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Summary of the History of Ancient Egypt

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Summary of the History of Ancient Egypt GODALMING MUSEUM EDUCATION SERVICE MUSEUM BOX ANCIENT EGYPT TEACHER’S NOTES INTRODUCTION The purpose of this loan box is to help reinforce history lessons on the civilization of Ancient Egypt by presenting students with a small range of authentic artefacts. While these mostly originate from Ptolemaic Egypt, a Palaeolithic specimen is included to indicate the early settlement of the Nile valley by man while other items point to the interactions, now recognised as highly important, between Ancient Egypt and its southern neighbour, Kush. SUMMARY OF THE HISTORY OF ANCIENT EGYPT The theory that the genus Homo originated in east Africa and spread from this homeland over the face of the globe has, at the time of writing, wide support. One of the principal routes for this diffusion would then have been roughly northward, skirting the Ethiopian Highlands and entering the Nile valley. The early presence of man and the opportunities presented by this great river therefore facilitated the formation of settled, organised communities at an early date along the flood plain of the river. The latter can be divided into four regions: i. the Delta region (Lower Egypt), ii. from the Delta to the 1st cataract near Aswan (Upper Egypt), iii. Lower Nubia in the region of the 1st and 2nd cataracts (now submerged under Lake Nasser) and iv. Upper Nubia beyond to the confluence of the Blue and White Nile. Settled kingdoms developed at an early date in Lower Egypt, Upper Egypt and Nubia. About 5000 years ago the kings of Upper Egypt conquered those of Lower Egypt and set up a united state (the Old Kingdom), calling themselves ‘Lords of the Two Lands’ and wearing a tall ceremonial head-dress combining the white crown of Upper Egypt with the red crown of Lower Egypt. The geography that had given rise to this state also defined its enemies - the Asians and the Nubians. The desert protected Egypt’s eastern and western flanks, but it was vulnerable to attack on two fronts: in the north- east along the Mediterranean littoral (the Asian route, along which the Assyrians, Persians and Alexander the Great conquered Egypt) and in the south from Nubia. The Pharaoh Tutankhamun’s walking stick had two figures, an Asian and a Nubian, carved on its bottom end so that, as he walked with it, he ground the faces of these traditional enemies of Egypt in the dust. The powerful kingdom that had developed in Old Kingdom times in Nubia was known to the Egyptians as Kush. Vast mud-brick structures which almost rival the pyramids of the Old Kingdom were built in its capital at Kerma and, as in Egypt, there were elaborate funeral rites for nobility. One tomb is nearly 100m in diameter and the burial involved several hundred human sacrifices and the slaughter of 4000 head of cattle. Egyptian monumental inscriptions are very scathing about Kush (‘wretched Kush’), but in fact it was, with its bowmen, a formidable power and important, not only because of its gold mines, but because it controlled the trade in exotic luxury items travelling up the Nile valley from Central Africa. As long as Egypt was powerful it could keep its enemies at bay and even push out its borders. When the central power weakened, they attacked. This was the pattern of the history of Ancient Egypt which can be summarised as follows: OLD KINGDOM (2686-2181 BC) With strong central government Egypt expands, taking over Lower Nubia. The best known monuments of the Old Kingdom are the Pyramids at Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, and Zoser’s Step Pyramid, a little further south at Saqqara. 1st INTERMEDIATE PERIOD (2181-2055BC) Political control weakens, perhaps a consequence of a series of droughts, and the Egyptian state shrinks and fragments. MIDDLE KINGDOM (2055-1650BC) Mentuhotep II, ruler of Upper Egypt, re-establishes himself as Ruler of the Two Lands by defeating the rulers of Lower Egypt. A succession of strong rulers follows and once more Egypt is extended south into Lower Nubia. The Middle Kingdom pharaohs were extensive builders, though not on such a monumental scale as those of the Old Kingdom. 2nd INTERMEDIATE PERIOD (1650-1550BC) Again central control weakens and Egypt breaks up. An Asiatic people, the Hyksos, take over Lower Egypt and Kush takes over Lower Nubia. NEW KINGDOM (1550-1069BC) Ahmose I re-establishes Egypt’s greatness and ushers in a period of firm rule and conquest. Lower Egypt is recovered. The pharaohs campaign deep into the Levant. The kingdom of Kush is destroyed and Egyptian rule extended beyond the fourth cataract deep into present day Sudan. This period produced many monuments visited by tourists today - the tombs in the Valley of the Kings and the associated mortuary temples on the West bank of the Nile opposite Luxor, the temples at Abu Simbal, much of the vast temple complex at Karnak etc. Among the best known pharaohs were the ‘heretic’ Aknenaten, who temporarily overthrew the established Egyptian religion in favour of a monotheistic faith, Tutankhamun, whose tomb is the only intact burial of an Egyptian pharaoh ever discovered, and Ramesses II, the builder of vast monuments to his own glory. 3rd INTERMEDIATE PERIOD (1069-747BC) Egypt fragments yet again, with separate rulers in Upper and Lower Egypt. One of the more effective pharaohs of the period, Shoshenk I (who was of Libyan extraction) campaigned in Israel and may be the Shishak mentioned in the Bible (I Kings 14,25). KUSHITE (or ‘BLACK’) PHARAOHS (747-656BC) During the 3rd Intermediate Period a new kingdom (known today as the 2nd Kingdom of Kush) forms in Nubia. Their culture was heavily Egyptianised and their rulers described themselves as kings of Upper and Lower Egypt even before they held territory in that country. To what extent their state was based on the old Vice-regal administration of Nubia during the New Kingdom is not yet clear. It may be that they regarded themselves as the true heirs of the New Kingdom pharaohs. In any case, they advanced northward, taking over the whole of Egypt and re- establishing the unified state stretching from Upper Nubia to Lower Egypt that existed in New Kingdom times. This situation was not to last and Assyrian invaders drove the last of the Kushite (25th Dynasty) pharaohs southwards out of Egypt. One of these 25th Dynasty pharaohs, Taharka, is mentioned in the Bible (2 Kings 19,9; Isaiah 37,9). LATE PERIOD (656-332BC) The Assyrians were now overlords of Egypt, but were soon forced to withdraw because of danger to their homelands. Then Egypt faced two periods of occupation by the Persians. Between all these troubles there were times of Egyptian revival before Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire and so took Egypt into his own. PTOLEMAIC PERIOD (332-30BC) Alexander may have been a conqueror, but he was well received in Egypt and legitimised his rule by going to the oracle of Amun at Siwa, where the god ‘recognised’ him as his son and the true king of Egypt. He left Egypt after six months, putting one of his generals, Ptolemy, in charge there. Nine years later Alexander died and his vast empire became divided, with Egypt falling to Ptolemy. The dynasty Ptolemy founded ruled Egypt until the suicide of the most well-known Ptolemaic ruler, Cleopatra VII, and the incorporation of Egypt into the Roman Empire. The Ptolemies were Greeks, and much Greek culture was introduced into Egypt in this period. Nevertheless they built temples (e.g. at Dendera, Edfu and Philae) in a traditional style that was, by then, highly archaic and they maintained, to a degree, the old religious practices - but it was a little like play-acting, Greeks pretending to be Egyptians. The Ptolemaic temples remain some of the best preserved in Egypt and are great tourist attractions today. HANDLING THE OBJECTS The photographs mounted in the lid of this box show how it is packed. The items in this box are all original artefacts. A number are fragile, all are rare, difficult to replace and not without value. Care must therefore be taken in handling them. Items E, & G should be handled using the cotton gloves provided to prevent damage from natural oils in the hands. Because of their fragility they should be put on display and inspected without being further touched or disturbed. Most other items are packaged in transparent containers. Provided these are handled carefully, held by their edges only and care is taken to ensure that the transparent faces of the containers through which the items are to be observed do not get scratched, there are no further restrictions. If, however, there is a risk that these precautions will not be observed in the classroom, it would be appreciated if the items were placed on display by the teacher and observed by the students without further handling. It is possible to remove the lid of the boxes holding the coin (item N) and the larger piece of Kerma pottery (item I), but please do not take the items out of the box – thank you. CONTENTS OF THIS BOX Before History Began A. Palaeolithic hand axe The Religion of Ancient Egypt C. Anubis amulet D. Base of a bread cone Pottery E. Dish F. Small flask G. Jug with strainer H. Double-wick lamp I. Sherd of Kerma pottery J. Another sherd of Kerma pottery K. Sherd of blue faience Beads L. String of beads M. Isolated faience bead Money N. Coin of Ptolemy VI DESCRIPTION OF THE CONTENTS A. Palaeolithic Hand Axe This is about 200,000 years old (the period of Neanderthal Man) and is presented to show hominid activity in the Nile valley long, long before settled kingdoms and civilizations arose.
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