History 107 Lecture 5

1
History 107Lecture 5

• Early Egypt

2
Geography of Egypt

• Egypt is in North Africa and borders the
  Mediterranean Sea
  
• It lies between Libya and the Red Sea
• Divided by Nile River and Nile tributary
• Lush by water -- desert elsewhere
• Historic division between Upper Egypt (farther
  upriver) and Lower Egypt (bordering Mediterranean
  at the Nile Delta)
  
• Cairo in Egypt is Africas largest city

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Chronology of Ancient Egyptian History (kingdoms
and dynasties)

• Predynastic period (10,000-3100 B.C.E.)
• Archaic or Early Dynastic Period (c. 3100-2686
  B.C.E.)
  
• The Old Kingdom (c. 2686-2160 B.C.E.)
• The first intermediate period (c. 2160-2055
  B.C.E.)
  
• The Middle Kingdom (c. 2055-1650 B.C.E.)
• The second intermediate period (c. 1650-1550
  B.C.E.)
  
• The New Kingdom (c. 1550-1075 B.C.E.)

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Predynastic Era (10,000-3100 B.C.E.)

• Time before the pharaohs
• Basic agriculture develops like in ancient Sumer
• Innovations Irrigation, copper tools,
  hieroglyphs
  
• Early villages and cities form near Nile River
• First city (near modern Merimde Beni Salama)
  approximately 4,750 B.C.
  
• Upper Egypt was more populated than Lower Egypt

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Archaic (early dynastic) period c. 3100-2686
B.C.E.

• The birth of Egyptian civilization
• Unification of North and South c. 3100 B.C.
• Unification allowed free flow of traffic along
  Nile
  
• Centralized irrigation based on Nile
• Southern King Scorpion first pharaoh (king)
• King Narmer completes unification process
• Pharaohs see as divine or semi-divine
• Principle southern god Horus (sky god)
• Principle northern god Ra (sun god)

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Early Egyptian Religion

• Polytheism gods associated with natural world
• During unification, most local gods were merged
  into the sun god Re
  
• Later in Egyptian history Re was called Amon or
  Amon-Re
  
• Worship of Re brings peace and prosperity to
  Egypt
  
• Osiris god of Nile / agriculture (underworld
  judge)
  
• Seth, Isis, and Horus
• Afterlife beliefs (journey of the ka)
• Mummification
• Maat (the great cycle of life)

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The Egyptian Goddess Isis

• Egyptian Queen offers an offering to the goddess
  Isis wall painting in tomb, 1279 B.C. (Valley of
  Queens)
  
• Associated with mothering, protection, and
  mourning for the dead

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Egyptian Book of the Dead

• Magical texts on pyramid walls and (later)
  personal scrolls
  
• Used to prepare for judgment after death in the
  underworld by Osiris and 42 judges
  
• Goal Present oneself as sinless before the gods
• Categories of sin include sexuality, economy,
  agriculture, religion, murder, and theft
  
• Weighing of the heart
• Absolution texts
• Charms

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Judgment Before Osiris

• Osiris weighs a dead mans heart against the
  ostrich feather of Maat painted papyrus, c.
  1285 B.C.

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Egyptian Book of the Dead

• What do these writings and images tell us learn
  about early Egypt and their view of the world?