Ancient Egypt Flashcards
1
Q
What are the types of government?
A
Pharoah ruled. Then there were:
- Vizier - chief overseer of the land (like PM) all officials reported to him
- Nomarks - ruled over an area of land called a nome (province) sometimes appointed by a Pharoah, other times heredit
3) Other officials - army commander, chief treasurer, minister of public works
4) Monarchy - because Pharoah was considered a god, people often accepted what he said without complaint
2
Q
What is the social pyramid?
A
- Pharoah
- Government Officials (Vizier Priest, Noble)
- Soldiers
- Scribes
- Merchants
- Craftsmen
- Peasants
- Slaves
3
Q
What is the role of the Ancient Egyptian Government?
A
- monarchy as the king ruled by a mandate from the gods
- seen as an intermediary between humans and the divine
- supposed to represent the gods’ will through the laws passed and policies approved
4
Q
What was the role of the Pharoah
A
- to maintain “Ma’at” (universal harmony) in the country
- later Pharoahs were seen as living gods
5
Q
What was the role of the Government Officials
A
- Pharoah was a vital party of the Egyptian government
- Pharoah appointed the other officials
- highest officials took orders directly from Pharoah
6
Q
What was the role of the soldiers
A
- they were conscripted and sent to the king
- nomarchs (regional governors) supplied the army
7
Q
What was the role of the scribe?
A
- the only group who learned to read and write in Egypt
- really important because they kept the administration in order
- recorded food stocks, court proceedings, magic spells, geneologies other legal documents
8
Q
What was the role of the merchant?
A
- they were more like traders
- carried gold, papyrus, linen or jewelry
- traded those for cedar and ebony wood, elephant tusks, panther skins, giraffe tails and animals
9
Q
What was the role of the craftsmen?
A
- artisans
- Parennefer, who served under Akhenaten
- buried in the southern cemerey of Akhetaten
10
Q
What was the role of the peasants?
A
- 80%
- most worked in fields, servants
- during flooding season, they worked on large building products for the government
11
Q
What was the role of slaves?
A
- Hem = slave
- there was some controversy whether there was slavery at all in ancient Egypt
- they were bought and sold to different people
12
Q
What was the role of women in Egypt?
A
- well treated and had legal rights compared to other civilizations
- same legal rights as men
- could be economically independent
- primarily domestic
- bear and raise children
- nebet per = lady of the house
13
Q
WHat was the role of men in Egypt?
A
- head of the family
- could have numerous wives
- labourers, craftsmen
- jobs were hereditary
14
Q
How did jobs work?
A
- labour was filled by poor, serfs
- skilled trades passed from father to son
- children learned from parents and seldom chose their occupation
15
Q
Why was the Nile important?
A
- “lifeblood of Egypt”
- provided natural resources to Egyptians (water, plants, fertile soil, transport, power)
- flooded every year leading to silt for bricks
- they dug basins to capture flood water and used irrigation canals
