ANCIENT EGYPT

ancient egypt

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Miriam El Bazi Tallón 1ºC

index

1. CENTRAL GOVERNMENT
2. COMPLEX RELIGION
3. DIVISON OF LABOR
4. SOCIAL CLASSES
5. ART AND ARCHITECTURE
6. PUBLIC WORKS PROJECTS
7. WRITING
8. BIBLIOGRAPHY

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CENTRAL GOVERNMENT INTERVIEW WITH RAMESSES II

-Hi Ramesses! My name is Miriam. I am going to ask you some questions. Are you ready?

-Yes I am!

-Perfect! Let start, first question: when were you born?

-I was born in 1303 BC

-Oh, and what type of power do you have as the supreme ruler?

Well, I'm a pharaoh so I have the maximum power

-You are very powerful! Are you also a god?

-In the 30th years of my reign, I was ritually transformed into an Egyptian god

-That's interesting! And can women also be pharaohs?

-Yes, they can

-Can you give me some examples please?

Some of them are Cleopatra VII Philapator, Twosret, Hatshepsut, Nefertiti...

-You are known as Ramesses the Great for your conquests. Can you tell me, at least, the name of two territories conquered by your army?

-These are the attributes that you were because you are the pharaoh, what are their names and what do they mean?

-I conquered a lot of territories like Sudan, Cyprus, Lebanon, Syria...

-This is the painting of one of your battles against the Nubians, why are you represented much taller than your enemies?

1. White hedjet crown: Upper Egypt
2. Red deshret crown: Lower Egypt
3. Uraeus: A symbol of protection
4. False beard or Postiche: express our status as a living god by wearing a false beard
5. Heqa Sceptre:was closely associated with the king and was even used to write the word “ruler” and “rule” in hieroglyphics.
6. Flail: is associated with the regal gods such as Andjety and Osiris

-Pharaohs are more powerful thn anyone so we are represented like that

-Egypt is a country far too big for one person to rule it, who helps you governing it?

-Nefertari helps me governing it

Taxes are used by the government to invest in technology and education, and to provide goods and services for the benefit of people. My subjects don't pay taxes

-Look, here is the painting of the Nubians paying tribute to you, the pharaoh. What are they delivering?

-And that were all the questions that I wanted to ask you, thank you so much! It was nice to meet you!

You're welcome! It is a pleasure

-They are giving me food to pay tribute to me

-Do you collect personally taxes from the Egyptians? Who does it? What are taxes used for? Your subjects pay their taxes in currency?

-Egyptians don't have coined money, so their taxes are collected on harvests and property. Although the pharaohs like me, we receive all the collected taxes, we don't actually collect the taxes themselves. Instead the pharaohs appointed ministers called viziers who acted as tax supervisors.

QUESTION 1. Are ancient Egyptians monotheistic or polytheistic?

COMPLEX RELIGION DOSSIER

Egyptian religion was polytheistic. The gods who inhabited the bounded and ultimately perishable cosmos varied in nature and capacity. The word netjer (“god”) described a much wider range of beings than the deities of monotheistic religions

QUESTION 2. What does polytheistic mean?

COMPLEX RELIGION OF EGIPT

Polytheism is a term for a belief system based on the belief in multiple deities.

EXERCISE 3. These are images of the most popular gods and goddesses. Find out which powers they have

Horus: Horus represents the power and importance of the sun and sky in all aspects of ancient Egyptian life.

Ptah: also spelled Phthah, in Egyptian religion, creator-god and maker of things

Anubis: also called Anpu, ancient Egyptian god of the dead

Set: Set was the god of war, chaos and storms, brother of Osiris, Isis, and Horus the Elder

Osiris: one of Egypt's most important deities, was god of the underworld

Thoth: Thoth, (Greek), Egyptian Djhuty, in Egyptian religion, a god of the moon, of reckoning, of learning, and of writing

Isis: is a goddess in Egyptian mythology. She was known as the goddess of the moon.

Khnum: also spelled Khnemu, ancient Egyptian god of fertility, associated with water and with procreation

QUESTION 5. Who is in charge of the ceremonies and sacrifices to the gods in ancient Egypt?

Hathor: in ancient Egyptian religion, goddess of the sky, of women, and of fertility and love

Sobek: was a god of the Nile who brought fertility to the land

In mortuary temples, priests conducted similar ceremonies to nourish the ka (soul-spirit) of a deceased pharaoh or noble.

Ra: He was the god of the sun, order, kings and the sky.

QUESTION 6. Apart from being religious centres, what other functions do temples have?

Amon: also spelled Amun, Amen, or Ammon, Egyptian deity who was revered as king of the gods

1. Avenue of sphinxes: The paths leading to the temple entrances were commonly lined with statues of sphinxes. Typically, the sphinx statues were human headed and often took on the likeness of the pharaoh who commissioned them. They were believed to spiritually protect the sacred precinct.

A temple is a structure usually built for the purpose of, and always dedicated to, religious or spiritual activities including prayer, meditation, sacrifice and worship

EXERCISE 7. Watch the image of the temple and find out which are the names of its parts and what these parts are used for

2. Pylons: are consistently built as two massive trapezoid and were used for sun rituals3. Courtyard: is usually a Peristyle court, with a colonnade, that transitioned between the sacred and the more public areas. 4. Hypostyle hall: traverses the width of the temple and a regular feature is its columns 5. The Sanctuary: is the most sacred part of all temples and its function was to house the image within which the god rested

EXERCISE 8. Find out what the process of mummification consists of and which steps you must follow

8. Cover the corpse with natron (salt) for 70 days 9. After 40 days stuff the body with linen or sand to give it a more human shape 10. After the 70 days wrap the body from head to toe in bandages 11. Place in a sarcophagus (a type of box like a coffin)

Ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife when someone died. Mummification helped someone reach the afterlife as they believed that an afterlife could only exist if there was a form the ka (soul) could repossess after death. Egyptians believed that the only way to do this was if the body was recognisable. This is why they spent so long on the process of mummification and why Pharoahs began the building of their tombs during their lifetimes.

EXERCISE 9. Find out what ancient Egyptians think will happen to them after death, when confronting with their good and bad actions in the final Judgement. Describe what is happening in this scene and which 2 results are possible

This is the step-by-step process of how mummification took place:1. Insert a hook through a hole near the nose and pull out part of the brain 2. Make a cut on the left side of the body near the tummy 3. Remove all internal organs 4. Let the internal organs dry 5. Place the lungs, intestines, stomach and liver inside canopic jars 6. Place the heart back inside the body 7. Rinse inside of body with wine and spices

The ancient Egyptians believed that when they died their spiritual body would continue to exist in an afterlife very similar to their living world. However, entry into this afterlife was not guaranteed. The dead had to negotiate a dangerous underworld journey and face the final judgment before they were granted access

If the scales were balanced, the deceased had passed the test and was taken before Osiris who welcomed them into the afterlife. For those who were concerned about this test, they could recite the spell (usually Spell 30B from the Book of the Dead) inscribed on their heart scarab amulet to prevent their heart from ‘betraying’ them.

Once the journey through the underworld is complete, the deceased reach the Hall of Final Judgment. Judgment involved a two-part process: Part 1: standing before the 42 divine judges Here they stood before 42 divine judges and pleaded their innocence of any wrongdoing during their lifetime. The Book of the Dead provided them with the correct words to use for each of the judges, ensuring that they would pass this part of the judgement process even if they had not been completely innocent. Part 2: weighing the heart The second part of the judgement process was the ‘Weighing of the Heart’ ceremony. The heart, which contained a record of all the deceased’s actions in life, was weighed against the feather of the goddess Ma’at. This feather was the symbol for truth and justice and helped determine whether the deceased person had indeed been virtuous. If the heart was found to be heavier than the feather, it was fed to Ammut, the ‘Devourer’, and the soul was cast into darkness.

DIVISON OF LABOR

Egyptian merchant: Egyptian merchants (actually, they were more like traders) carried products such as gold, papyrus made into writing paper or twisted into rope, linen cloth, and jewelry to other countries

What the job of these people consists of

Noble: Nobles in Egyptian society were related to the pharaoh, priests, scribes, doctors, lawyers, or important military personnel

Egyptian artisan: Workers in this class included carpenters, jewelers, leatherworkers, metalworkers, painters, potters, sculptors, and weavers. Artisans made many beautiful objects, including stunning jewelry and elegant furniture

Egyptian soldier: The role of the Ancient Egyptian soldier was to either defend the country or be prepared to make pre-emptive strikes against their enemies. A series of fortresses were built on strategic locations on each of the borders of Egypt.

Egyptian scribes: Scribes were in attendance to record the stocks of foods, court proceedings, wills and other legal documents, tax records, magic spells and all of the things that happened every day in the life of the pharaoh.

Egyptian peasant: The majority of peasants worked in the fields producing crops, while some worked as servants in the homes of wealthy nobles

Egyptian slave: Slaves were very important in ancient Egypt as a big part of the labor force, but they were also used for many other purposes. Many slaves were house servants, gardeners, farm labor, musicians and dancers of excellent talent, scribes

SOCIAL CLASSES

And answer the following questions:

- When you go upwards, is there more or less people?

EXERCISE 1. Find out what a hierarchy is.

When you go upwards, there is less people

The definition of hierarchy is a group of people or things arranged in order of rank or the people that rank at the top of such a system

- Do they have more or less power?

They have more power

- When you go downwards, is there more or less people?

EXERCISE 2.Find an image of the social structure in Egypt

When you go downwards, there is more people

- Do they have more or less power?

They have less power

EXERCISE 3 - Now, choose one of the social classes and write a brief text about how a day in your life should be. Who is socially placed above you? Who is socially placed below you?

Hi! I am a slave, my name is Miriam and I work for the pharaoh. Today, I will tell you what I do in a day

First, I get up and I leave the slave's room. I work washing the floor, cleaning the dishes... until having lunch. After lunch, I continue cleaning and doing what the pharaoh says. After having lunch in the slave's room, we, the slaves, go to sleep to have energy for the next day. And that it! This is what I do in a day

larger

red

yellow

limbs

shoulders

ART AND ARCHITECTURE

vanishing

registers

You are going to learn how to paint following the Egyptian style. Watch the video and complete the list of rules (in the next page) that every responsible Egyptian painter had to follow

battle

closer

further

QUESTION 3. What is a shadoof? Find an image and explain what it was used for

PUBLICS WORKS PROJECTS

The shaduf was used to lift water from one place to another to irrigate crops. Despite the arid desert, the Ancient Egyptians grew barley, wheat and other crops. The typical shaduf was able to hold 20 litres of water. The container part of the device was usually made from animal skins or clay.

QUESTION 1. With which means of transport have you travelled from Memphis to the Valley of the kings? Describe it

I travelled by boat, the travel was very long and I pass through the Nile River. It was so hot and I am very tired now!

QUESTION 2. Find out how many seasons were there in ancient Egypt. What was their name? What did Egyptian peasants do in each of these seasons?

There were three different seasons in Ancient Egypt: Akhet, which was flood season, Peret, which was growing season and Shemu which was harvest season. Another name for flooding season was called inundation.

QUESTION 5. Name (and find images) 6 crops ancient Egyptians used to cultivate

QUESTION 4. What is a nilometer? Find an image and explain what it was used for

Wheet, barley, vegetables, figs, melons and vines.

A nilometer was a structure for measuring the Nile River's clarity and water level during the annual flood season

QUESTION 3. What kind of things does he record in his documents?

QUESTION 6. Ancient Egyptians had a complex and very well structured system of irrigation canals. How did they control the flow of water in canals? They also dug reservoirs. Why?

Writing letters, amount of crops harvested, calculating food rations and ordering supplies for the army

Since the crops needed water to grow, the ancient Egyptians also invented a system of canals that they dug to irrigate their crops. Besides, they built gates into these canals to control the flow of the water and built reservoirs to hold water supplies in case of drought

QUESTION 4. If his profession is considered prestigious or humble?

It is considered prestigious and very important

QUESTION 5. Can girls become scribes?

They is some evidence of girls becoming scribes

WRITING

QUESTION 1. How many school years does it take to become a scribe?

From 5 to 8 years. Maximum 12 years

QUESTION 2. What materials does a scribe use for his job?

They used papyrus, a reed, reed pens and the ink

WRITING

EXERCISE 1. So.... where is the jewel?

T U T A N K H A

U N S T O M B

EXERCISE 2. Find 3 different images of Tutankhamun's tomb

QUESTION 3. How old was he when he died?

Tutankhamun died at age 19

QUESTION 4. Where is his tomb?

The tomb of young pharaoh Tutankhamun (designated KV62 in Egyptology) is located in the Valley of the Kings, near Thebes, Egypt (modern-day Luxor).

AND THIS IS THE END! I HOPE YOU LIKED IT. NOW, I KNOW A LOT ABOUT ANCIENT EGYPT

QUESTION 5. Who was Tutankhamun?

King Tutankhamun (or Tutankhamen) ruled Egypt as pharaoh for 10 years until his death at age 19, around 1324 B.C. Although his rule was notable for reversing the tumultuous religious reforms of his father,

QUESTION 6. Name 3 things found in his tomb that have called your attention

Weapons, chariots and chairs

-There was a legend, during a time, about the ’curse of Tutankhamun’. What was this legend about?

As legend has it, there is an ancient curse associated with the mummys and tombs of the Egyptian pharaohs. Disturbing these embalmed remains has been said to bring bad luck, illness and death. Shortly after unearthing King Tut's tomb, Carnarvon was found dead.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

https://www.memphistours.com/Egypt/Egypt-Wikis/Egypt-History/wiki/Ramesses-II

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