1. The Nile Valley Chapter 2, Section 1 World History Mrs. Thompson
Ancient Egypt
The Nile Valley
Chapter 2, Section 1
World History
Mrs. Thompson

2. What is Egypt famous for?
Pharoahs, mummies, pyramids and tombs
Deserts and sand
River Nile

4. l
Egypt is in the continent of Africa.
The River Nile runs through Egypt
The capital of Egypt is Cairo

5. A View of Egypt by Satellite

7. Main Idea
The Egyptian civilization began in the fertile Nile River Valley, where natural barriers stopped invaders

8. They called they land “The Gift of the Nile”
A Mighty River
Between 6000 B.C. and 5000 B.C., groups of hunter-gatherers moved into the fertile Nile River Valley and settled to become the earliest Egyptians .
They called they land “The Gift of the Nile”
Egypt was warm and sunny but received little rainfall.

11. The Fertile Nile Valley

12. The Annual Flooding of the Nile

13. Egyptians relied on the Nile. They called it their “precious gift”
It provided food
such as fish
and supported plants
And animal life
Source of water for
drinking,
bathing, farming,
cooking, and cleaning
The Nile is the world’s longest river!

14. The Nile River These two Rivers join to form the Nile River just south
The Nile is about
4,000 Miles long and
flows north to the
Mediterranean Sea
These two
Rivers join to
form the
Nile River
just south
of Egypt
The Nile begins
as 2 rivers
The Nile River
Blue Nile East Africa
mountains
White Nile Central Africa
marshes

15. A great length of the river flows over narrow cliffs and
boulders to form wild rapids called cataracts
Before it
reaches the
Mediterranean Sea,
The Nile branches into tributaries that fan out
Over an area of fertile soil called the delta.

16. To the west To the east is the is the Eastern Desert Sahara Desert,
On a map, the Nile resembles the stem of a flower and the delta looks like a flower blossom.
To the east is the
Eastern Desert
which stretches
to the Red Sea
To the west
is the
Sahara Desert,
the largest
desert
in the world.

17. Ancient Egyptians called the desert “the Red Land”
Deserts formed a barrier which kept outside armies away from Egypt.

18. Deserts to the east and west
Delta marshes in north which offered no harbors for invaders approaching from the sea.
Geographic
features
which protected Egypt
Dangerous cataracts in south which blocked enemy boats from reaching Egypt

19. friendly contacts with the various groups settled along the
Unlike
Mesopotamians
Egyptians maintained
friendly contacts with
the various groups
settled along the
Nile River Valley.
Unlike Mesopotamian
geography, the protective
barriers kept them safe and
allowed Egyptian civilization
to grow and prosper.

20. Despite their isolation, the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea offered the Egyptians an outlet for trading with people outside Egypt.

21. People used the Nile for trade and transportation
Winds from the north pushed their sailboats south.
The flow of the river pushed their sailboats north.

22. The Egyptians depended on the Nile’s floods to grow their crops
Main Idea
The Egyptians
depended on the Nile’s
floods to grow
their crops

23. Flooding of the Nile River
Dependability
More dependable AND gentle than the Tigris and Euphrates
(Egyptians were better farmers)
Source of Flooding
Heavy rains from central Africa
Melting snows from the highlands of east Africa
Flooding Season
July to October

25. When the waters of the Nile recede, a layer of dark, fertile mud is deposited on the land
Egyptians called land “Kemet” or “Black Land”

26. How did the Egyptians use the Nile?
Egyptians took advantage of Nile’s flooding to be successful farmers.
Egyptian farmers planted grain: wheat, barley, and flax seeds.
Their wide use of irrigation made Egyptian farmers successful.

27. Digging basins and bowl-shaped holes to hold water. Egyptian
Digging canals to
carry water from
the basins to
fields beyond
the river’s reach
Egyptian
irrigation
Building levees to
form walls around
basins

28. Shadoof Geometry Papyrus Farming Advancements A bucket attached
to a long pole
to lift water into
the basins
Shadoof
Geometry
To survey or measure
the land to
establish boundaries
Farming Advancements
Papyrus
A reed plant that grew
along the Nile to make
baskets, sandals,
river rafts, and paper.

29. Nile Irrigation-the Shaduf

30. Papyrus  Paper
Hieratic Scroll Piece
Papyrus Plant

32. What was Hieroglyphic?
Written on:
Made up of:
Symbols stood for: 1. 2. 3.
Carved into:
Who learned to read and write:
What was their job?
What gave historians the ability to read hieroglyphic?

33. Steps to making paper from Papyrus:
1. Cut stalks of the plant into narrow strips.
2. Soak the strips and pound them flat.
3. Air dry the strips to stiffen them.
4. Join the strips together to form a roll.

35. What were Heiroglyphics?
Like Mesopotamians, Egyptians a
developed writing system
Egyptian writing was called hieroglyphics
Egyptians used papyrus rolls as writing paper
It was made up of thousands of picture symbols.

36. 24 “letters” + 700 phonetic symbols
Some symbols stood for objects or ideas and some symbols stood for sounds.
Scribes carved hieroglyphics into stone walls and monuments.

37. Few Egyptians learned to read and write.
Some Egyptian men went to special schools to become scribes.
Scribes kept records and worked for the rulers, priests, and traders.

39. Hieroglyphic “Cartouche”

40. Champollion & the Rosetta Stone

42. Egyptian Math 1 10
100
1000
10,000
100,000
1,000,000
What number is this?

43. Main Idea
A United Egypt:
Around 3100 B.C., Egypt’s two major kingdoms, Upper and Lower Egypt were combined into one.

46. Storing and rationing grain Settling Disputes over Land ownership
What created the need for government? Advances in farming, crafts, and trade created need for government
Storing
and
rationing
grain
Building
and
maintaining
Irrigation
system
Government
directed
activities
Settling
Disputes over
Land
ownership

47. Upper Egypt At the Mouth of The Nile in the south
By 4000 B.C., Egypt was made up of two large kingdoms:
Lower Egypt in the
Nile Delta
to the north
Upper Egypt
At the
Mouth of
The Nile in the
south

48. Egypt's Ruling Families
About 3100 B.C., the 2 kingdoms became one
Narmer of Upper Egypt, known as King Menes, led his armies to take control of Lower Egypt and created a unified Egypt.
He ruled from Memphis and wore a double crown of red and white to symbolize unity of Upper and Lower Egypt.

49. Menes: Unifier of Upper & Lower Egypt

50. Egypt's Ruling Families
Narmer’s family inherited power to rule and passed it down from father to son through a line of rulers to form a dynasty
Ancient Egypt was ruled by 31 different dynasties
Historians group Egypt’s dynasties into 3 main periods: Old, middle, and new kingdoms

51. Main Idea
Early Egyptian Life:
Egyptian society was divided into social groups based on wealth and power

52. Egyptian society was highly structured and divided into different social classes, each with certain responsibilities and lifestyles.
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53. Nobles, priests, government officials
Upper Class
Who
Nobles, priests, government officials
Location
Cities and large estates along the Nile
Housing
Elegant homes, beautiful gardens, and pools filled with fish
Work
Little physical work – had servants
Ruled and conducted religious ceremonies,
Clothing
White linen clothes, eye makeup, jewelry

54. Egyptian Nobility

55. An Egyptian Woman’s “Must-Haves”
Mirror
Perfume
Whigs

56. Egyptian Priestly Class

57. Smaller villages along Nile Homes smaller than upper class nobles
Middle Class
Who
Traders, artisans, shopkeepers, scribes, and farmers (largest group)
Location
Smaller villages along Nile
Housing
Homes smaller than upper class nobles
Work
Important group were artisans who produced linen cloth, jewelry, pottery, and metal goods. Grew the food.
Clothing
Dressed in simple clothes

58. Ancient Egyptian Housing
Middle Class Homes
Peasant Homes

59. Egyptian Scribe

60. Small mud-brick homes with dirt floors
Lower Class
Who
Unskilled workers
Location
Crowded city neighborhoods
Housing
Small mud-brick homes with dirt floors
Men
Women
Men did physical labor like loading cargo on boats, making and stacking mud bricks
Women dried fruit, made bread, and wove cloth
Worked and slept on their rooftops
Clothing
Very simple clothes

61. Scenes of Ancient Egyptian Daily Life

62. Father headed the family
Own and pass on property
Egyptian women
had more rights than
females in most other
early civilizations
Buy and sell goods
Life
Family
Make wills and get divorces
Upper-class women were in charge of temples
and could perform religious ceremonies

63. Life Family Few children went to school mothers taught Fathers taught
daughters to sew,
cook, and run
a house
Fathers taught
sons farming or
skilled trades
Life
Family
Children played with
Board games, dolls,
Spinning tops,
And leather balls