Egypt is located in the Northeast corner of Africa. The Nile River is in the middle of Egypt which is why farming was so successful in Egypt. Egypt is full of hot and dry deserts with little precipitation. The weather is too hot for some humans and even some animals.
Stable Food Supply
Egyptians were successful farmers even in the hot and dry deserts of Ancient Egypt . The main reason the Egyptians were so skilled in planting crops was because they lived next to the Nile River. Which when the Nile flooded it would water the crops! Egyptians ate pigs, geese, goats, cattle, and used donkeys to plow fields and push the seeds into the soil. A piece of technology they used to harvest crops were sickles. Egyptians grew wheat, barley, vegetables, garlic, fruits, pomegranates, and etc.
This Social Pyramid shows the levels of Ancient Egypt. At the top of the social class is the one person most respected by Egyptians.The Pharaoh! The Pharaoh's vizier is right below the Pharaoh. Some other jobs apart of the Social Structure are nobles, priests, scribes, soldiers, artisans, farmers, slaves. Slaves and farmers were the least appreciated by Ancient Egypt.
Ancient Egypt would worship gods and goddesses of their choice.This is part of the religion shown by Egypt. One of the gods worshiped by the people was Osiris. He was the god of mummification. He had the head of a bull or mummy, but the body of a human. Another God was Anubis. He was the god of the dead and the underworld. Anubis had the head of a jackal and body of a human. His head of the jackal is black for the color of death. He prepared dead people to get buried. Another god was Horus. Horus had the head of a falcon. Horus is the sky god and the son of the sun god. He was also the god of war and the god of protection against evil. Horus is actually known for being like a Pharaoh. Last but not least comes Ra. Ra was the god of the sun. He had the head of a sun. He traveled in boats with his group from sunrise in the east and sunset in the west every day he lived. The Egyptians believed in these gods. They believed that the gods could affect there life positively or negatively only if they do something for the god. This affected there life because every day they would pray to the gods and the god would tell them what they should do. For example gods would order people to plant crops. These beliefs were important because if their wish was granted there life could change positively or negatively.
The form of government the Egyptians ran was run by the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh would create laws to unify Egypt. All of Egypt had to obey these laws to please the Pharaoh. One Pharaoh who made a name for himself was Rameses II. Rameses II was known as a good man, husband, and great father. A major achievement he reached was the building of the temple of Abu. This temple was a huge accomplishment for the Egyptians. He ordered craftspeople to build so many statues he also ordered them to chisel his name onto the statue as a signature. Another Pharaoh was the first women pharaoh named Hatshepsut. She was very intelligent and created Egypt to have lots of m. She was known for being the first women pharaoh. She built grand temples and statues. Another Pharaoh was Khufu. Known for the success of the great pyramids. He built one very huge pyramid called Great Pyramid of Giza. Khufu declared himself a strong god. He was a strong and powerful leader. The last Pharaoh is Senusret. Senusret flourished in art, literature, and architecture. He created mines filled with gold. He built many temples and shrines. These Pharaohs were generals for the army. They created the laws and were responsible for the people.
They started to build sculptures in 4500 B.C. The Egyptians enjoyed to carve small figurines of women out of wood. After artisans had more experience with sculptures they started to carve life size sculptures that they painted. Artisans used chisels and mallots.
The musicians were mostly women who enjoyed to entertain people. The instruments they used involved flutes, harps, rattles, and lutes. Some musicians even got to perform in front of the pharaoh, but you had to be very skilled.
Egypt painters painted on rocks, tombs, and papyrus. In Egypt, painters worked in large groups to create masterpieces. They used lots of colors in their masterpieces. Painters were most known for painting the tombs of pharaohs.
Architects built grand pyramids that were so creative in that time period. They built these huge pyramids for burial grounds for Pharaohs. Architects also built Sphinxes. They served for monuments for pharaohs. How did Architects build the pyramids? Well, they invented ramps to get up higher and higher to reach the top. Thats how they
Advances in Technology
Egyptians invented ramps and levers to help to build pyramids. Ramps and levers enabled them to get into higher positions easier and safer. First to invent a papyrus sheet to write on, draw on, and paint on. Papyrus was great to write letters on and to send messages among people in Egypt. Egyptians were first to build wooden boats. They used the boats as transportation on the Nile River. The boats carried people and cargo to trade with other ancient cities. They invented medicines for illness.
The Ancient Egyptians created a writing system called hieroglyphics. This was a picture system which means they used pictures as there words. They used papyrus to write on. They wrote with a hand brush that painters used. They used writing on tombs and messages to people. We today know how to read hieroglyphics from the Rosetta Stone displayed in the British Museum of London. The Rosetta Stone also has two other languages on it.
Connection #1: One connection I have today between my life and their life is we both have a system of Government. Egyptians had a Pharaoh who ruled the land and created laws. This reminds me of our President today. Our President rules America and he creates laws to unify our country just like a Pharaoh would do!
Connection #2: The second connection I can make is we are both successful in building monuments. Egyptians for example built pyramids and Sphinxes. We today are building marvelous structures such as Washington Monument in Washington D.C. Which actually has a similar shape as the pyramids in Egypt.
Connection #3: The last connection I can make is with our religion. Egyptians chose what god they wanted to worship. Someone might worship Osiris or Horus. In my life I go to church on Sunday and worship Jesus. Then other people in my life might worship somebody different and its their choice.