Glimpse into Ancient Egypt

1. Glimpse into AncientEgypt

2. Table of Contents Class Systems------------------------------- Slide 3 Egyptian Religion-----------------------------Slide 4 Egyptian Government-----------------------Slide 5 Art------------------------------------------------Slide 6 Kingdom Maps------------------------------Slide 7-9 World View-----------------------------------Slide 10 Natural order---------------------------------Slide 11 Interconnectedness------------------------Slide 12 Faq’s-------------------------------------------Slide 13 From Ancient Egypt to Just Egypt------Slide 14 Interesting Pictures-------------------------Slide 15 Sources----------------------------------------Slide 16

3. Class Systems The Hierarchy • Pharaoh • Vizier, Nobles • Teachers, Doctors, Artists, Business Owners • Soldiers, Peasants, Farmers, Slaves • Slaves weren’t used to make • pyramids because the pyramids are sacred, • and slaves were considered unworthy. • Slaves and mercenaries (mercenaries are people that will do anything solely for money) were often put in the army. (Information from Kohn, Charles et al)

4. Religion • Ra was the sun god. In a boat, he sailed across the sky with the sun. • Osiris is the god of the underworld. He was the one who taught the Egyptians to farm. He was killed by his evil brother (Seth), who cut Osiris’s body into fourteen pieces and scattered them throughout the world. • Isis is the goddess of magic spells and is Osiris’s wife. She collected the pieces of Osiris’s body and brought them back to life. • Anubis is the god of the dead. He is represented with the head of a jackal, and he is the guardian of the tombs. His name means “He who counts hearts.” Ra Anubis Osiris Isis (Information from Kohn, Charles et al)

5. Government • Ancient Egypt was dominated by a single person addressed as the pharaoh. • The pharaoh is politically the most powerful person in Egypt. He is also considered a living god, this is why the pharaoh had total control over the empire. • The pharaoh’s ministers and advisors were the priests. Civilians paid their taxes through goods and labour. • When taxes were paid through labor, the tax payers were forced to endure labour for whatever amount of time until the corvée (the labor tax) was paid down. • Peasants had no voice in the government, but didn’t mind because it was backed up by their religion. Cleopatra the VII was the last pharaoh in Ancient Egypt. Her family reigned the throne for 300 years. (Information from Kohn, Charles et al)

6. Art • The Egyptians made sculptures and weavings, as well as paintings. The pigments they used to paint with included the colours blue, red, green, yellow, and black. Later on, they started painting over paintings using snake venom and egg whites to protect them from the outside elements. (Information from Kohn, Charles et al)

7. Old Kingdom • 2700 BC-2200 BC • Not so far from the Early Dynastic Period, the Old Kingdom is considered more of a continuation of it (Kinnaer, Jacques) • In the Old Kingdom, the capital city was Memphis, circled in red. • A temple made to honour the craftsmen god, Ptah, disappeared along with Memphis, thus the capital city changed to Heliopolis (circled in blue). ***Rest of the information and pictures from Thinkquest***

8. Middle Kingdom • 2100 BC-1800 BC • During this time, Pharaohs weren’t in total control. The officials got their share of power this time. • Some examples of the new cities include Ither-Tawi, Semna, and Tanis. I’ve taken the liberty to circle these three cities in black. ***All information and pictures from Thinkquest***

9. New Kingdom • 1570 BC-1080 BC • The Egyptians took over many countries around Nubia, claiming treasures for themselves. • The Egyptian Empire reached its “golden age” (highest point) in 1400 BC. During that time the capital city moved to Thebes (circled in red). • During the end of the New Kingdom, the capital city moved to Akenton (not shown). • There was a power struggle between the government officials which caused Egypt of break into small states. Invaders took advantage of their weakness, and took over ancient Egypt. ***All information and pictures from Thinkquest***

10. World View • The Egyptians thought the world to be a little different than what it is now. They thought the world was flat and that it floats on a huge sea. (Carnegie Museum of Natural History) • Some people think that the Greeks admired the Egyptians. Their argument is that around 300 BC Alexander the Great took over Egypt. Apparently, when a land is conquered, the winning side takes whatever they feel is useful and destroys the land. Alexander didn’t do this. In fact, Alexander added his own section to the Luxor Temple and added his name with the most ancient Pharaohs and in a way uniting himself with them. (Lachtane, Kamira)

11. Natural Order • Ancient Egyptians observed the flooding of the Nile River, which occurs every year. They didn’t know why, but the flooding brought back nutrients to the soil. As a result, the soil remained healthy for later crops. They represented these unchangeable phenomenon with the goddess of truth, order, balance, and justice. Namely Ma’at. They believed that without Ma’at, there’d be absolute chaos. Ma’at (Information from Carnegie Museum of Natural History)

12. Interconnectedness Between Egypt and Mesopotamia • Differences • A very main difference would be location. Egypt was in Africa while Mesopotamia was in the Middle East in modern day Iraq. • Similarities • Both the Egyptians and the Mesopotamian civilizations had a river/rivers around them. • Both civilizations also were accomplished in mathematics. • They had art and agriculture. • Both were polytheists (a religion based on many gods). All data, and map from Kjeilen,Tore.

13. FAQ’s • Q: How were the pyramids built? • A: There are many theories behind the creation of the pyramids. The most likely is that while the pyramid was being built, ramps were being built around it, and the stone slabs were rolled into place with logs with someone pulling them. The truth is really, that we really don’t know. Even aliens were credited to help the Egyptians. • Q: Why were the rulers called Pharaohs? • A: Actually, the kings and queens were never called pharaoh. That was a name given by the Greeks. The Greeks also renamed Egypt, which was originally called Kemet. (Thinkquest) • Q: Did Egypt ever have to endure war? • A: Yes. Although Egypt was pretty hard to invade, Libyans and Nubians occasionally tried to invade Egypt. Egyptians also sometimes had problems with who would be in power. As a result, civil wars began. (Carr, Karen) • Q: Did the Egyptians have pets? • A: Yes, they had cats as hunting animals as well as pets. Some cats were even mummified to ensure a safe journey to the afterlife. (Carr, Karen) • Q: What did Egyptians eat? • A: They mostly ate bread. Beer was even put into someone’s grave so they’d be able to have it in the afterlife. (Carr, Karen)

14. From Ancient Egypt to Just Egypt • When Alexander took over Egypt, he and the people after him stayed in power. They brought the Greek culture and language, but Egyptians continued to speak their language and worship their gods. They lost control of Egypt to the Roman known as Augustus in 30 BC. • The Romans really liked Egypt because its soil was so rich, and as a result it could produce a lot of food. When Egyptians paid their taxes with food, the Romans sent it all the way back to Rome. Although it was the Romans that were in control of Egypt, the main language was still Greek. By now even some of the Egyptians could speak Greek. When the Arabs took over Egypt, Egyptians eventually converted to Islamic, and learned Arabic. A new capital was established, which to this day remains. The new capital city became Cairo. All information from Carr, Karen

15. Interesting Pictures

16. Sources • Carr, Karen. “Egyptian History.” Kidipedia. http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/egypt/index.htm. January 5, 2009. Accessed January 15, 2009. • Kjeilin, Tore. “Mesopotamia.” Looklex. http://looklex.com/e.o/mesopotamia.htm. Accessed February 20, 2009. • Kohn, Charles et al. World History Societies of the Past. Pages 74, 79, 81. • Lachtane, Karima. “The Greeks Admired Ancient Egyptians.” Ezine Articles. http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Greeks-Admired-Ancient-Egypt&id=1616617. Accessed January 10, 2009. • Kinnaer, Jacques. “Old Kingdom.” The Ancient Egypt Site. http://www.ancient-egypt.org/index.html. July 2, 2008. Accessed January 6, 2009. • Morales-Correa, Ben. “Living in Maat – the Natural Order.” All-About-Egypt: Travel Beyond the Pyramids. http://www.all-about-egypt.com/maat.html. Accessed January 14, 2009. • Rymer, Eric. “Ancient Egyptian Culture.” HistoryLink. http://historylink101.net/egypt_1/a-vizier.htm. Accessed December 12, 2009. • The Carnegie Museum of Natural History. “View of the World.” Life in Ancient Egypt. http://www.carnegiemnh.org/exhibits/egypt/guide.htm. Accessed January 10, 2009. • Thinkquest. “Ancient Egyptian Government.” Ancient Egyptian Government.http://library.thinkquest.org/3011/egypt3.htm. July 22, 1996. Accessed December 12, 2008. • Thinkquest. “The Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt.” The Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt. http://library.thinkquest.org/J002046F/kingdoms_of_ancient_egypt.htm. Accessed January 7, 2009.