Ancient Egyptian Civilization
Ancient Egyptian Civilization
Ancient Egyptian Civilization
For almost 30 centuries—from its unification around 3100 B.C. to its conquest by Alexander the
Great in 332 B.C.—ancient Egypt was the preeminent civilization in the Mediterranean world.
From the great pyramids of the Old Kingdom through the military conquests of the New
Kingdom, Egypt’s majesty has long entranced archaeologists and historians and created a vibrant
field of study all its own: Egyptology. The main sources of information about ancient Egypt are
the many monuments, objects and artifacts that have been recovered from archaeological sites,
covered with hieroglyphs that have only recently been deciphered. The picture that emerges is of
a culture with few equals in the beauty of its art, the accomplishment of its architecture or the
richness of its religious traditions.
TIME PERIOD
Egypt has 9 times of civilization
Few written records or artifacts have been found from the Predynastic Period, which
encompassed at least 2,000 years of gradual development of the Egyptian civilization. Neolithic
(late Stone Age) communities in northeastern Africa exchanged hunting for agriculture and made
early advances that paved the way for the later development of Egyptian arts and crafts,
technology, politics and religion (including a great reverence for the dead and possibly a belief in
life after death).
Around 3400 B.C., two separate kingdoms were established: the Red Land to the north, based in
the Nile River Delta and extending along the Nile perhaps to Atfih; and the White Land in the
south, stretching from Atfih to Gebel es-Silsila. A southern king, Scorpion, made the first
attempts to conquer the northern kingdom around 3200 B.C. A century later, King Menes would
subdue the north and unify the country, becoming the first king of the first dynasty.
GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION
Nile River and the Desert
In ancient times, the Egyptians called the desert the "red land", distinguishing it from the flood
plain around the Nile River, called the "black land". These colours reflect the fact that the desert
sands have a reddish hue and the land around the Nile turned black when the annual flood waters
receded.
The desert and the Nile River emerged millions of years ago when the ancient sea that covered
most of Europe and northern Africa (45 million years ago) shifted, forming the Mediterranean
Sea basin. This happened when the earth's plates moved, creating the Himalayas and the Alps.
Over thousands of years, the Nile River evolved into its present shape, surrounded by the Eastern
and Western deserts.
The Upper Nile is divided into three tributaries: the White Nile, the Blue Nile and the Atbara
River. The White Nile flows from Lake Victoria, Lake Edward and Lake George, and the Blue
Nile originates in the Ethiopian mountains. The Atbara River flows from the Ethiopian highlands
and meets the combined White Nile and Blue Nile just north of Khartoum. Before the river
enters the Mediterranean Sea, it divides into four smaller tributaries in the delta region.
The northern region of Egypt is bounded by two deserts, the mountainous Eastern, or Arabian,
Desert and the sandy Western, or Libyan, Desert. Nomadic tribes continue to roam these desert
regions as they have done for centuries, stopping at oases to replenish their water supplies.
Around 5000 B.C., when the climate became more arid, nomadic groups retreated to the Nile
Valley, creating the first urban settlements. These communities were concentrated in the North
and the South. As a result, Egypt became known as the "Double Land" or the "Two Lands" of
Upper and Lower Egypt.
The two lands were united in 3100 B.C. by the legendary King Menes. He established a new
administrative city where the Nile River branches out into the delta. In ancient times it was
called "White Walls" or Mennefer; the Greeks called it Memphis. It remained the capital of
Egypt for over 3,500 years. Although there is no archaeological proof that King Menes existed,
the famous
Narmer palette that depicts two images of a king, one wearing the crown of Upper Egypt and the
other the crown of Lower Egypt, is thought to depict King Menes. King Menes and King Narmer
may have been the same person, the first king of Egypt.
Dualities, such as desert and river valley, Upper and Lower Egypt, life and death, were an
important organizing principle of the Egyptian's world view.
CULTURE
Renaissance
The work of early nineteenth-century scholar Rifa'a et-Tahtawi gave rise to the Egyptian
Renaissance, marking the transition from Medieval to Early Modern Egypt. His work renewed
interest in Egyptian antiquity and exposed Egyptian society to Enlightenment principles. Tahtawi
co-founded with education reformer Ali Mubarak a native Egyptology school that looked for
inspiration to medieval Egyptian scholars, such as Suyuti and Maqrizi, who themselves studied
the history, language and antiquities of Egypt. Egypt's renaissance peaked in the late 19th and
early 20th centuries through the work of people like Muhammad Abduh, Ahmed Lutfi el-Sayed,
Tawfiq el-Hakim, Louis Awad, Qasim Amin, Salama Moussa, Taha Hussein and Mahmoud
Mokhtar. They forged a liberal path for Egypt expressed as a commitment to individual freedom,
secularism and faith in science to bring progress.
Art and architecture
The Egyptians were one of the first major civilizations to codify design elements in art and
architecture. The wall paintings done in the service of the Pharaohs followed a rigid code of
visual rules and meanings. Egyptian civilization is renowned for its colossal pyramids,
colonnades and monumental tombs. Well-known examples are the Pyramid of Djoser designed
by ancient architect and engineer Imhotep, the Sphinx, and the temple of Abu Simbel. Modern
and contemporary Egyptian art can be as diverse as any works in the world art scene, from the
vernacular architecture of Hassan Fathy and Ramses Wissa Wassef, to Mahmoud Mokhtar's
famous sculptures, to the distinctive Coptic iconography of Isaac Fanous.
The Cairo Opera House serves as the main performing arts venue in the Egyptian capital. Egypt's
media and arts industry has flourished since the late nineteenth century, today with more than
thirty satellite channels and over one hundred motion pictures produced each year. Cairo has
long been known as the "Hollywood of the Middle East;" its annual film festival, the Cairo
International Film Festival, has been rated as one of 11 festivals with a top class rating
worldwide by the International Federation of Film Producers' Associations. To bolster its media
industry further, especially with the keen competition from the Persian Gulf Arab States and
Lebanon, a large media city was built. Some Egyptian-born actors, like Omar Sharif, have
achieved worldwide fame.
Literature
Literature constitutes an important cultural element in the life of Egypt. Egyptian novelists and
poets were among the first to experiment with modern styles of Arabic literature, and the forms
they developed have been widely imitated throughout the Middle East.
The first modern Egyptian novel Zaynab by Muhammad Husayn Haykal was published in 1913
in the Egyptian vernacular. Egyptian novelist Naguib Mahfouz was the first Arabic-language
writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. Egyptian women writers include Nawal El Saadawi,
well known for her feminist activism, and Alifa Rifaat who also writes about women and
tradition. Vernacular poetry is perhaps the most popular literary genre amongst Egyptians,
represented by
the works of Ahmed Fouad Negm (Fagumi), Salah Jaheen and Abdel Rahman el-AbnudiIn their
belief, boats were used by the dead to accompany the sun around the world, as Heaven was
referred to as “Upper Waters”. In Egyptian mythology, every night the serpentine god Apophis
would attack the Sun Boat as it brought the sun (and as such order ) back to the Kingdom in the
morning. It is referred to as the “Boat of Millions” as all of the gods and all of the souls of the
blessed dead may at one point or another be needed to defend or operate it.
Music
Egyptian music is a rich mixture of indigenous, Mediterranean, African and Western elements.
In antiquity, Egyptians were playing harps and flutes, including two indigenous instruments: the
ney and the oud. Percussion and vocal music also became an important part of the local music
tradition ever since. Contemporary Egyptian music traces its beginnings to the creative work of
people such as Abdu-l Hamuli, Almaz and Mahmud Osman, who influenced the later work of
Egyptian music giants such as Amr Diab, Mohamed Mounir, Sayed Darwish, Umm Kulthum,
Mohammed Abdel Wahab and Abdel Halim Hafez. From the 1970s onwards, Egyptian pop
music has become increasingly important in Egyptian culture, while Egyptian folk music
continues to be played during weddings and other festivities.
Egypt is one of the boldest countries in the middle east in the music industry. The next
generation of the Egyptian music is considered to be the rise, as the music was disrupted by some
foreign influences, bad admixing, and abused oriental styles. The new arising talents starting
from the late 90's are taking over the rein now as they play many diffenet genres of many
different cultures. Rock And Metal music are prevailing widely in Egypt now,as much as the
oriental jazz and folk music are becoming well-known now to the Egyptian and non-Egyptian
fans.
Festivals
Egypt is famous for its many festivals and religious carnivals, also known as mulid. They are
usually associated with a particular Coptic or Sufi saint, but are often celebrated by all Egyptians
irrespective of creed or religion. Ramadan has a special flavor in Egypt, celebrated with sounds,
lights (local lanterns known as fawanees) and much flare that many Muslim tourists from the
region flock to Egypt during Ramadan to witness the spectacle. The ancient spring festival of
Sham en Nisim has been celebrated by Egyptians for thousands of years, typically between the
Egyptian months of Paremoude (April) and Pashons (May), following Easter Sunday.
INVENTIONS
The Pyramids
The oldest pyramid was erected for King Zoser between 2667-2648 BC.The oldest pyramid was
erected for King Zoser between 2667-2648 BC. In fact it is the first monumental stone building
designed and constructed that we know of.
Writing
Along with the Mesopotamians, the Egyptians were the first people to develop their language
into a codified form of writing. All early forms of writing were pictograms – pictures. All writing
systems developed in this way but their original forms become lost as the pictures are refined
into abstract forms. What is interesting about the Egyptians is that although their writing changed
to the abstract form of Hieratic they deliberately preserved the hieroglyphic pictures in their
original forms.
Papyrus Sheets
Papyrus sheets are the earliest paper-like material – all other civilisations used stone, clay tablets,
animal hide, wood materials or wax as a writing surface. Papyrus was, for over 3000 years, the
most important writing material in the ancient world. It was exported all around the
Mediterranean and was widely used in the Roman Empire as well as the Byzantine Empire. Its
use continued in Europe until the seventh century AD, when an embargo on exporting it forced
the Europeans to use parchment.
Black Ink
The Egyptians mixed vegetable gum, soot and bee wax to make black ink. They replaced soot
with other materials such as ochre to make various colours.
The Ox-drawn Plough
The Ox-drawn PloughUsing the power of oxen to pull the plough revolutionised agriculture and
modified versions of this Egyptian invention are still used by farmers in developing countries
around the world.
The Sickle
The sickle is a curved blade used for cutting and harvesting grain, such as wheat and barley.
Irrigation
The Egyptians constructed canals and irrigation ditches to harness Nile river’s yearly flood and
bring water to distant fields.
Shadoof
The shadoofThe Shadoof is a long balancing pole with a weight on one end and a bucket on the
other. The bucket is filled with water and easily raised then emptied onto higher ground.
The Calendar
The Egyptians devised the solar calendar by recording the yearly reappearance of Sirius (the Dog
Star) in the eastern sky. It was a fixed point which coincided with the yearly flooding of the Nile.
Their calendar had 365 days and 12 months with 30 days in each month and an additional five
festival days at the end of the year. However, they did not account for the additional fraction of a
day and their calendar gradually became incorrect. Eventually Ptolemy III added one day to the
365 days every four years.
Clocks
In order to tell the time Egyptians invented two types of clock.Obelisks were used as sun clocks
by noting how its shadow moved around its surface throughout the day. From the use of obelisks
they identified the longest and shortest days of the year. An inscription in the tomb of the court
official Amenemhet dating to the16th century BC shows a water clock made from a stone vessel
with a tiny hole at the bottom which allowed water to dripped at a constant rate. The passage of
hours could be measured from marks spaced at different levels. The priest at Karnak temple used
a similar instrument at night to determine the correct hour to perform religious rites.
The Police
During the Old and Middle Kingdoms order was kept by local officials with their own private
police forces. During the New Kingdom a more centralized police force developed, made up
primarily of Egypt’s Nubian allies, the Medjay. They were armed with staffs and used dogs.
Neither rich nor poor citizens were above the law and punishments ranged from confiscation of
property, beating and mutilation (including the cutting off of ears and noses) to death without a
proper burial. The Egyptians believed that a proper burial was essential for entering the afterlife,
so the threat of this last punishment was a real deterrent, and most crime was of a petty nature.
“They went to the granary, stole three great loaves and eight sabu-cakes of Rohusu berries. They
drew a bottle of beer which was cooling in water, while I was staying in my father’s room. My
Lord, let whatsoever has been stolen be given back to me.” (Eighteenth Dynasty)
Surgical Instruments
The Edwin Smith Papyrus shows the Egyptians invented medical surgery. It describes 48
surgical cases of injures of the head, neck, shoulders, breast and chest. It includes a list of
instruments used during surgeries with instructions for the suturing of wounds using a needle and
thread. This list includes lint, swabs, bandage, adhesive plaster, surgical stitches and
cauterization. It is also the earliest document to make a study of the brain. The Cairo Museum
has a collection of surgical instruments which include scalpels, scissors, copper needles, forceps,
spoons, lancets, hooks, probes and pincers.
Wigs
Ancient Egyptian WigDuring the hot summers many Egyptians shaved their heads to keep them
clean and prevent pests such as lice. Although priests remained bald as part of their purification
rituals, those that could afford it had wigs made in various styles and set with perfumed beeswax.
Cosmetic Makeup
The Egyptian invented eye makeup as far back as 4000 B.C. They combined soot with a lead
mineral called galena to create a black ointment known as kohl. They also made green eye
makeup by combining malachite with galena to tint the ointment.
Both men and women wore eye makup; believing it could cure eye diseases and keep them from
falling victim to the evil eye.
Toothpaste
At the 2003 dental conference in Vienna, dentists sampled a replication of ancient Egyptian
toothpaste. Its ingredients included powdered of ox hooves, ashes, burnt eggshells and pumice.
Another toothpaste recipe and a how-to-brush guide was written on a papyrus from the fourth
century AD describes how to mix precise amounts of rock salt, mint, dried iris flower and grains
of pepper, to form a “powder for white and perfect teeth.”
Mummification
The Egyptians were so expert at preserving the bodies of the dead that after thousands of years
we know of the diseases they suffered such as arthritis, tuberculosis of the bone, gout, tooth
decay, bladder stones, and gallstones; there is evidence, too, of the disease bilharziasis
(schistosomiasis), caused by small, parasitic flatworms, which still exists in Egypt today. There
seems to have been no syphilis or rickets.
Egyptian Hieroglyphics 2018
This is a brand new version that now works on Windows 10, MAC, iPad, Android and all mobile
phones. There are more than 1100 Hieroglyphic illustrations including 450 Egyptian word
examples and over 650 hieroglyphs from the Gardiner list.
Egyptian Hieroglyphics includes detailed information on the history of Egyptian writing and
mathematics, the use of the different types of symbols, how to write your name, how to
recognize kings names and the story of the scribe with a video showing how papyrus is made.
All the content can be printed including typewriter and calculator functions.
There are also navigation and search text functions. The Hieroglyphic Typewriter and Math
Calculator is included.
The Hieroglyphic Typewriter and Math Calculator is included. The on screen QWERTY
keyboard incorporates alphabet and number symbols together with a selection of determinative
signs. The keys include Latin symbols together with their hieroglyph equivalents and
descriptions, which allow you to type messages naturally and at a glance see the translations.