EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY “Gift of the Nile”

EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY Religion Pharaoh was a living manifestation of the gods Implication is belief in the afterlife Pharaoh is the chief priest Intervenes with the gods on behalf of people Egypt

EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY Religion Cult activities were kept secret Performed in the inner chambers of the temples

EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY Religion Strong Belief in Afterlife: Voyage of death is difficult Extensive concern about the physical state of body Mummification process Tombs filled with various objects

EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY Religion Believed in “judgment” in the afterlife: Heart was weighed versus feather to determine Ma’at or moral righteousness

EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY Effects of Environment on Ideology Natural Cycle of Nile lead to belief in cycles of life and afterlife Nile is more predictable and calm, therefore so are the deities in Egypt (compassionate and logical)

EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY Writing System - Hieroglyphics Picture based symbols carved or painted on monuments and inside tombs Not a lot written about common people

EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY Writing System - Hieroglyphics Usage(s): Administrative records Creative writing Poetry Religious doctrine Instruction manuals

EGYPT AND THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY Old Kingdom - Isolationism Mainly rural and isolationist: Had relatively easy access to raw materials along Nile…didn’t need to trade or expand to get access materials