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Published byEugene Preston Modified over 8 years ago
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Egypt
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Origins Around 3,000 BC, villages began to show up along the Nile river. The process was very similar to what happened in Mesopotamia.
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Every year, the Nile would flood, depositing silt on the shores. Farmers would take advantage of this predictable routine.
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Plant here Harvest here
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Egypt Unites In the beginning, Egypt was separated into two kingdoms: –1. Lower Egypt –2. Upper Egypt
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Lower Egypt Upper Egypt
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Very little is known about early Egyptian history It’s hard to tell what is truth and what is fiction.
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King Menes Established a capital at Memphis, in central Egypt Established first Egyptian dynasty
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A dynasty is a line of rulers who are related to each other. –Ex. A father passes their power on to their son or brother. There are 31 dynasties in Egyptian history, each lasting around 50 to several hundred years.
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United Egypt Around 3,100 BC, Menes united lower and upper Egypt and wore a crown that symbolized the united kingdom
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After Menes, a period of stability and growth known as the Old Kingdom began, which lasted from around 2660 BC to 2180 BC.
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Area that the Old Kingdom controlled
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Many of Egypt’s most famous monuments, like the Great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx, were built during the Old Kingdom.
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A combination of bad harvests, weak rulers and civil war led to the end of the Old Kingdom around 2180 BC.
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Middle Kingdom A period of stability that lasted from 2180 BC to around 1640 BC.
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Focused on improving trade and transportation. Dammed the Nile in places and made canals to increase crop land.
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Egypt also expanded it’s territory to the south (Kush) and along the Mediterranean coast.
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The Middle Kingdom fell around 1640 BC when nomadic invaders called the Hyksos invaded from the Middle East.
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The New Kingdom Period lasted from 1570 BC to 1075 BC. Began when the Hyksos were defeated.
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Queen Hatshepsut was a famous ruler of this era.
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Akhanaten forced Egypt to abandon traditional religion and convert to a monotheistic religion based around the worship of the sun god Aten.
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His son, Tutankhamun, was forced to clean up the mess afterwards and restore the old ways.
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Egypt had to fight many enemies, like the Hittites, Nubians, etc. during this period to stay independent.
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The New Kingdom collapsed around 1075 BC when they were taken over by Lybians (from the west), Kushites (from the south) and a group called the Sea People (origins unknown).
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For the remainder of Ancient Egyptian history, they were controlled by outsiders, like Persians, Greeks and Romans.
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Basics of Egyptian Society
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Government Egyptian kings were called pharaohs The Egyptians viewed their pharaohs the same as the gods
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The pharaoh was the commander of the army, leader of Egypt’s religion and head of government Theocracy = type of government where the king is thought to be related to the gods
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The pharaoh ruled with the help of a bureaucracy (an organized government structure) and the help of priests and scribes.
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Religion
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Egyptian religion was polytheistic There were as many as 2,000 gods and goddesses
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Ra – the sun god Amun – king of the gods
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Horus – god of light and war Isis – goddess of motherhood
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Osiris – god of the dead Anubis – another god of the dead
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Egyptian pharaohs built huge temples to honor gods (and themselves).
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Unlike Mesopotamian cultures, Egyptians had a positive view of the afterlife.
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Upon death, a person’s body was preserved, or mummified, provided they had enough money.
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Personal items were buried with them for use in the afterlife.
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An Egyptian burial ceremony
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A person’s soul being weighed in the afterlife.
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Trade By 3200 BC, Egyptians were trading with the Mesopotamians over both land and sea routes.
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Egypt had to import many raw materials. –Gold, Ivory, Granite blocks were imported from the south, using the Nile. –Lumber and precious metals were imported from the Middle East.
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Exports included grain and finished goods, like papyrus, wine, jewelry, etc.
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During the Middle Kingdom, Ancient Egyptians even built a canal connecting the Nile to the Red Sea, to improve trade.
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Social Very different from the city- states of Mesopotamia Egypt’s united kingdom allowed –High degree of unity –Stability –Cultural continuity (staying the same)
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Life in Egyptian Society Pharaoh Royal Advisor Priests Traders/Merchants Slaves Ordinary Citizens
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Intellectual Developed writing = hieroglyphics –Pictographic writing system Developed written numbers for recording taxes –Addition, subtraction
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Achievements
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Egyptian medicine was the most advanced of that period. –Repairing broken bones –Checking your pulse –Basic surgery –Embalming techniques
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Egyptian Architects were very advanced. –Used geometry and astronomy to orient buildings –First culture to use columns
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12 month, 365 day calendar from studying the stars So accurate it was only 6 hours off from today’s calendar year
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