chapter 4 section 2 life in ancient egypt. egypt’s first residents around 7000 b.c. nomads lived...
TRANSCRIPT
Chapter 4 Section 2
Life in Ancient Egypt
Egypt’s First Residents• Around 7000 B.C. nomads lived in
small camps in the Nile Valley
• Egypt was divided into two separate kingdoms Upper and Lower Egypt.
Egypt’s First Residents
• 3100 B.C. the two kingdoms were united by King Menes
Pharaoh• Kings of Egypt thought to be
gods themselves.
• Egyptian word meaning “great house”
Pharaoh• Was considered the kingdoms most
important high priest, lawmaker, and leader in battle.
Dynasty• Group of rulers over several
generations descending from the same family.
Viziers• Second highest ranking to pharaoh. • People selected by the pharaoh to be
judges, mayors, and supervisors of tax collectors.
Chief of Treasury
• Third highest Rank to pharaoh• Managed the tax money
King or Pharaoh
Viziers
Common Citizens
Chief of Treasury
Egypt’s Social Classes• Egypt had upper, middle, and lower
class citizens.• Merchants, manufacturers, and crafts
people made up the middle class
Egypt’s Social Classes
• Poor farmers and unskilled workers made up the lower class.
• Prisoners and slaves were at the very bottom.
Egyptian Invention• In about 3000 B.C. the Egyptians
began to make paper from the papyrus plants that grew in the Nile River.
Egyptian Invention• Prior to this all writing had to be in
stone or on clay tablets.
• The word paper is from “papyrus”
Hieroglyphics• Egyptian writing system which
used pictures and symbols to represent words and ideas.
Hieroglyphics• Hieroglyphics were used for almost
4000 years. But once people stopped using it, everyone forgot how to read it.
Rosetta Stone• Discovered in 1799 A.D. it
included a carved message written in three different languages including Hieroglyphic and Greek.
• Greek could still be read so the Hieroglyphs could be translated.
Egypt’s Religion
• The Egyptians were polytheistic and worshipped hundreds of gods.
Osiris• Egyptian god who ruled over the
dead and underworld
Ra• Egyptian god of the sun• Temples were built and thought to
be the home of the gods.
Afterlife• Egyptians believed they had a “ka”, or
spirit.
• They believed the ka lived after their body died and remained in the tomb with the body.
Afterlife• Egyptian tombs were filled with
items that they believed the ka would need: furniture, scrolls, games, jewelry, etc….
Mummification
• Egyptians believed it was important for the ka to recognize the body. Therefore the body had to be preserved.
Egyptian Burial
• Early Egyptians buried their dead in the sand.
• But this led to wild animals and sand storms disrupting the graves.
Egyptian Burial
• For this reason Egyptian kings and nobles built long lasting burial chambers.
Pyramids• 2650 B.C. the first pyramid is built
as a tomb for pharaoh Djoser (DZOH suhr)
Later Burial Practices
• Pyramids became an easy target for thieves who stole the items left for the ka.
Later Burial Practices
• To better hide their tombs, later pharaohs built their burial sights into cliffs in the “Valley of the Kings”
Mummy Medicine• Still the tombs were raided
because from the 1500s to the 1700s A.D. mummies were believed to be have medical uses.
• Powdered mummy was a popular medicine in Europe for bruises, wounds, and stomach aches