Ancient Egypt Overview PDF

Archaeology and Humanity’s Story: A Brief Introduction to World Prehistory By Deborah I. Olszewski Archaeology and Humanity’s Story: A Brief Introduction to World Prehistory Any questions about: 1.Early Dynastic Mesopotamia 2.Later Mesopotamia 3.Cuneiform writing Chapter 10 Pharaonic State and Old K...

Archaeology and Humanity’s Story: A Brief Introduction to World Prehistory By Deborah I. Olszewski Archaeology and Humanity’s Story: A Brief Introduction to World Prehistory Any questions about: 1.Early Dynastic Mesopotamia 2.Later Mesopotamia 3.Cuneiform writing Chapter 10 Pharaonic State and Old Kingdom Egypt Pharaonic State (303-306) Old Kingdom Egypt (306-317) After the Old Kingdom (317-320) © 2018 3 Chapter 10 Learning Objectives 10.1 Review the timeline for this chapter. 10.2 Understand early food production in Egypt. 10.3 Examine details of the Predynastic Period. 10.4 Explain the rise of the Pharaonic State. 10.5 Understand key points of the Old Kingdom. 10.6 Understand changes associated with the Egypt’s multiple rises and falls. © 2018 4 Timeline: Egypt Where Mesopotamia (Chapter 9) was a land between two rivers, Egyptian civilization thrived along one river, the Nile and its fertile valley. See map, next slide. This chapter will introduce the Neolithic and Predynastic periods that paved the way for the later pharaonic state and Old Kingdom, the time during which the Giza pyramids were built. © 2018 5 Map: Ancient Egypt © 2018 6 Early Food Production Access to wild resources was greatest along the Nile or near playas. Playas were seasonal lakes forming during warmer, wetter climatic intervals in the early Holocene Playas were focal points for Epipaleolithic and Neolithic hunter-gatherer-foragers. – Sites suggest high mobility. – Neolithic groups are identified by ceramics, domesticated cattle, sheep, and goats, and domesticated cereal grains (though they still hunted wild game). DNA evidence indicates that the cattle at playas were brought there from the Nile and were domesticated independently from Middle Eastern cattle. © 2018 7 The Nabta Playa The Nabta Playa west of the Nile River valley in southern Egypt was occupied by Neolithic pastoralists during several wet phases of the early Holocene. The earliest of these Nabta Playa sites date to around 9000 BC, during the el Adam phase. Later sites (about 7000 BC) document more extensive settlement. By the Late Neolithic, distinctive features of social complexity appear regularly © 2018 8 Predynastic The Predynastic period began about 4500 BC. Production of emmer wheat, barley, sheep, goats, and cattle. C. 3700 BC, mudbrick houses begin to replace pithouses. Changes in settlement patterns may parallel increasing agricultural surpluses and social complexity. Differences in social classes and hierarchy become evident in burials toward the end of the Predynastic © 2018 9 Pharaonic State (1 of 3) The first Egyptian pharaohs are difficult to identify archaeologically, though later writings place them around 3300 BC. Early period (Dynasties 00 and 0) pharaohs like Iri-Hor and Ka—are believed by some researchers to be entombed at Abydos. © 2018 10 Pharaonic State (2 of 3) The last pharaoh of Dynasty 0, Narmer (Scorpion King), is credited with unifying Upper and Lower Egypt. He is often depicted wearing a crown that symbolically combines the crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt © 2018 11 Pharaonic State (3 of 3) Early pharaohs associated with local deities of both Upper and Lower Egypt, and to build tombs and temples at Abydos (Upper) and Memphis (Lower) to further reinforce the extent of their rule. The ideological (and practical) significance of the Nile is demonstrated by the burial of full-size boats. In later periods, these would be called solar boats, designed to carry the souls of the deceased. Memphis in Lower Egypt became the capital and administrative center of the Pharaonic State during Dynasty 1. © 2018 12 The Written Word Hieroglyphs became widespread in the Pharaonic State and Old Kingdom periods. The earliest Predynastic hieroglyphs (about 3200 BC) are ideograms depicting objects. Hieroglyphs glorified pharaohs and other social elites (while also accomplishing more mundane administrative functions). © 2018 13 Resource Networks, Trade, and Exchange Old Kingdom Egypt was heavily invested in controlling trade routes and acquired goods from many other regions: – Copper, pottery, and Lebanese cedar logs from the Mediterranean. – Obsidian from Arabia or Eritrea. – Lapis lazuli from Afghanistan and Iran. – Ivory, panther skins, ebony, giraffe and monkey tails, and possibly incense from sub-Saharan Africa. © 2018 14 Political Organization in the Old Kingdom © 2018 15 Ritual and Religion (1 of 3) Religion was an integral part of the Egyptian state. Pharaohs were viewed as earthly manifestation of divine beings This was reinforced by the falcon hieroglyph that accompanied their names. The falcon symbolized Horus, son of Isis and Osiris. © 2018 16 Ritual and Religion Activity The text includes descriptions of many Egyptian gods and their roles in society. Work in groups of 3 – 4 Select one god/goddess per group Take 10 minutes to discuss; use the book plus any Web resources. What was the relation between that god/goddess and the State? The relation to the lives of everyday people? © 2018 17 Ritual and Religion (3 of 3) Egyptian religious belief was tied to practices for reaching and prospering in the afterlife. Ancient Egyptians believed that you brought your own wealth with you to the afterlife—hence the extreme wealth seen in some tombs. The arid conditions in much of the region contributed to the preservation of mummified bodies. © 2018 18 NOVA: Animal Mummies (2016) “It wasn’t just their pharaohs that the ancient Egyptians bundled up for the next world. Huge underground vaults were packed from floor to ceiling with a menagerie of mummified beasts—everything from falcons and ibises to cats and dogs, monkeys, shrews, fish, beetles, bulls, and crocodiles. Animal mummies were cranked out on an industrial scale to feed a nationwide obsession, including a staggering 8 million preserved dogs at one site alone. So why did they do it? NOVA joins a team of leading Egyptologists who deploy the latest medical imaging to peer beneath the wrappings without damaging the animal bodies inside. The results are enlightening, often surprising insights into the weird beliefs and practices that clung to the Egyptian quest for immortality.” © 2018 19 NOVA: Animal Mummies (2016) This 60-minute PBS documentary vividly portrays the process of mummification and its role in ancient Egyptian religion (www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ancient/animal-mummies.html ). © 2018 20 Warfare and Violence Egyptian armies were drafted from groups of indebted farmers, who had to provide their own weapons, though they were led by professional military organizers. Pharaohs are depicted as leading battles of conquest (whether this was metaphorical leadership or actual danger is unclear). Military conquests were one source of slaves for agricultural labor. © 2018 21 After the Old Kingdom Sometimes Egypt divided into polities with local rulers (nomarchs) or was ruled by outsiders. Causes of instability: climatic fluctuations, poor agricultural years, unpredictable floods, and internal political dissent Egypt divided around 2160 BC. © 2018 22 The Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate 11th Dynasty pharaoh Mentuhotep II reunified Egypt beginning the Middle Kingdom. Memphis became the capital of Egypt. The Cult of Osiris, centered at Abydos, grew in importance. The Second Intermediate Period, c. 1690 BC, The Hyksos seized control of Memphis and ruled Lower Egypt. Upper Egypt remained under the control of the Egyptian dynasty at Thebes. © 2018 23 The New Kingdom Pharaoh Ahmose I of the 18th Dynasty reunified Egypt by defeating the Hyksos. Many New Kingdom pharaohs are well known to us. – Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV) of the 18th Dynasty established the worship of a single deity, Aten (sun-disk). Monotheism in Egypt died with him. – Akhenaten and Nefertiti were the parents of Tutankhamun. – Tut’s tomb is probably the most well-known one in history. In life, he suffered from many physical ailments (his parents were either cousins or siblings), such as a club foot and cleft palate. – During the 19th Dynasty, Ramesses II built many monuments, including giant statues of himself and the temple at Abu Simbel. © 2018 24 After the New Kingdom The Third Intermediate Period: around 1069 BC, was a period of dissolution. The Persian Empire conquered Egypt in 525 BC. In 332 BC, Alexander the Great established Ptolemaic dynasties that controlled Egypt after his death. Cleopatra VII was the final Ptolemaic ruler and pharaoh of Egypt. After her death in 30 BC, Egypt became part of the Roman Empire. © 2018 25 Chapter 10 Review Learning Objectives 10.1 Review the timeline for this chapter. 10.2 Understand early food production in Egypt. 10.3 Examine details of the Predynastic Period. 10.4 Explain the rise of the Pharaonic State. 10.5 Understand key points of the Old Kingdom. 10.6 Understand changes associated with the Egypt’s multiple rises and falls. © 2018 26