1. Mr. Koch Forest Lake High School World History A
Ancient Egypt
Mr. Koch
Forest Lake High School
World History A

2. Nile River Provides life to Egypt Flood cycle gave Egypt its seasons
Supports animal life, irrigation/silt
Flood cycle gave Egypt its seasons
Flood time
Planting time
Harvesting time
Flows north and prevailing winds blow south – aids transportation

3. Egypt Surrounded by deserts that isolate and protect Cataracts
Waterfalls or rapids
Protected from invaders from south
Upper Egypt
Southern part of the Nile River
Ends at the last cataract
Lower Egypt
Delta region of the Nile
triangular marsh land that formed deposits of silt

4. Old Kingdom (2700 BC -2200 BC) Pharaohs organized strong central govt
Claimed divine support
Absolute power, owned all land in the kingdom
Vizier = pharaoh’s chief advisors
Thousands of scribes carried out his instructions.

5. Old Kingdom (2700 BC -2200 BC) “The Pyramid Age” Eternal tombs
Built without tools or the wheel
Example of the strength of the empire
Only period they were built
Why did they stop?

6. Great Pyramid for Pharaoh Khufu at Giza
Base was size of 10 football fields
480 feet tall
2 million stone block
2.5 tons each
Took 20 years to build

7. Great Pyramid for Pharaoh Khufu at Giza

8. Middle Kingdom (2200 BC -1700 BC)
Armies occupy Nubia, export gold
Expand trade to Middle East, Crete
Many problems
Crop failures
Power struggles & corruption
Cost of pyramid building
Hyksos invade 1700 BC
Occupied Delta region
Used horse drawn chariots (awed Egyptians)
100 years before new family rises and force Hyksos out of Egypt

9. New Kingdom (1600 BC -1000 BC) Empire grows to peak of power/territory
Very powerful rulers
Hatshepsut
Female ruler (1503 BC – 1482 BC)
Expanded trade
Rule with same powers as men
Ramses II
Ruled as far north as Syria
Fought the Hittites of Asia Minor
Decline began after his rule

10. Tutankhamen 1361-1352 BC Becomes pharaoh at age 8. He dies at age 18.
Buried with everything he would need in the afterlife
Chariots, weapons, toys, furniture, jewelry, games, and food
Solid gold coffin
His tomb and riches discovered by Howard Carter in 1922.
Why significant?
The only pharaoh to be found with all riches intact.

11. Tutankhamen’s Burial Chamber

12. Tutankhamen’s Burial Chamber

13. Tutankhamen’s Burial Chamber

14. Tutankhamen’s Burial Chamber

15. Egyptian Civilization

16. Egyptian Civilization
Polytheistic Religion
Amon-Re
Sun god
Chief god
Pharaoh
Viewed as a god
Closely linked to Amon-Re
Osiris = god of the afterlife
God of the Nile
Judged souls of the dead
Isis = wife of Osiris
Appealed to women
Taught women how to grind corn, raise children, and weave cloth

17. Egyptian Civilization
Belief in the afterlife
Dead souls ferried across lake of fire to Osiris to be judged
Heart weighed against feather of truth
Worthy souls entered Happy Field of Food to spend eternity
Sinners fed to the Eater of the Dead
Book of the Dead
Gave instructions on how to live your life in order to pass Osiris’ judgment
Gives us detailed values of Egyptians

18. Egyptian Civilization
Afterlife Cont’d
Mummification = preservation of the dead
Embalmers removed brain through nostrils and most internal organs
Cavities filled with spices
Body dried and wrapped in linens
Anubis: god of embalming

19. Egyptian Civilization
Farmers
Vast majority of population
Had to serve Pharaoh in the off season
Building palaces, pyramids, and tombs
Women worked fields with men
Raised children
More rights then the rest of the ancient world

20. Egyptian Civilization
Written Records
Hieroglyphics = Egyptian picture writing
Kept important records
Ideograms = pictures that symbolize idea or action
Added later by scribes
Demotic = simple form of writing for everyday use
Developed by scribes
Papyrus = paper like writing material from plant that grew on the banks of the Nile
More convenient then carving hieroglyphics
Stone carvings still used for official records

21. Egyptian Civilization
Rosetta Stone
Black stone
Same message in three scripts
Hieroglyphs
Demotic
Greek
Deciphered by Jean Champollin in early 1800s