptians
about The Nile was the yearly flooding.
2. The Nile would flood each year in the spring.
With the flood it would deposit a rich later of
silt, or soil on either side of the river.
I. Egyptian Geography
C. Protection
1. Egypt had several natural barriers which
helped to protect it from invasion.
2. The major barrier was the Sahara Desert.
II. Egyptian Civilization
A. Origins
1. 5000 B.C. – Neolithic hunter-gatherers began
settling along the Nile River Valley
2. 4000 B.C. – Egypt consists of 2 large kingdoms:
a. Lower Egypt – in the north, Nile Delta
b. Upper Egypt – in the south, Nile Valley
II. Egyptian Civilization
A. Origins
3. 3100 B.C. – King Menes unites Upper and
Lower Egypt and established a capital at
Memphis
a. Hereditary Rule - Menes’ reign marks
the beginning of the first Egyptian
dynasty – a line of rulers from one
family.
III. Old Kingdom
A. 2700 BC – 2200 BC
1. The Old Kingdom was a period of great
prosperity.
2. This time is also called the pyramid age,
because the great pyramids were built during
this time.
III. Old Kingdom
A. 2700 BC – 2200 BC
3. Egyptian kings came to be known as Pharaohs.
4. The Pharaoh was seen as divine, or godlike.
The people believed that the Pharaoh
controlled many things including the flooding
of the Nile itself.
5. The Pharaoh wielded absolute power.
III. Old Kingdom
A. 2700 BC – 2200 BC
6. Pyramids were built during the Old Kingdom
7. They were designed to be tombs for the
Pharaoh
III. Old Kingdom
A. 2700 BC – 2200 BC
8. Originally there were step pyramids, then the
pyramids evolved into the ones we see at Giza.
9. The Pyramids were designed to protect the
mummies of the Pharaohs, but they
ultimately failed. They were robbed and
pillaged.
Valley of the Kings
Mummification
To preserve the body so that the soul could stay
in the afterlife, the Egyptians perfected the
process of mummification. Mummification was
expensive, however, and during the Old Kingdom
was a luxury of the rich.
First the body was washed and the internal
organs including the lungs, stomach, liver and
intestines were removed. The heart was left in
the body because the Egyptians viewed it as the
center of emotion.
The Brain was removed through the nose and
thrown away. The Egyptians didn’t think it
served any purpose
The Body was packed in Natron (a drying
agent) and left for 70 days. After that
the body was wrapped in linen with tree
resin for glue. Magical amulets and other
treasures were buried with the body.
IV. Culture
A. Hieroglyphics
1. Form of writing developed around 3000 BC
2. Uses 600 signs, pictures, and symbols to
represent words and sounds
IV. Culture
A. Hieroglyphics
3. Rosetta Stone
a. Discovered by the French in 1798 when
invading Egypt.
b. Passages on the stone were
written in Greek & Hieroglyphics
c. Scholars used the Greek to
decipher (read) the Hieroglyphics
The last line of each
section says each section
says the same thing.
IV. Culture
B. Egyptian Religion
1. For the Egyptians, religion was closely tied to
daily life.
2. The Egyptians were polytheistic, worshipping
many different gods.
3. The most important god was the god of the
sun, Re, also sometimes referred to as Ra or
Amon-Re. It was believed that the Pharaoh
was connected to this god.
IV. Nubia Civilization (Kingdom of the Kush)
A. Origins
1. Located between the Red Sea and the
Nile River, important trade routes.
2. Nubia was south of Egypt and were at
ruled for over 500 years by the
Egyptian Pharaohs. (1500 BC – 1000 BC)
Nubian Civilization
IV. Nubia (Kush) Civilization
A. Origins
3. Traded: Gold, ivory, ebony and ostrich
feathers.
Nile and Mesopotamia Map
Mediterranean Sea
Nile River
Sahara Desert
Red Sea