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Ancient Egypt. The number of people settling around the Nile increased. They had to band together and form civilizations. They formed 2 kingdoms: 1. Lower Egypt 2. Upper Egypt. Upper & Lower Egypt. The 2 kingdoms had their own rulers, who were kings, traditions and beliefs.
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The number of people settling around the Nile increased. • They had to band together and form civilizations. • They formed 2 kingdoms: 1. Lower Egypt 2. Upper Egypt
Upper & Lower Egypt • The 2 kingdoms had their own rulers, who were kings, traditions and beliefs. • The 2 kingdoms did not get along with one another.
Menes • Menes was a leader of Upper Egypt • He didn’t like that the 2 kingdoms did not get along. Therefore, he wanted to unify Upper and Lower Egypt. • Menes had his army to invade Lower Egypt and take control of the kingdom. • Menes became the first Pharaoh, or ruler, of Egypt. • The word Pharaoh means “great house”.
The Egyptians believed that the Pharaoh was both a king and a god. • They believed in many gods, but thought that the Pharaoh was sent to earth to look after the land for all the gods. • Because the people thought so highly of the pharaoh, his job was very difficult. • The Pharaoh had to hire people to work for him.
Religion • Egyptians practiced polytheism, which is the belief in many gods. • They had very strong religious beliefs. • They built temples for each god, and the temples would collect payments from the government and worshipers. • They had a god for everything, including the sun, earth, sky, underworld, etc.
Many gods and goddesses mixed human and animal form. For example, they may have a human body, but an animal head.
Afterlife • The majority of the religion focused on the afterlife, or life after death. • To the Egyptians, the afterlife was a place of health and happiness. • After a person passed away, the family would fill their tomb with items they think they would want/need in the afterlife.
Burial Practices • The Egyptians believed that a body had to be prepared for the afterlife, and that the body should be preserved. • They developed a method called embalming. • Embalming is a process that took several weeks, but it allowed bodies to be preserved for many, many years.
Burial Practices • After a body was embalmed, it became a mummy, or a specially treated body wrapped in cloth. • The embalmed body would be wrapped in many layers of cloth and bandages. • The mummy was then placed in a coffin. • Embalming and mummification was very expensive, so only the rich people were able to participate in this burial process.
Pyramids • An Egyptian Pyramid is a huge stone tomb with four triangle-shaped walls that met in a point at the top. • Pharaohs were buried at a pyramid. • The size of the pyramid determined the greatness of a pharaoh.