Egypt and Nubia Chapter 4 Section 3 page 158

Trade in Ancient Egypt Egypt had sunshine and fertile soil but no minerals or pack animals. These resources were acquired through trade and commerce which is the buying and selling of goods and services. As wealth grew, their ability to buy luxuries grew as well– these were items that made life more enjoyable but they were not considered necessities. Luxuries included precious stones and perfumes.

Trade in ancient Egypt Trade in the eastern Mediterranean The pharaohs sent merchants and officials to distant lands to promote trade. As early as the old kingdom, pharaohs were sending merchants to the other side of the Mediterranean sea to obtain things like cedar wood, olive oil, and precious metals like tin and copper.

Trade in Ancient Egypt Trade in the Nile River Valley Snefru (pharaoh from the old kingdom) pushed for trade with Nubia– future dynasties BUILT ON THE RELATIONSHIP AND Nubia became a strong trade partner. Egyptians bought ivory (a hard white material made form elephant tusks) from the Nubians. They sold grain, cloth, papyrus, glass, and jewelry in return. This back and fourth trade created interdependence (dependence on another country or group for goods or services) Overtime the Nubians absorbed some Egyptian cultural traits and religious ideals.

Reading Check Why did Egyptians want to trade with Nubia?

Answer Nubia had products such as gold and ivory that Egypt could not get any other way then through trade.

The Land of Nubia The Geography of Nubia Like Egypt, they relied on the Nile River floods and the fertile land they left behind. They farmed themselves into surplus—it was not a large as Egypt but it was enough to create merchants and artisans in their small cities. The cataracts of the Nile laid in the Nubian section which meant the couldn’t get far by boat on the river—they had to travel the rugged desert terrain on foot. They had less land overall so food shortages were common and detrimental. This made them eager to trade precious metals and other luxuries for food and other goods in times of need.

The land of Nubia Sources of Information about Nubia Historical records and archeological evidence have lead scientists to their conclusions about the Nubian people. Egyptian trade records also tell us a lot about Nubian life. Egyptians and Nubians had a lot in common which led archeologists to concluded that they interacted regularly—both saw kings as gods and both built cities in similar ways.

Reading Check Why was travel more difficult in Nubia than in Egypt?

answer The cataracts made it impossible to travel by boat for more than short distances, so people had to make the more difficult over-land journey.

Nubia and Egypt Through trade, the Egyptians realized that Nubia was rich in resources like gold. They used this to their advantage and acquired as much gold as possible to trade for more wood and other resources from the Eastern Mediterranean.

Nubia and Egypt Egypt conquers Nubia Egypt took control of most of Nubia during the middle kingdom in attempt to gain control of their riches and gold. The regained control during the new kingdom– that pharaoh made the conquered Nubians pay tribute in the form of hundreds of pounds of gold, slaves, ivory, and ostrich feathers. After the rule of Ramses II (who screwed everything up!) the new kingdom ended and Nubian kings took back control of their land and people.

Nubia and Egypt Nubia Conquers Egypt In the mid 700s bc a Nubia King named Piye expanded the Nubian empire by conquering one Egyptian city at time. Eventually he declared himself pharaoh of a united Egypt and Nubia. Egypt was ruled by Nubian pharaohs for almost 100 years– they observed Egyptian practices they had learned such as burial rituals and building temples to honor gods. Nubia got a little over-zealous and tried to expand into the Assyrians territory which led to their ultimate loss of control of Egypt.

Reading check Why did Egypt Conquer Nubia?

Answer Egypt wanted control over the riches to be found in Nubia.

Nubian Civilization Nubia remained an advanced system for almost 1000 years after losing control of Egypt. They developed their own system of writing, economics, and government.

Nubian Civilization Independent Nubia 591 BC- Egyptians destroyed Napata which is the capitol city of Nubia– they were forced to move their capitol to Meroe which was closer to the central Africa trade route and easier to defend. This area also received more rain than any part of nubia which made it possible to grow would for smelting out iron and other minerals. They turned their capitol into an iron working city– their tools were stronger than any the world had seen so far. They also used the smelting process to make precious gold objects and jewelry.

Nubian Civilization Independent Nubia cont’d The Nubians built many pyramids that had very steep sides– they were tombs for kings and Queens of Nubia. Queen-mothers of Nubia were also known ad Candaces– Candaces remained powerful— even more so than kings—throughout the history of Nubia. The Nubians created Meroitic Script which is one of the world’s first alphabets. Scholars have figured out how to read it but interpreting it and understand the words is still difficult.

Nubian Civilization Nubia’s Links to Africa and The World Nubia had advanced iron-working technology– they traded iron goods, cloth, and gold with other African people. The Nubians bought Ebony which is a black wood from west Africa, and elephant tusks. They also sold slaves from other parts of Africa to the Egyptians. They began using irrigation to grow more food. Ports on the edge of the Red Sea allowed them to trade with countries as far away as india. 300 AD– nubia was conquered by the kingdom of Axum. Many Nubian discoveries and traditions and trade techniques are still used throughout Africa today.

Reading Check Why did the Nubians move their capitol to Meroe?

Answer the previous capitol at Napata was destroyed by the Egyptian Army, and Meroe was close.

Chapter 4 Section 3 Assessment answers With little farmland, Egypt depended on trading minerals and other goods for food. Each had goods the other wanted or needed. It was a true alphabet; its characters stood for sounds instead of whole ideas. Trade was the main way that ideas and cultures spread between Egypt and Nubia. Both worshipped some of the same gods, had similar beliefs about kings, and depended on the Nile for food. Later Nubians built pyramids and mummified the bodies of their rulers. It had strong iron-working skills and developed an alphabet. Both used trade to gain wealth and to obtain goods they could not produce locally. They relied on trade for food, whereas the Egyptians did not. The narrow Nile Rive Valley had less farmland; however, Nubia’s Geography included rich iron ore deposits and wood that provided fuel for smelting the ore into metal.