Warm-up August 22 What advantages does an agriculturally based society have over a hunter/gatherer based society?

Egypt

1. Geography Nile River –Predictable flooding allowed for farming –Flows North towards Mediterranean Sea –Nile Delta

–Lower Egypt (N. River) – Red Crown –Upper Egypt (S. River) – White Crown King Menes – 1 st pharaoh; 3100 BCE; united Upper and Lower Egypt into a single kingdom.

What are some natural boundaries that would protect and isolate Egypt? –Western Desert –Mediterranean –Red Sea

2. Political Organization Theocracy (theo=god) –Pharaoh was political and religious leader (viewed as a god) Dynastic – son to son to son

Bureaucracy = a group of government officials appointed by the king’s “Rizier” – Prime Minister

A. Queen Hatshepsut (1480 BCE) –1 st female pharoah –Extensive building projects –Prosperous reign

B. Amenhotep IV (1370 BCE) –Declared Egyptians only worship Aton (sun-disk god) –1 st attempt at monotheism –Changed name to Akhenaton – “Spirit of Aton”

C. Ramses II “The Great” ( BCE) –Ruled 67 years –Worked to reestablish greatness of Egypt (prestige) –Built large statues of himself –52 sons –Ramses mummy

3. Religion Polytheism Re or Ra – most important god; sunrise = birth; sunset = death Pyramids – resting place for kings after death

4. Organization of Society Social classes divided into 2: –Upper class –Farmers (Majority of People)

5. Writing/Language Pictographs – 3100 BCE Ideograms – shows an idea or action Hieroglyphics – written on papyrus (kept records)

Rosetta Stone – Jean Champollion –Meaning of it lost until 1800’s when Jean Champollion deciphered the Rosetta Stone – slab of black rock had Hieroglyphics –Most important Egyptian artifact; key to understanding hieroglyphics.

6. Technology Written numbers Architects Calendar (flooding of the Nile Medical treatments