Some books for you Cyril Aldred. The Egyptians Sir Alan Gardiner. Egypt of the Pharoahs B.G. Trigger. Ancient Egypt: A Social History Mariam Lichteim, ed. Ancient Egyptian Literature Ange-Pierre Leca. The Egyptian Way of Death: Mummies and the Cult of the Immortal. I.E.S. Edwards. The Pyramids of Egypt. Manfred Lurker. The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt Byron E. Shafer, ed. Religion in Ancient Egypt The Cambridge Ancient History\

More Great Books Cyril Aldred. Akhenaten. King of Egypt. Donald B. Redford. Akhenaton. The Heretic King Miroslav Verner. The Pyramids. Their Archaeolgy and History John A. Wilson. The Culture of Ancient Egypt James E. Harris and Kent R. Weeks. X-raying the Pharoahs Barbara Mertz. Red Land, Black Land Barbara Mertz. …other books Barry Kemp. Ancient Egypt. Anatomy of a Civilization Donald B. Redford. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times

Ancient Egypt app. 10,000 sq. miles the same as Sumer and Akkad radically different in shape a ribbon of fertile land 600 miles long ◦ half a dozen miles wide for most of its length compared to 165 miles in Mesopotamia

Egypt, con’t more arid and more fertile than Mesopotamia divided into two parts the Delta (Lower Egypt) and the Upper Nile “south”, not “north” is the important direction

Earliest Villages ?? 4500 B.C.?? but recent studies may push it back one thousand years or more

Two Kingdoms, 3,500 B.C. two kingdoms upper and lower Egypt same culture same language same gods

UnificationUnification tradition is the only source Date? around 3000 (3200?) B.C., or so.... Menes (Namar) the first pharaoh reigned for 62 years killed by a hippopotamus (ah, well...)

The Pallette of Narmer There is a reproduction in the McClung Museum in Knoxville…if you want to see it…

Reverse side of the pallette of Narmer

Palermo Stone Listing the early dynasties, including the so-called “0” Dynasty….

Culture and Civilization Egyptian culture distinctive and peculiar already set prior to unification continued to evolve through the Old Kingdom period by the Pyramid Age (3-4th dynasties, ca B.C.) it was set and would not change for 2,000 years

Origins of Egyptian Civilization sui generis ?? diffusion from Mesopotamia ?? and how do you tell, anyway ?? ◦ writing ?? ◦ cylinder seals ??

Formative Period ended by 2700 B.C. theocratic highly centralized government Primary Phase, which will last about 1,000 years

Approximate dates Archaic Period ( The Old Kingdom ( B.C.) First Intermediate Period ( B.C.) The Middle Kingdom ( B.C.) Second Intermediate Period ( B.C.) The New Kingdom ( B.C.?)

Comparison and Contrast with Babylon profound differences because of environmental conditons Mesopotamia: open to invasion Egypt: isolated by geography invasion as culturally stimulating ????

C. and C., con’t effects on Egypt: positive and negative E. culture: perfectly adapted to the environment lines of development: logical and obvious evolutionary manimums: reached early in the culture Egyptian culture: static, outwardly opposed to innovation

AgricultureAgriculture depended on irrigation nationally controlled annual flooding of the Nile (Gift of the Nile)

TransportationTransportation Mesopotamia: wheeled vehicles and boats Egypt: boats (The Nile as Highway) sailboats still a major means of transportation Old and Middle Kingdom: wheeled vehicles rare

ArchitectureArchitecture lacks timber used mud-brick main building: STONE

SculptureSculpture early and sophisticated development human figures and archicectural forms led to great expertise in painting and other representational arts

WritingWriting hieroglyphic scripts ◦ for architectural and monumental purposes hieratic and demotic scripts papyrus paper

Papyrus text

Hieroglyphics On a temple

Making papyrus

A cursive script…for when you are in a hurry…

Other Features wheat, instead of barley cattle and poultry flax slavery virtually unknown high degree of social mobility

Dynastic Chronology Egyptians divided their history into dynasties not always chronologically successive Manetho, gave the chronology to the Greeks the system is confusing, but maintained by Egyptologists

Theocratic Government all Egyptian government was theocratic in form all power was concentrated in the Pharaoah the pharaoh was the head of a planned and organized economy modern comparisons ???

The Nature of Kingship and Religion modern perceptions ancient ideas even “politics” had a religious base

UnificationUnification the most important event in Egyptian history what role did Menes play in religion and politics ? how was unification maintained ?

Egyptian Kingship Mesopotamian kings (and Hebrew) Semitic in their concepts acted as mediators between gods and the people

Kingship, con’t Pharaoh: link between the gods and people Pharaoh: divine ◦ his rule eternal and absolute Egypt was not just ruled for the gods but by a god

Distinctions ? human vs. divine ?? They could tell the difference in practice: whoever held the throne was divine including: women, foreigners, commoners

The Pharaoh shed his impermanent and human status assumed the eternal and unchangeable divine status became the embodiment of the divine led a divinely unified Egyptian state

Theory of the New State ma’at basis of justice and authority ◦ meaning: “truth, justice, order, righteousness, balance” a cosmic or divine force for harmony and stability, ◦ dating from the beginning of time

Ma’at Personified as a goddess

Ma’at, con’t good rule and administration embodied ma’at these confirmed, consolidated and perpetuated the rule of the Pharaoh this unified and stabilized the state

Egyptian Religion each city had its patron deity emergence of national government caused some to be more important as dynasties changed, the primary gods changed why??

ExamplesExamples Memphis: Ptah later, as the center of power changed, Re/Ra or Horus etc.

Ptah

Amun

Atum

Horus

Osiris, god of resurection Also known, as the Throne

Isis Sister and wife of Osiris, mother of Horus

Isis, with the child Horus Provides the iconographic style for the later representations of Mary and the baby Jesus

Horns removed, the moon is dropped, behind the head, to become the halo.

Thoth The wisest of the gods, giver of writing, knowing the true names of all things, including the gods Sits with Osiris in the Hall of Judgment….

Udjat eye

The Gods Mesopotamian gods: mostly anthropomorphic Egyptian gods: vary wildly animals, human, celestial bodies, etc.

CosmologyCosmology Gods created Order out of Chaos various stories not mutually exclusive like the monotheistic religions

Early Creation Story Atum primeval mound of mud (Annual inundation of the Nile?) godly masturbation (How do you get a date when there is nobody there but you?) generation of the gods

Different Perspectives Mesopotamians: pessimistic ◦ life is unpredictable, their gods unstable, their afterlife indistinct and undesirable Egyptian religion inspired confidence ◦ in the eternal, stable order of the universe

Different Perspectives, con’t divinely guided, rhythmic cycle of life and death and belief in a final, eternal bliss

Egyptian religion extremely tolerant of difference extremely tolerant of many gods ◦ as opposed to, say.. Hebrew religion the principal deity (national/Pharoah’s deity) allowed other gods to flourish the number is considerable

Egyptian religion: “oddities” overlap of functions syncretism expansion and contraction of cults amalgamation of cults worship of the Pharaoh was “nationwide”

Religion as a Unifying Force Mesopotamia: master-slave relationship Egypt: gods conceived of as shepherd ◦ who cherish and care for the people

Religion, con’t probably the origins of the idea of Jehovah-as-shepherd ◦ especially in the Psalms ◦ which are pre-dated by Egyptian psalms ◦ Akhenaton’s Hymn to the Sun

Permanence of the Cycle of Life everything was a cycle eternal, unchanging life and death continuous and rhythmic human life existed in a never- ending interchange of natural and universal elements

The Gods immanent in nature existed in a sphere of divine activity consubstanital: they are existent in everything

The Temples controlled by temple corporations producing those things necessary for the god maintaining ma’at maintaining the very existence of the universe !!!! ◦ if they get slack, we’re screwed...in a major way

The Idea of the Cosmos religious ideas: rooted in a static and changeless universe influenced every aspect of Egyptian life influenced every aspect of Egyptian development gave very strong resilience to Egyptian culture ◦ survived virtually unchanged for 3,000 years

The Pharonic State: Ancient Economy the “pyramid” model ◦ pharaoh as “capstone” ◦ pharaoh as “commander-in- chief” ◦ pharaoh as “royal administrator” ◦ pharaoh as “owner of Egypt”

The Pharonic State: Corvee the annual inundation conscription for “public works” dependence on irrigation cooperate work essential

Achievements of the Old Kingdom efficient, centralized authority astronomy, arithmetic, geometry medicine

The Most Important Solar calendar pyramids belief in immortality

Solar Calendar Egyptian solar calendar: 3rd millennium B.C. Connected with the rising of Sothis ◦ the Dog Star (Sirius) ◦ companion of Orion

Solar Calendar, con’t length of the solar year and the rising of Sothis are virtually identical only a few minutes difference we get our solar calendar from the Egyptians by way of the Romans

PyramidsPyramids Imhotep: architect and developer of the calendar? ◦ Imhotep: physician, architect, doctor, miracle worker, giver of wisdom ◦ designed the Step Pyramid of Zoser ◦ processor of the Pyramids of Giza

Step pyramid of Zoser

Djoser

Imhotep Architect of the pyramids…later he become a god…

The Broken Pyramid of Snefru

The Bent Pyramid of Snefru

The Red Pyramid of Snefru

Pyramids, con’t eternal home for the immortal pharaoh insured their divinity for all eternity

Pyramids, con’t Khufu, Khafre, Menkure Cheops, Cehphren, Mycerinus amazing architecture how? necropolis

Belief in Immortality first to really develop the idea sophisticated consciousness another order of existence

Map Showing Egypt, Nubia, And Kush

Decline of the Old Kingdom Old Kingdom: the most stable period the Pharaoh dominated life ◦ forestalled the emergence of provincial power ◦ but gradually lost power to royal officials gradual drying of the environment ◦ failure of the Nile to flood on time

Decline of the Old Kingdom Pepi II: ruled 94 years at his death: rapid decline followed by Nitocris collapse of central power

First Intermediate Period B.C. ◦ localism, anarchy, short reigns, palace coups, assassinations “seventy kings in seventy days” reversal of established order dissolution of law and order disruption of trade and agricultual production

The Middle Kingdom B.C. united under the Eleventh Dynasty from Thebes, not Memphis ◦ followers of the god Amon ◦ elevated to the rank of primary god ◦ modern examples??

The Middle Kingdom solidification of Egyptian borders military garrisons on the borders new office: the vizier separate administrations of Upper and Lower Egypt suppression of the nobility; rise of the “middle class”

The Middle Kingdom decline with the Twelveth Dynasty Pharaoh Sobekeneferu beginning of the Second Intermediate

Second Intermediate Period B.C. Thirteenth and Fourtheenth Dynasties ◦ contemporaries invasion by the Hyksos Semitic peoples from Palestine Hyksos dynasty by 1650 B.C. (Fifteenth Dynasty)

The New Kingdom rise of the Seventeenth Dynasty ◦ Thebes beginning of the imperial period reconquest of Egypt ◦ “We had to destroy this village to save it.”

The New Kingdom B.C. reaction to control by a foreign people policy of planned aggression create a “buffer zone” (cordon sanitare) in Palestine ◦ any modern examples ???

Smenkarae Tao, who has seen better days

The New Kingdom more cosmopolitian international trade large, professional army the usual bureaucracy

Imperialism: 18th Dynasty Thutmoses I Hatshueput I Thutmoses III ◦ conquest of an Asian Empire ◦ successor had problems

Akhenation: the Amarna Revolution worship of the Aton ◦ the solar disk elevated the worship of the Aton ◦ suspended the worship of other gods ◦ particularly Amon

Amarna Revolution: Political Terms struggle with the priests of Amon innovation vs. conservative stagnation monotheism ??? ◦ “henotheism” / “monolatry”

The Aten—the physical disk of the sun

…looking somewhat less…elongated…

Less elongated, but with a bit of gender-confusion

The famous portrait bust of Nefertitti… found abandoned in the corner of a workshop in Amarna…

The happy couple…still with a seeming bit of gender-confusion…. And kind of homely…

Lost of Empire to Indo-European states emerging in Asia Minor and other areas

King “Tut” Pharaoh Tutankhaten succeeded Akhenaten Restoration of the gods Probably murdered by a guy named Ay

What he actually looked like, from a Forensic CAT-scan reconstruction

High Point Nineteenth Dynasty ◦ Rameses II ◦ pharaoh of the Exodus ?? New Kingdom collapse ◦ ca B.C.