Ancient Egypt Flashcards
Why was the Nile River so important to ancient Egyptians?
- grow crops (annual flood left behind highly fertile black silt; water from Nile used for irrigation)
- fishing
- drinking water
- transportation (esp. for trading)
- mud used for making bricks
- Papyrus reeds used for making papyrus
- used to set their calendar
What kind of crops did ancient Egyptians grow?
- Wheat
- Barley
- Fruits (melons, figs)
- Vegetable (peas, garlic, lettuce, cucumber)
- Linen
What did ancient Egyptians use instead of money?
They bartered or traded items (eg. Pottery, art and jewellery) with each other.
Discuss the accient Egyptians calendar
Based on the happenings of the River Nile.
3 seasons, each lasting 4 months.
- Akhet (July to October; flooding)
- Peret (November to February; new crops planted)
- Shemu (March to June; harvest)
Explain the social structure of the ancient Egyptians
- Pharaoh (1, richest, most powerful person)
- Visier (pharaoh’s advisors)
- Nobles & priests
- Soldiers
- Scribes (wrote down important things; kept records of people’s taxes & business accounts)
- Traders & craftsmen
- Herders & farmers (most people were farmers)
- Slaves
Rich people (1-3) and poor people (7-8) lived very different lives.
Rich: big houses, ate well, wore fine, had time to play games, went to school)
Poor: small houses packed close together.
Everyone had to pay taxes
People in the middle (4-6) worked for the rich leaders
What were hieroglyphics?
- a form of writing used in ancient Egypt
- pictures and symbols
- used to communicate important info
Where were hieroglyphics used in ancient Egypt?
- Temples walls
-Tombs (sides) - Papyrus scrolls (i.e.documents, that were adminstrative and/or personal)
- Everyday objects (eg. pottery, jewelery & furniture)
Who wrote hieroglyphics?
Scribes
Discuss scribes in ancient Egypt
- They were the were the people who wrote hieroglyphics.
- Received lots of training to write hieroglyphics
- highly respected members of society
- skills were in high demand
Why do people study hieroglyphics?
To learn about the culture
Who made one of the earliest attempts to decode hieroglyphics?
Jean-Francois Champollion
How were the first hieroglyphs decoded?
Jean-Francois Champollion used the Rosetta stone, because it had the same text written in Ancient Greek and Hieroglyphics
Where have hieroglyphics been found?
Throughout ancient Egypt
- including in Cairo & Luxor and remote areas
- specifically in pyramids, tombs of pharaohs (like Tutankhamun and Ramses II)
What is someone who studies hieroglyphics called?
Hieroglyphologist
How do people study hieroglyphics today?
- they use computers to analyse and compare different hieroglyphic texts
- they study ancient texts and records to better understand the language and message better
Describe the Sphinx in Egypt
- A monument in Egypt
- built out of sand
- head of a human
- body of a lion
How does the monument of the sphynx differ from the mythological creature?
- Monument: statue, does not have wings, has head of a woman,
- Mythological creature: smaller, has wings, isn’t real, has the head of a human or animal, serpent tail (in Greek mythology)
Why did pharaohs build underground tombs?
to hide them from tomb robbers
Why did pharaohs build temples?
For worshipping their gods, which them happy
Describe the land along the banks of the Nile
Fertile and so crops grew there easily
Why was the soil on the banks of the Nile so fertile?
The Nile flooded every year and when it drained away, it left a layer of fertile soil behind.
How long ago did farmers live along the banks of the river Nile?
10 000 years ago
What did the farmers plant after the Nile flooded and when did they harvest it?
They planted wheat and barley and it was harvested in Summer.
What was the area along the banks of the Nile called and why?
The Black Land because of the fertile black mud that was left behind after the river flooded.
What animals did the farmers keep?
Sheep, goats and cattle.
What was there not enough of next to the river for all farmers?
There wasn’t enough land along the river
Why did some farmers settle far away from the river?
because there was not enough land
The farmers who settled away from the river needed something for their crops they couldn’t access what was this thing and what did they do about it?
- Water for their crops
- so they built canals and ditches to transport water from the river to their farms.
The farmers who couldn’t access water from the Nile directly did something about it - what is the name for what they did?
Irrigation
What is a shaduf and how does it operate?
A hand-operated device for lifting water.
A bucket/skin is hung on a rope from the long end and a counter weight is hung on the **short end.
When was king Tutankhamun’s tomb discovered?
1922
Who led the expedition that discovered the tomb?
Howard Carter
Where was king Tut’s tomb found?
The Valley of the Kings
What did Howard Carter find that he said was a clue to finding king Tut’s tomb?
a cup with an image of king Tutankhamun and his wife
How many artefacts did they find in king Tut’s tomb?
3000
Who led the expedition that discovered king Tut’s tomb?
Howard Carter
When was king tut born?
1341 B.C
Why was king Tutankhamun’s dad controversial?
- He only worshiped one god instead of many and
- he moved the capital of theives.
How old was king Tut when he became king?
9 years old
What is thought to be a possible reason for King Tut’s poor health?
His parents were siblings
Who did King Tut marry?
his half sister
How many children did they have?
2 daughters
What tragedy did they suffer?
Both died before they were born)
How old was king tut when he died?
19 years old
What was found in the third of his nesting coffins?
A beautiful golden mask decorated with coloured glass and gemstones and other artefacts that decorated his mummy
How many times was the tomb robbed?
Twice but not badly.
What was Howard’s reply when he was asked if he could see anything in Tutankhamun’s tomb?
‘Yes wonderful things’ was his reply.
How many items were found in the tomb?
5000 items
How many years did it take to document and move all the findings in King Tut’s tomb?
10 years
What is a burial chamber in ancient Egypt?
it is the room where the mumified body is contained in a tomb
What was unusual about King Tut’s burial chamber?
It was the only room in his tomb that was decorated
What is another word for historical treasures?
artefacts
Why are the artefacts in King Tut’s tomb described as fitting for a king to own?
Because they were made from and covered in gold
What other name is used to refer to Tutankhamun?
The Boy King
Egyptians believed in many ….
What is another word for this
Many gods
Polytheism
Who was the main god in ancient and what forms did they believe he took?
Ra (the sun god)
Forms: hawk and beetle
What was built for the gods and what was made inside it?
Temples were built where offerings were made to the gods.
Who, in ancient Egypt, was appointed to make offerings to the gods?
Priests
What did the priest become?
rich and powerful.
What was pharaoh thought of as?
Pharaoh was thought to be a god as well.
What was done in temples for pharaoh?
People could worship pharaoh in these temples.
What else did the Egyptians believe in?
(As well as gods)
life after death
What did the Egyptians do to important people once they had died and why?
They buried important people in tombs with all the things that they may need in their next life.
What did ancient Egyptians do to dead bodies before putting them into their tombs and how did they do this?
They would preserve the bodies with a mixture of spices and chemicals it was then wrapped in special cloth before put into a coffin.
What is the process of preserving the bodies called?
Mummification
What are preserved and wrapped up bodies called?
They are called mummies.
Who is Amun?
(-A god)
What did he do, how did he look?
Created everything, human body and ram’s head.
Who is Thoth?
(-A god)
God of what, created what, looked like?
God of wisdom, writing, time and moon, created hieroglyphics, head of ibis bird.
What is atheism?
When someone doesn’t believe in any gods
How many gods were there in ancient Egypt?
Over 2000
Which ancient Egyptian god created hieroglyphics?
Thoth
Who was married to Thoth?
Ma’at
What was the name of the first mummy?
Osiris
What did Ra look like?
- body of a human
- head of a falcon
- above his head sat a sun disc with a cobra twisted around it
What did ancient Egyptians believe happened at the end of every day and during the night?
They believed that
- Ra died at sunset
- Ra went to the underworld during the night
- Ra was reborn at dawn
Discuss Horus
- Egyptian god of the sky
- they believed pharaohs were a living version of Horus.
- what he looked like:
- head of a hawk
- crown that looks like the two parts of Egypt
- red and white showed that he ruled all of the lands
Discuss Ma’at
- Egyptian goddes of truth, justice and harmony
- wife of Thoth
- A pharaoh had to promise to follow Ma’at and be fair and honest leader
Discuss Isis
- Mother of Horus
- Queen of the goddesses
- Married to Osiris
- Appearance: sometimes a throne on her head, sometimes a sun disc on her head
Discuss Osiris
- Egyptian god of the dead / underworld
- husband of Isis
- Wore: white linen wrapping of a mummy and white crown with large feathers
- Egyptians liked him for helping people pass on to the next life
Discuss Hathor
- Egyptian goddess of love, music and dance
- She looked after all women (in life and death)
- Took the form of a cow with a sun disc above her head
Discuss Anubis
- Egyptian god of embalming (the mumification ritual)
- They believed he made the first mummy, Osiris
- Was the guide of the dead, helping people pass into the next life
- Head of a jackal
Discuss Sekhmet
- Egyptian goddess of war, fire and medicine
- head of a lion
- she was the best hunter known to the Egyptians
- her breath was believed to have created the desert.
What did the ancience Egyptians invent and what did it measure?
(in Mathematics and astronomy)
Invented the sundial used to measure time.
What were the ancienct Egyptians the first people to do not using magic?
(in medicine/physicians/doctors)
First people to find physical reason for disease.
What did the ancient Egyptians know a lot about?
(in medicine/physicians/doctors)
The human body
How did ancient Egyptian doctors do when a person was sick?
- examined the patient’s body to look for causes of illness
- asked the patient questions
- took the patients pulse
