Post on 16-Dec-2015
transcript
Ancient EgyptLesson 2
Pyramids at Giza
Pyramid of Menkaure
Pyramid of Khafre
Pyramid of Khufu “The Great Pyramid”
Old Kingdom Old Kingdom – Period from about 2600 BC – 2200 BC Time of growth, religion and when the Great Pyramid
was built. Pyramids were only built during the Old Kingdom.
Egypt’s Religion Egyptians believed in many gods/goddesses (deities)
Polytheism – the belief in many gods Re – main Egyptian god = sun god Isis – goddess who represents the loyal wife and mother & ruled
the underworld with her husband Osiris Hapi – ruled the Nile River Osiris – husband of Isis – ruled the underworld
Pyramids Built as tombs for the pharaohs All entrances faced north Farmers did most of the building during the
flood season Built without the use of the wheel or iron tools
Were meant to protect the pharaoh's body, however, attracted robbers and all pyramids were raided and robbed. This is why they stopped building them after the Old Kingdom.
The First Pyramid Imhotep, King Zoser’s chief advisor, designed the first
pyramid. This was the first large stone structure in the world. Because of its shape, it is called the Step Pyramid
The Step Pyramid of ZoserImhotep – Architect of the Step Pyramid. So influential that he was declared a god
Pyramids were built as tombs for the pharaohs after they died. They were not palaces where the king lived
Explore the Great Pyramid
The Great Pyramid of Khufu Built for King Khufu Largest of all the pyramids (there are 118 pyramids discovered so far) Tallest building in the world for over 4,000 years
Was 481 feet tall, but now only 456 due to erosion and the removal of stone.
Only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing
Egyptian Advancements 365-day calendar with 12 months (basis for modern
calendar Written numbers based on 10 fractions
Burial Process Egyptians believed that if the body decayed, the spirit would die. In order to prevent this from happening, the body is “mummified”
The organs are removed. The heart is not removed because it is the center of intelligence and is needed in the afterlife
The brain is removed and thrown away, its use was not known to the Egyptians
The dehydrated internal organs are wrapped in linen and returned to the body. The body is stuffed with dry materials such as sawdust, leaves and linen so that it looks lifelike
Duamutef the jackal-headed god looks after the stomach
In early mummies, organs were not returned to the body, but keep in canopic jars
Imsety the human-headed god looks after the liver.
Hapi the baboon-headed god looks after the lungs
Qebehsenuef the falcon-headed god looks after the intestines.
Step 2 - Wrapping The arms and legs are
wrapped separately. Between the layers of wrapping, the embalmers place amulets to protect the body in its journey through the underworld.
The arms and legs are tied together. A papyrus scroll with spells from the Book of the Dead is placed between the wrapped hands.
Finally, a large cloth is wrapped around the entire mummy.
The mummy is lowered into its coffin. The first coffin is then put inside a second coffin
It is finally place in the final sarcophagus and placed in a tomb with the person’s favorite possessions. Why?
To have them in the afterlife
The Book of the Dead Contained prayers,
hymns, and magic spells Was buried with a
person to help them get to the afterlife
Sections from the Book of the Dead
Weighing of the Souls After a person died, a god (Anubis) would weight the
person’s soul against the “feather of truth” If the soul was heavy with sin (heavier than the
feather), the person would die a 2nd death with no afterlife. A soul that was lighter would live a happy afterlife
Anubis weighing a persons heart (soul) against the “feather of truth”
Amon (Amun) King of the Gods Head of a ram Anubis God of Mummification Head of a jackal Bast Goddess of Protection Head of a cat Geb Earth God Head of a goose Hathor Sky Goddess Head of a cow Sekmet Goddess of war and battle Head of a lioness Horus God of the Egyptians Head of a falcon Heket Goddess of childbirth Head of frog Tefnut Goddess of the rain Head of lioness Thoth God of wisdom Head of an ibis bird Sebek God of swift action Head of a crocodile
Some Egyptian gods
The Rosetta Stone Found, by accident, by French soldiers who were rebuilding a fort in Egypt in 1799.
Had three different languages written on it: Greek, hieroglyphics, and a cursive form of Egyptian writing
Decoded by Jean Champollion who compared the words in Greek, which we knew, to the hieroglyphics. Took him 20 years!
** Important because before this, no one knew hieroglyphics, it was a lost language. We could now learn much more about Ancient Egypt