1. Ancient Egypt: an Overview

2. Timeline Old Kingdom 2686 BC – 2181 BC (Age of the Pyramids)
Middle Kingdom BC – 1728 BC
New Kingdom BC – 1085 BC
(Age of Conquest)

3. Three Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt1
Three Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt
OLD KINGDOM
MIDDLE
KINGDOM
NEW KINGDOM
Pharaohs organized a strong central state, were absolute rulers, and were considered gods.
Egyptians built pyramids at Giza.
Power struggles, crop failures, and cost of pyramids contributed to the collapse of the Old Kingdom.
Large drainage project created arable farmland.
Traders had contacts with Middle East and Crete.
Corruption and
rebellions were
common.
Hyksos invaded and occupied the delta
region.
Powerful pharaohs created a large empire
that reached the Euphrates River.
Hatshepsut
encouraged trade.
Ramses II expanded Egyptian rule to Syria.
Egyptian power
declined.

4. Geography Egypt is located in northeastern Africa
The Nile River runs the length of the country flowing south to north
The river begins in the mountains of Africa and empties into the Mediterranean Sea
The climate is hot and dry, Egypt is part of the Sahara Desert

6. Geography
Ancient Egypt was divided into two regions: Upper and Lower Egypt
Lower (northern) Egypt consisted of the Nile River's delta made by the river as it empties into the Mediterranean.
Upper Egypt was the long, narrow strip of ancient Egypt located south of the Delta.

9. The Nile River The Nile was the lifeblood of ancient Egypt
It made life possible in the otherwise barren desert of Egypt.
It is the longest river in the world (over 4,000 miles).
It served as a source of food for the people of ancient Egypt
It was the major source of water for bathing and drinking
The Nile was crucial for farming

12. Blue Nile

13. White Nile

14. White & Blue Nile Meet in Sudan

15. Floodplain

16. Floodplain
The low strip of fertile land located on either side of the Nile River
The river flooded during the annual inundation
When the inundation subsided, it left the earth soaked and overlaid with a fresh layer of black silt.
Most of the farming occurred here

17. Nile Delta
Located in northern Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and empties into the Mediterranean Sea
240 km of coastline, 106 km in length
Rich agricultural region
Most fertile soil in Africa

19. Facts About the Nile River
Length
4,184 miles
2 Sources
Lake Victoria, Uganda (White Nile); Lake Tana, Ethiopia (Blue Nile)
Mouth
Mediterranean Sea, off Egypt
Countries Flows Through
Egypt, Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia, Zaire, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi
Name Origin
Greek word Nelios, which means "River Valley"

20. Bordered on the south, east and west by the Sahara Desert, and on the north by the sea, ancient Egypt was protected from outside influences.

21. Great Sahara Desert

23. Religion
Belief that many gods and goddesses ruled the world and the afterlife Amon-Re: sun god Osiris: god of the underworld and of the Nile
The pharaoh was believed to be a god as well as a ruler
Falcon Headed Sun God

24. Religion Belief in eternal life after death.
Relied on the Book of the Dead to help them through the underworld.
Practiced mummification, the preservation of the body for use in the next life.

25. Book of the Dead
Collection of spells, hymns, and prayers intended to secure a safe passage to the underworld for the deceased

26. Writing
Making paper from papyrus

27. What are hieroglyphs?
Hieroglyphs is the picture writing used in ancient Egypt. The word hieroglyphs is made up of two Greek words - hieros, which means sacred, and glyphe, which means carving.
The Egyptian hieroglyphic writing system consists of hundreds of picture signs (about 800) The signs can be divided into two classes, phonograms and ideograms

28. Phonograms represent sounds (much as alphabet letters do) Ideograms are signs that represent whole words or concepts.

29. Pyramids

30. The Great Sphinx

31. Egyptian goddess Isis, tomb painting, ca. 1360 BC.

32. Social Classes PHARAOH Earthly leader; considered a god2
Social Classes
PHARAOH
Earthly leader; considered a god
HIGH PRIESTS AND PRIESTESSES
Served gods and goddesses
NOBLES
Fought pharaoh’s wars
MERCHANTS, SCRIBES, AND ARTISANS
Made furniture, jewelry, and fabrics for
pharaohs and nobles, and provided for other needs
PEASANT FARMERS AND SLAVES
Worked in the fields and served the pharaoh