Transcript Ancient Egypt - Maple River Schools

Ancient Egypt
Benefits of the Nile River
• Provided water
– Drinking, bathing, cooking, cleaning, fishing
– Built irrigation canals & basins
– Shadoof
– Papyrus
• Provided a barrier for invading armies
– Cataracts- blocked boats from coming North
– Delta – no harbors for invading armies
Benefits of the Nile River
• Transportation
– Used to travel to other villages
– Trade – developed friendly relations with others
along the Nile
• Rich soil
– Kemet- “the black lands”
– Rich soil left behind from floods
– Allowed the people to become skilled farmers
United Kingdom of Egypt
United Egypt
• Skillful farming leads to a surplus
• Less workers needed in the fields and skilled
workers develop( artisans make pottery, cloth,
copper tools and weapons, and carved
statues)
• Trading develops because of an excess of
goods( agricultural and manufactured)
United Egypt
• Government needed to:
– Build and maintain irrigation systems, store and
distribute grain, and settle land disagreements
• Earliest rulers were chiefs from villagesstronger chiefs take over weaker ones
• 4000B.C.- Egypt is consolidated into two large
Kingdoms- Upper and Lower
• 3100B.C. – Namer leads armies North and
takes control of Lower Egypt
Narmer’s Rule
• Formed a dynasty( line of rulers from one
family)
• Egypt had - 31 dynasties – 2, 800 years
• Historians divide dynasties into 3 groups
– Old Kingdom
– Middle Kingdom
– New Kingdom
Egyptian Social Classes
Egypt’s Social Classes
• Pharaoh and family
– Lived in large palaces with servants
• Vizer
– Closest advisor to the Pharaoh
• Upper Class- high priests, nobles and army
commanders
– Lived in city estates along the Nile, elegant homes
and gardens, servants, dressed in white linen and
wore heavy make-up and jewlery
Egypt’s Social Classes
• Middle Class- skilled workers, traders, artisans
and scribes
– Smaller homes, dressed simply
– Provided many goods for society ( linens, jewelry,
pottery and metal goods)
• Farmers
– Largest group, most worked for nobles, lived in
villages along the Nile in small huts
Egypt’s Social Classes
• Unskilled workers- peasants& laborers
– Provided physical labor
– Lived in crowded city neighborhoods
– Small houses with flat roofs( played games,
women worked )
Family Life in Egypt
• Father
– Head of the family
– Taught sons to be farmers or skilled artisans
• Mother
– Taught daughters to sew, cook, and run the household
– Women had many rights
– Upper class women in charge of temples
• Children
– Did not attend school
– Played board games, dolls, spinning tops and with
stuffed leather balls