Nile Valley Civilisation
Nile Valley Civilisation
Nile Valley Civilisation
Egyptian rulers used the idea of divine kingship and constructed monumental
architecture to demonstrate and maintain power.After political unification, divine
kingship, or the idea that a political ruler held his power by favor of a god or
gods—or that he was a living incarnation of a god—became firmly established in
Egypt.
During the Old Kingdom period, Egypt was largely unified as a single state; it
gained in complexity and achievement and expanded militarily. Old Kingdom
rulers built the first pyramids, which were both tombs and monuments for the
kings who had them built.
The Middle Kingdom saw Egypt unified again as kings found ways to take back
power from regional governors. From the Middle Kingdom forward, Egyptian
kings often kept well-trained standing armies. The ability of the Egyptian state to
create and maintain a standing military force and to build fortifications showed that
it had regained control of substantial resources.
Taking advantage of this political instability in Egypt, the Hyksos appeared around
1650 BCE. They were a Semitic people, meaning they spoke a language that
originated in the Middle East, which indicated that they were not native to Egypt.
The Hyksos imposed their own political rulers but also brought many cultural and
technological innovations, such as bronze working and pottery techniques, new
breeds of animals and new crops, the horse and chariot, the composite bow, battle-
axes, and fortification techniques for warfare.
Around 1550 BCE, the New Kingdom period of Egyptian history began with the
expulsion of the Hyksos from Egypt and restored centralized political control. This
period was Egypt's most prosperous time and marked the peak of its power.
Also in this period, Hatshepsut, Egypt’s most famous female ruler, established
trade networks that helped build the wealth of Egypt and commissioned hundreds
of construction projects and pieces of statuary, as well as an impressive mortuary
temple at Deir el-Bahri. She also ordered repairs to temples that had been
neglected or damaged during the period of Hyksos rule.
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SOCIAL STRUCTURE
Egyptian society was structured like a pyramid. At the top were the gods,
such as Ra, Osiris, and Isis. Egyptians believed that the gods controlled the
universe. Therefore, it was important to keep them happy. They could make
the Nile overflow, cause famine, or even bring death.
In the social pyramid of ancient Egypt the pharaoh and those associated with divinity were at the top, and servants
and slaves made up the bottom.
The Egyptians also elevated some human beings to gods. Their leaders,
called pharaohs, were believed to be gods in human form. They had absolute
power over their subjects. After pharaohs died, huge stone pyramids were
built as their tombs. Pharaohs were buried in chambers within the pyramids.
Because the people of Egypt believed that their pharaohs were gods, they
entrusted their rulers with many responsibilities. Protection was at the top of
the list. The pharaoh directed the army in case of a foreign threat or an
internal conflict. All laws were enacted at the discretion of the pharaoh.
Each farmer paid taxes in the form of grain, which were stored in the
pharaoh's warehouses. This grain was used to feed the people in the event of
a famine.
Right below the pharaoh in status were powerful nobles and priests. Only
nobles could hold government posts; in these positions they profited from
tributes paid to the pharaoh. Priests were responsible for pleasing the
gods.Nobles enjoyed great status and also grew wealthy from donations to
the gods. All Egyptians — from pharaohs to farmers — gave gifts to the
gods.
CHARACTERISTICS OF ARCHITECTURE
Elites, those individuals who were wealthy and powerful, began
building larger tombs which were precursors to the pyramids. These
tombs represented a growing divide between the elite and common
people in Egyptian society. Only the wealthy and important could
afford and be considered as deserving of such elaborate burials.
Due to the scarcity of wood,[1] the two predominant building materials used
in ancient Egypt were sun-baked mud brick and stone, mainly limestone, but
also sandstone and granite in considerable quantities. From the Old
Kingdom onward, stone was generally reserved for tombs and temples,
while bricks were used even for royal palaces, fortresses, the walls of temple
precincts and towns, and for subsidiary buildings in temple complexes.
The core of the pyramids consisted of locally quarried stone, mudbricks,
sand or gravel. For the casing stones were used that had to be transported
from farther away, predominantly white limestone from Tura and red granite
from upper Egypt.
Ancient Egyptian houses were made out of mud collected from the damp
banks of the Nile river. It was placed in moulds and left to dry in the hot sun
to harden for use in construction. If the bricks were intended to be used in a
royal tomb like a pyramid, the exterior bricks would also be finely chiselled
and polished.
MASTABA
Mastaba, (Arabic: “bench”) rectangular superstructure of
ancient Egyptian tombs, built of mud brick or, later, stone, with sloping
walls and a flat roof. A deep shaft descended to the underground burial
chamber.
The term mastaba was first used archaeologically in the 19th century by
workmen on Auguste Mariette’s excavation at Ṣaqqārah to describe the
rectangular, flat-topped stone superstructures of tombs.
A mastaba, which was the typical grave marker for early Egyptian
elites. Looks like a pyramid except lower to the ground and with a flat
top instead of a pointed one.
PYRAMIDS OF GIZA
The Great Pyramid of Giza (also known as the Pyramid of Khufu or
the Pyramid of Cheops) is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in
the Giza pyramid complex bordering what is now El Giza, Egypt. It is the
oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one to
remain largely intact.
The pyramids, which were built in the Fourth Dynasty, testify to the power
of the pharaonic religion and state. They were built to serve both as grave
sites and also as a way to make their names last forever. The size and simple
design show the high skill level of Egyptian design and engineering on a
large scale. The Great Pyramid of Giza, which was probably completed c.
2580 BC, is the oldest of the Giza pyramids and the largest pyramid in the
world, and is the only surviving monument of the Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World.
Egyptologists believe the pyramid was built as a tomb for the Fourth
Dynasty Egyptian pharaoh Khufu (often Hellenized as "Cheops") and was
constructed over a 20-year period. Khufu's vizier, Hemiunu (also called
Hemon) is believed by some to be the architect of the Great Pyramid.
PYRAMID OF KHUFU
For the Old Kingdom the most characteristic form of tomb building
was the true pyramid, the finest example of which is the Great
Pyramid of King Khufu (Cheops) of the 4th dynasty, at Al-
Jīzah (Giza). The form itself reached its maturity in the reign of
Snefru, father of Khufu. Subsequently only the pyramid
of Khafre (Chephren), Khufu’s successor, approached the size and
perfection of the Great Pyramid.
The pyramid formed the focal point of a group of buildings
that constituted the funerary complex of a king. Two temples linked
by a causeway were essential components. The valley temple, built on
the edge of the desert escarpment, was the place of reception for the
royal body.
TEMPLE AT KARANAK
The temple complex of Karnak is located on the banks of the Nile River
some 2.5 kilometers (1.5 mi) north of Luxor. It consists of four main parts,
the Precinct of Amon-Re, the Precinct of Montu, the Precinct of Mut and
the Temple of Amenhotep IV (dismantled), as well as a few smaller temples
and sanctuaries located outside the enclosing walls of the four main parts,
and several avenues of ram-headed sphinxes connecting the Precinct of Mut,
the Precinct of Amon-Re and Luxor Temple
This temple complex is particularly significant, for many rulers have added
to it. However, notably every ruler of the New Kingdom added to it. The site
covers over 200 acres and consists of a series of pylons, leading into
courtyards, halls, chapels, obelisks, and smaller temples. The key difference
between Karnak and most of the other temples and sites in Egypt is the
length of time over which it was developed and used.
One of the greatest temples in Egyptian history is that of Amun-Ra at
Karnak. As with many other temples in Egypt, this one details the feats of
the past (including thousands of years of history detailed via inscriptions on
many of the walls and columns found on site, often modified or completely
erased and redone by following rulers), and honors the gods.
TEL-EL-AMARNA
Amarna is an extensive Egyptian archaeological site that represents the
remains of the capital city newly established (1346 BC) and built by
the Pharaoh Akhenaten of the late Eighteenth Dynasty, and abandoned
shortly after his death (1332 BC).The name for the city employed by
the ancient Egyptians is written as Akhetaten (or Akhetaton—
transliterations vary) in English transliteration. Akhetaten means
"Horizon of the Aten".[2]
The area is located on the east bank of the Nile River in the modern
Egyptian province of Minya, some 58 km (36 mi) south of the city of al-
Minya, 312 km (194 mi) south of the Egyptian capital Cairo and 402 km
(250 mi) north of Luxor.] The city of Deir Mawas lies directly west across
from the site of Amarna. Amarna, on the east side, includes several modern
villages, chief of which are el-Till in the north and el-Hagg Qandil in the
south.
The area was also occupied during later Roman and early Christian times;
excavations to the south of the city have found several structures from this
period.