The Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs

Introduction In 1922, archaeologists discovered the tomb of a pharaoh named King Tutankhaten, or King Tut Inside his burial chamber they found three coffins The smallest coffin was made of solid gold and contained King Tut’s mummy He was wearing a gold mask, jewelry and good luck charms Other rooms in the tomb contained statues, weapons and even a chariot The treasures in his tomb taught historians many things about Egyptian life Other pharaohs have also left behind many artifacts such as fabulous riches and artwork Many pharaohs built great monuments to celebrate their accomplishments We will take a tour of some of these monuments from the different time periods of Egyptian history There are three periods of Egyptian history –Old Kingdom –Middle Kingdom –New Kingdom

The Old Kingdom The Old Kingdom lasted from about 2700 to 2200 B.C.E. During this time pharaohs set up a strong central government They also built great pyramids as tombs for themselves Some historians call it the Age of the Pyramids

The Middle Kingdom The Middle Kingdom lasted from about 2000 B.C.E to 1800 B.C.E. It is often referred to as the Period of Reunification The Middle Kingdom followed a period of chaos and disunity in Egypt During this era Egyptians had many achievements in literature, art and architecture

The New Kingdom The New Kingdom is called Egypt’s Golden Age It existed from about 1600 to 1100 B.C.E. During this time Pharaohs expanded trade and built gigantic monuments

Khufu the Pyramid Builder Khufu ruled from about 2551 to 2528 B.C.E. during the Old Kingdom He is best known as a pyramid builder Although not much is known some story tellers say he was a cruel, harsh ruler He kept strict control over the food supply and controlled governors who carried out his work Khufu wanted the Pharaoh to be Egypt’s supreme ruler and so he declared himself a god

Khufu and Giza The Old Kingdom Pharaohs had huge pyramids built for themselves and their families Khufu was responsible for building the Great Pyramid of Giza It is one of the wonders of the ancient world It was made of more than 2 million stone blocks that fit together perfectly Inside, tunnels led to several burial sites The king’s chamber had 6 roofs to hold the weight of the stone blocks above it The pyramid took more than 20 years to build Khufu organized and fed thousands of workers to complete the project

Pharaoh Senusret Pharaoh Senusret ruled from 1971 to 1926 B.C.E. He was a strong leader who ruled a unified Egypt Art, literature and architecture flourished during his reign Craftsmen thrived under his rule The pharaoh controlled mines loaded with gold, copper, and gems such as purple amethyst Craftsmen made beautiful pieces of jewelry from these materials

Senusret I and Literature Some of the greatest works of literature were also created during Senusret’s rule “The Story of Sinuhe” was one of the most famous

“The Story of Sinuhe” This story tells of a young official named Sinuhe who overhears a plot to kill the Pharaoh. Fearing for his own life Sinuhe flees Egypt. He thrives in his new land but gets homesick. When a new Pharaoh calls him home, he returns joyfully.

Senusret I continued Another great accomplishment of Senusret’s reign was religious architecture He built and improved many temples shrines and religious monuments His finest achievements was the White Chapel It was made of a white hard stone. Some historians believed it was once covered in a thin layer of gold. Beautiful artwork decorated the chapel’s pillars A later Pharaoh took the chapel a part to use pieces in his own monument.

Pharaoh Hatshepsut: Promoter of Egyptian Trade She ruled from 1473 to 1458 B.C.E. She was the first female Pharaoh One of her greatest accomplishments was gaining power of Egypt. At first she had to share it with her male relatives but later was given full control During her reign trade along the Nile and in the Middle East grew

Pharaoh Hatshepsut Hatshepsut strengthened her powers by assigning loyal advisors She demanded the same treatment as male rulers and sometimes even dressed as a male Sometimes she even wore a fake beard like the previous male Pharoahs

Pharaoh Hatshepsut and Trade Her biggest trade expedition was to the African kingdom of Punt, at the southern end of the Red Sea. Five ships with over 200 men sailed there to take gifts and to trade goods in the kingdom

Pharaoh Hatshepsut and Monuments Hatshepsut left behind a great temple at Dayr-al-Bahri The main part was built into a cliff above the Nile At the entrance there were 2 tall monuments called obelisks The entrance had 200 sphinx statues The sphinx is a mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head of a human

Pharaoh Ramses II: Military Leader and Master Builder Ramses II ruled from 1290 to 1224 B.C.E. He ruled during the New Kingdom He was called Ramses the Great and is one of the best known Pharaohs He is best known for his military leadership and the monuments he built

Pharaoh Ramses II Ramses II had over 100 wives and more than 100 children He had hundreds of statues of himself in Egypt. Some of the statues were over 60 feet high He was a fearless soldier from a young age He fought along side his father in numerous battles and became a captain in the army by age 10

Pharaoh Ramses II Ramses fought the Hittites who were trying to capture territory in Northern Egypt Ramses was also a peace keeper He eventually convinced the Hittites to sign the first known peace-treaty that lasted until 1190 B.C.E.

Pharaoh Ramses II One of Ramses most impressive projects was the temple complex at Abu Simbel The main temple was carved into a cliff on the banks of Nile The smaller temple honored his favorite wife, Nefertari Four giant seated statues of Ramses framed the entrance to the main temple The figures were sculpted right out of the cliff wall and are the finest example of Egyptian art

Pharaoh Ramses II : Temple Inside the temple was also remarkable Visitors passes through 3 large rooms called halls, to reach the main room The room’s alters contained more statues of Ramses and other gods The temple was built so that twice a year the sun lined up perfectly with the entrance At those times the sun shines in and lights up the statues Ramses built more statues and temples than any other Pharaoh in history When he died he was buried in the tomb he constructed for himself He is one of the best preserved mummies ever found