Ancient Egypt is arguably the most influential of the river valley civilizations. The pyramids are the last man standing among the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World. Ancient Egyptian civilization lasted from 3000 BCE to 332 BCE, a period that historians call a long-ass time.
This article explores various facets of this ancient civilization, drawing from historical texts, art, and cultural practices. We'll delve into the significance of the Nile River, the reigns of pharaohs, the construction of pyramids, and the unique worldview of the ancient Egyptians.
The Nile's Influence
Just as the violent and capricious Tigris and Euphrates rivers shaped the worldview of early Mesopotamians, the Nile shaped the worldview of the Egyptians. The Nile was regular, navigable, and benign, making for one of the safest and richest agricultural areas in the world. Each summer, the river flooded the fields at precisely the right time, leaving behind nutrient-rich silt for planting season.
Planting was so easy that Egyptians just tossed seeds around the silty earth and then let their cattle or pigs walk on it to press the seeds into the ground, and then boom: grain, and figs, and wheat, and pomegranates, and melons, and joy. Unlike most river valley civilizations, Egyptian communities existed ONLY along the Nile, which was navigable enough to get valuable resources downstream from timber to gold, which the Egyptians considered the divine metal.
The Nile is also easily tamed. Egyptians could use a simple form of water management called basin irrigation, in which farmers used flood waters to fill earthen basins and canals for irrigation. The awesomeness of the Nile meant Egyptians could create big food surpluses with relatively little work, allowing time and energy for some pretty impressive projects.
Read also: The Language of the Pharaohs
The Nile may help explain the ancient Egypt's general optimism. Egyptians were often buried with things that were useful and pleasurable to them in life, because the Afterlife was seen as a continuation of this life, which, at least if you lived along the Nile, wasn't half-bad.
Egypt's Ancient Empire | Egypt From Above (Full Episode) The Nile River
Periods of Egyptian History
Historians have divided Egyptian history into three broad categories, each with their own numbered dynasties. The Old Kingdom lasted from 2649 to 2152 BCE, the Middle Kingdom from 2040 to 1640 BCE, and the New Kingdom from 1550 to 1070 BCE. In between, there are a couple of so-called Intermediate periods.
Old Kingdom
This was the glory age of ancient Egypt, when we got all the stuff that will later make Indiana Jones possible, like the pyramids at Giza, and the sun king Ra, and the idea of divine kingship. The king, or pharaoh, was either a god or very close to a god. The pyramids represent a remarkable degree of political and social control over the population, because it is not easy to convince people to devote their lives to building a sarcophagus for someone else.
The most famous pyramids were built between 2575 and 2465 BCE. The one with the Sphinx was for Khephren; the largest, the Great Pyramid, was built for the Pharaoh Khufu. These pyramids were built partly by peasants who were required by Egyptian law to work for the government a certain number of months per year, and partly by slaves. The thinking was that if humans did their jobs, then the pantheon of gods would maintain cosmic order, and since the pharaohs became gods upon their death, it made sense to please them, even unto Pyramids.
Read also: Pharaohs: A detailed look
Egyptian popular religion also embraced the belief in amulets and magic and divination and the belief that certain animals, especially cats‚ had divine power. Old Kingdom Egypt was also remarkably literate and had two forms of writing: hieroglyphics for sacred writing and then demotic script for recording contracts and agreements and other boring stuff. Old Kingdom Egypt - it was ridiculously rich.
Middle Kingdom
The Middle Kingdom restored Pharaonic rule in 2040 BCE but with some distinct changes: First, the rulers were outsiders, from downriver in Nubia. Second, they fostered a new pantheon of gods, the star of which was Amun, which means hidden. So Amun eventually merged with Ra to form the god Amun-Ra, who was like the best god ever, and all the Middle Kingdom pharaohs made temples for him and devoted all of their surplus to his glory.
The Middle Kingdom also developed an interest in conquering, specifically the new pharaoh's homeland of Nubia, and they developed a side interest in getting conquered, specifically by Semitic peoples from the Levant. One group, the Hyksos, were able to conquer all of Egypt, but rather than like destroying the Egyptian culture, they just relaxed like the Nile and assimilated into the Egyptians.
New Kingdom
By 1550 BCE, there was again an Egyptian pharaoh, Ahmosis. Egypt eventually emerged from its geographically imposed isolationism. New Kingdom Egypt continued this military expansion but it looked more like an Empire, particularly when they headed south and took over land in an attempt to find gold and slaves.
Probably the most expansive of the New Kingdom pharaohs was Hatshepsut, a woman who ruled Egypt for about 22 years, and who expanded Egypt not through military might, but through trade. But most New Kingdom pharaohs, being dudes, focused on military expansion, which brought Egypt into conflicts with the Assyrians, and then the Persians, and then Alexander the Great, and finally, the Romans.
Read also: The Art of Ancient Egypt
One last thing about the New Kingdom. There was this crazy New Kingdom Pharaoh named Akhenaten, who tried to invent a new god for Egypt, Aten. After his death he was replaced by his wife, and then a daughter and then a son, Tutankaten, who turned his back on the weird god Aten and changed his name to Tutankhamen.
The only reason King Tut is famous is that most Pharaohs had their graves robbed by ancient people; and King Tut had his grave robbed by 20th-century British people.
Egyptian Texts and Culture
Egyptian culture focused on the afterlife, and many of their writings deal with preparations for death and beyond, but several focus on the here-and-now. Most are dense and reflect unfamiliar formal language patterns. One interesting pattern evident in both Egyptian texts and arts: their society had strict hierarchies, and people in higher rungs were represented more formally and abstractly than “common” folk.
Accordingly, hymns and royal inscriptions are highly formalized, whereas more practical/intimate writings (letters, teachings) are fluid and relatable. Unlike today’s authors, Egyptian scribes had an exalted position in society. Another difference was the ancient Egyptians’ preoccupation with life after death.
One of the key aspects of ancient Egyptian culture was their belief in life after death. This is reflected in their texts, art, and burial practices. The Egyptians believed that by living a virtuous life and preparing properly for the afterlife, one could achieve immortality.
Here's an excerpt from ancient Egyptian texts:
I have not done people wrong. I have not impoverished my fellows. I have not done wrong in the Place of Truth. I have not learned false things. I have not done evil. I have not, on any day, made extra work beyond what was due to be done for me. I have not caused my name to become tainted as a slave-master. I have not deprived a poor man of his property. I have not done what the gods abhor. I have not slandered a servant to his master. I have not caused pain. I have not created hunger. I have not caused tears. I have not killed. I have not given orders to kill. I have not created suffering for anyone. I have not diminished the food-offerings in the local temples. I have not destroyed the gods’ loaves. I have not taken away the spirits’ food. I have not slept around. I have not fornicated. I have not reduced provisions. I have not committed fraud. I have not encroached upon (others’) fields. I have not interfered with the weights of the hand-scales. I have not disturbed the plummet of the standing-scales. I have not taken milk from the mouths of children. I have not deprived herds of their pastures.
The point isn’t gaining actual passage into the afterlife, but living better. Many of these assertions are sound advice, but while advice is good, accountability is better.
Overall, this week felt like a break from thinking. Some stuff to think about, but much to feel.
Egyptian Scribes and the Written Word
My favorite texts in this collection were the teachings, especially those dealing with writing. Few people could write at the time; these texts were part of their instructions. These people believed in life after death and most of their art and writing was anonymous.
Consider this ancient Egyptian advice:
Be a writer, take it to heart, so that your name will fare likewise. A book is more effective than a carved tombstone or a permanent sepulchre. They serve as chapels and mausolea in the mind of him who proclaims their names.
## Table of Egyptian Dynasties| Kingdom | Years | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Old Kingdom | 2649-2152 BCE | Pyramids at Giza, divine kingship, sun god Ra |
| Middle Kingdom | 2040-1640 BCE | Rulers from Nubia, god Amun-Ra, conquering Nubia |
| New Kingdom | 1550-1070 BCE | Military expansion, Hatshepsut's trade expansion, Akhenaten's religious reforms, King Tut |
Popular articles:
tags: #Egypt
