Art, Architecture, and Learning in Egypt Chapter 4 Section 2

Hieroglyphic Writing Egyptians developed a writing system at about the same time as the Sumerians. Scholars are not sure who developed their writing system first. Egyptian writing was unlike Sumerian cuneiform. Egyptian writing used hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics is a drawing or symbol that represents a word or sound. Most ancient Egyptians did not know how to write. Scribes, or officials who knew how to write, were valued for their knowledge. With writing, Egyptians could share and preserve knowledge.

Papyrus Egyptians invented a material very similar to paper. This material is called papyrus, and was made from the papyrus reed that grew along the Nile. Our word “paper” comes from the word “papyrus.” Scribes wrote in ink on papyrus sheets. This was much easier than pressing letters into wet clay as the Sumerians did. Papyrus sheets were also easier to transport. Papyrus could last a very long time in the dry environment of Egypt. Many documents written on papyrus including, medical books, calendars, stories, poems, and prayers.

Egyptian Literature Ancient Egyptian literature included teachings, stories, poems, religious texts, and histories. Egyptian literature was written on papyrus, carved on stoned monuments, and painted on the coffins of mummies. One famous text, The Book of the Dead, is a guide to the afterlife for dead souls. The Tale of Sinuhe tells the tale of an Egyptian official. Hearing that the pharaoh has been killed, he flees Egypt out of fear that he will be blamed for the crime.

The Pyramids Tombs of early rulers were underground chambers, or rooms. The burial chamber contained items that the ruler might want in the afterlife. An architect of the pharaoh designed a new kind of tomb with six stone mounds, one on top of the other. The result is a step pyramid. Later architects made the sides smoother to create a true pyramid, or structure with triangular sides.

The Pyramids During the Old Kingdom, three enormous pyramids were built for King Khufu, his son and grandson, at Giza. The largest is the Great Pyramid of Khufu. For nearly 4,000 years, it was the world’s tallest building. Nearby stands the Sphinx, a famous statue that guarded the road to Khafre’s pyramid, Khufu’s son. When they were built, these pyramids were the largest structures on earth. They show Egyptians’ command of mathematics and advanced building techniques.

The Pyramids Building the pyramids required the labor of thousands of workers. They cut and placed the huge stones by hand. Scholars once thought that slaves had built the pyramids. They now think that that many workers were farmers. Egypt’s massive tombs and temples show that Egyptians valued monuments to the gods, including pharaohs.

Painting and Sculpture Egyptians were skilled artists as well as builders. Much of what we know about life in Egypt comes from paintings found on the walls of tombs. Paintings were not created for decoration, but to provide the person buried in the tomb with objects and pleasures shown on the walls. Egyptian artists also created wonderful sculptures. A sculpture is a statue made of clay, stone, or other materials. Colossal statues of gods stood in temples. Smaller statues would be buried with mummies. If a mummy was destroyed, a statue would replace it as a home for the dead person’s spirit.

The Egyptian Calendar Egyptians probably measured time by cycles of the moon. The result would have been a lunar, or moon-based, year of about 354 days. The ancient Egyptians wanted to keep the calendar linked to the seasons to help farmers plan when to plant and harvest crops. The ancient Egyptians noticed that, each year, a bright star called Sirius, first appeared at sunrise on the horizon, the same time of year the Nile floods.

The Egyptian Calendar Sometimes Sirius appeared too close to the end of the lunar year. So, the Egyptians added an extra month to that year so that the year could catch up to the seasons. However, this meant that each year had a different number of days. That made record keeping and planning difficult. So the ancient Egyptians developed a solar calendar with exactly 365 days. The seasons still slowly shifted through the solar calendar, so ancient Greeks added leap years when they ruled Egypt in the 200s B.C.E.

Mathematics The ancient Egyptians developed a solid understanding of mathematics. Their ability to construct the great pyramids proves their command of arithmetic, or addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. It also shows their skill in geometry, or the measurement of dimensions.

Science, Technology, and Medicine Egyptians’ knew that the star Sirius would appear in the sky the same time of year as the Nile flooded. This was part of their advance knowledge of astronomy, the study of stars and other objects in the sky. The construction of the great pyramids shows the ancient Egyptians’ mastery of engineering. No other civilization had been able to plan and build structures so large or so perfectly shaped.

Science, Technology, and Medicine The ancient Egyptians also made many of the earliest discoveries in chemistry. These discoveries led to many new inventions that included the earliest forms of glass, mortar for setting stones and bricks, and many kinds of cosmetics. The Egyptians developed complex systems of irrigation, or ways of watering the land.

Science, Technology, and Medicine The Egyptians had the most advanced medical knowledge of their time. From their work with mummies, they learned much about human anatomy. Anatomy is the study of the structure of the body and its organs. The ancient Egyptians were skilled surgeons. Their doctors studied diseases and developed effective medicines to treat or cure them.