Ancient Egypt - Week 1

7252019 Ancient Egypt - Week 1

httpslidepdfcomreaderfullancient-egypt-week-1 120

Ancient Egypt A history in six objects

Week 1 Predynastic and Early Dynasty Egypt

Welcome to Week 1 of the course his eeks ork forms the background

to our study of the dynastic age

n approximately $1 ampE the independent communities in the (ile

)alley and Delta united to form one state ruled by one king his eek e

ill explore aspects of the Predynastic and Early Dynastic Periods the

times immediately before and immediately after the formation of the state+

We ill start by considering the abundant natural resources hich alloed

the united Egypt to become a ealthy land capable of creating monumentalstone buildings



We ill then examine our first object a Predynastic pot reco-ered from a

cemetery As this pot belongs to a nonliterate age e ill speculate about

the meaning of the red images hich decorate the outside of the pot Why

ere Egypts dead being buried ith gra-e goods

As hieroglyphic riting de-eloped at the time of unification e ill then

consider aspects of the hieroglyphic script 0inally e ill consider the

de-elopment of the Egyptology collection in the anchester useum

1 2e-ie the lengthy hronology of the dynastic age paying

particular attention to the Predynastic and Early Dynastic Periods f

you find that the text is too small try accessing the increased

contrast -ersion

https33d$456us7a8orccloudfrontnet3ancientegypt3eb3timeline313ti

melinehtml

9 ook at this eeks map this ill introduce you to some important

Predynastic and Early Dynastic sites ltoogle ap

https33googlecom3maps3d3u33-ieermid=7(2gt-1ltEEk

40x1oEEj

$ 2ead the istorical -er-ie of the Predynastic and Early Dynastic

Periods ou may find it helpful to use the Early Dynastic

Period Bing ist as a reference

The Predynastic and Early Dynastic Periods

f you ha-ent already done this please read the document CProblems of

DatingC as this ill help you interpret this o-er-ie



he first e-idence for farming in the (ile )alley comes from hat is today

knon as the ampadarian cultural phase he ampadarian people li-ed in small

-illages hey hunted and fished but they also planted grain and lentils and

kept li-estock heir dead ere buried in simple gra-es in desert

cemeteries As the ampadarian houses ha-e more or less disappeared much of

the e-idence for their li-es comes from these cemeteries he inclusion of

gra-e goods pottery stone artefacts tools figurines and jeellery+ in some

of their burials suggests that the ampadarian peoples had a belief in life after

death oe-er as this is a prehistoric culture a culture ithout riting+

Egyptologists cannot be certain hat they belie-ed

he ampadarian cultural phase as folloed by the (agada cultural phase

Egyptologists di-ide this into three consecuti-e periods of increasing

technological and political complexity (agada (agada and (agada

he (agada people li-ed in mudbrick -illages and in tons protected

by thick mudbrick alls heir cemeteries sho e-idence of hat appearsto be social stratification the bodies in their CeliteC gra-es ere rapped in

linen and placed in coffins hereas the bodies in the other gra-es ere not

he (agada culture spread through the (ile )alley and the Delta

o-erhelming all other cultures until the final (agada phase sa Egypt

occupied by a series of ealthy independent tons and their surrounding

farming communities

egend tells ho the southern arrior king enes gathered an army and

fought his ay northards to unite the land that e no call Egypt

oe-er there is no e-idence to confirm that enes existed and it seems

likely that unification as a long dran out process culminating in a series

of short battles as the southern kings united their land With unification



came the de-elopment of riting the hieroglyphic script+ Egyptologists

can no read the ords of the ancient Egyptians

he earliest knon king of the nely unified Egypt as Bing (armer ho

is either classed as the last king of the Predynastic Dynasty or the first

king of the Early Dynastic 1st Dynasty (armers son Aha established a

fortified city knon as White Walls at the junction of the (ile )alley and

the Delta he city ould gradually shift eastards as the (ile changed its

course e-entually becoming knon as ennefer or in ltreek emphis

While the elite bureaucrats of emphis ere interred in the estern desert

at north Fa66ara most of their kings preferred to be buried in mudbrick

funerary complexes in the Abydos cemetery

8 Watch a lecture exploring the and of Egypt and its 2i-er

G Watch this eeks bject )ideo a decorated pot reco-ered from a

Predynastic cemetery as shon abo-e+ f you ould like to inspect

this eeks object in more detail you can -ie pan and 7oom around

a $D model of thisDecorated Predynastic Pot Please note that these

models do not appear to display ell in some -ersions of nternet

Explorer f you encounter issues brosing this model please try

another broser such as o7illa 0irefox or ltoogle hrome

magem do pote $D

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5 hen atch a supplementary discussion of Ftone Working in Ancient

Egypt by technology expert Denys Ftocks

gt 2ead the bject 0actsheet for more information about the

Predynastic



Week 1 bject 0actsheet









Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot

anchester useum accession number G944

0ound lter7eh

Date (agada c$G$9 ampE

Description a pink3buff pottery jar ith flat base and damage to the rim

decorated ith red painted images including a boat birds and ater



Discussion

he Predynastic Period as a nonliterate or prehistoric+ age n the

absence of riting Egyptologists ha-e to gain their information about thePredynastic Period purely from archaeology the artefacts and material

remains left behind by the longdead Egyptians Rnfortunately almost all

the domestic architecture from this period has no -anished principally

because it as made from unfired mudbrick and other temporary

materials n contrast the cemeteries hich ere dug in the hot dry desert

sand ha-e sur-i-ed his means that Egyptologists dra a disproportionate

amount of their information about early Egypt from gra-es ierakonpolis

offers one of the fe examples of a ellpreser-ed Predynastic settlement

site http33hierakonpolisonlineorg3

Rsing a classification system de-eloped by the ampritish Egyptologist

William atthe 0linders Petrie this eekSs pot is classified as belonging

to the (a6ada cultural phase o see a summary of PetrieSs ork click

here http33uclacuk3museums

static3digitalegypt3na6adan3chronologyhtmlIna6adaii

he (agada potters did not use a potterSs heel hey made their

pink3buff coloured pottery by hand firing it in a bonfire or kiln hey

decorated it in red ith hat at first sight appear to be scenes of daily life

although the fact that this type of pottery is in-ariably reco-ered from

gra-es suggests that this may be an o-ersimplification Perhaps these

scenes represent the funerary ritual r aspects of the afterlife here are

animals birds and men hile boats complete ith multiple oars cabins

cres and regional flags sail on ri-ers of a-y lines ampoats ill alays

ha-e a connection ith ealth and poer only the -ery ealthy can afford



to on a boat+ and ith death they remind us of the final journey o-er the

(ile to the cemetery+

he pot ould ha-e been disco-ered in an elite gra-e hose deceasedoner ould ha-e been rapped in linen strips and placed in a coffin made

of basketry clay or ood he gra-e itself may ha-e been lined ith mud

bricks ther goods placed in the tomb might ha-e included jeellery made

from metal gold sil-er and copper+ and semiprecious stones stone -essels

and flint kni-es A handful of iron beads reco-ered from (agada gra-es

ha-e been identified as meteoric iron http33ironfromtheskyorg3

pageHid=9

Early Dynastic Stone Vessels

Ftone -essel production started during the Predynastic age and continued

throughout the dynastic age ost of -essels ere made from Egyptian

calcite but other materials ere used he stone -essels ere included in

gra-es gi-en the time and skill in-ol-ed in their manufacture e must

assume that they ere status symbols designed to hold luxury products

such as unguents lick here to look at the range of -essels

produced http33uclacuk3museums

static3digitalegypt3stone-essels3indexhtml

nitially the stone -essels ere holloed by hand using stone borers and

sand as an abrasi-e ampy the Early Dynastic Period -essels ere being

manufactured ith the aid of a drill he experimental orking of stone

-essels by technology expert Denys Ftocks has shon that this ould

in-ol-e the folloing stages



he exterior of the -essel as shaped using flint chisels punches and

scrapers

he inside of the -essel as holloed 0or a straightsided -essel thisould in-ol-e the use of a tubular drill A more bulbous -essel a -essel

hich re6uired idening belo the shoulder ould re6uire the use of a

drill plus the use of a stone borer made from a figureofeight shaped

pebble held in a forked shaft

N Watch a lecture explaining ho to rite in Egyptian ieroglyphs ou

may also find this interacti-e hieroglyph sheet or this printable sheet

helpful

omo escre-er os hierTglifos

https33thinglinkcom3scene3gt1894N55gt9G8gt8$5

4 Watch a presentation detailing the history of Egyptology at he

anchester useum Please be aare that this presentation includes brief

images of human remains

1 omplete the Week 1 Uui7 Early Egypt The land and its resources

11 omplete the Week 1 Acti-ity

19 Discuss this eeks content in the Week 1 Discussion 0orum

1$ 2ead the Week 1 Fummary

Problems ith Ancient Egyptian (amesHelp Center

People

Ftudents sometimes find Egyptian personal names confusing because there

are -ariations in spelling or -ariations in the actual names used in different



reference sources 0or example the same king can be called 6uite

correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis

his happens because the ritten Egyptian language the hieroglyphic

script+ used only consonants and pseudo-oels )oels ere added to the

ords hen people actually spoke but as no one no speaks ancient

Egyptian it is a CdeadC language+ e ha-e little idea of the true

pronunciation of the ancient ords his riting system is similar to the

modern texting language used by many people today here abbre-iations

are understood and need no explanation

he lack of -oels has led to a number of -ariant spellings and

pronunciations for the same name or ord

hroughout this course e shall be using the names in most common

usage

Places

here can also be problems ith the names of the ancient archaeological

sites any ancient places ere inhabited both during the Dynastic age and

during the ltreco2oman period and they ha-e sur-i-ed as modern -illages



or tons herefore archaeological sites often ha-e three e6ually -alid

names

bull

the original ancient Egyptian name

bull the name that as used during the ltreco2oman Period

bull a modern Arabic name used today

Fo for example the archaeological site that e today call eliopolis as

knon to the ancient Egyptians as unu and to the optic Egyptians andin the ampible+ as n All of these names are correct

Egyptologists tend to use these names in a fairly random ay sometimes

they ill use a ltreek name sometimes a modern name and sometimes an

ancient name hroughout this course e shall be using the names in most

common usage

An additional difficulty may be cause by -ariations in the spelling of a

name eg Fa66ara 3Fakkara lti7eh3lti7a+ All of these -ariants are correct

Problems of Preser-ationHelp Center

We kno far more about the li-es and deaths of the literate tombbuilding

elite sometimes called nobles+ than e do about the illiterate almost

in-isible peasants ho li-ed in ancient Egypt We also kno far more aboutthose ho li-ed toards the end of EgyptSs long history than e do about

the first Egyptians here is e-idence for at least $ kings ruling

from c $G$ ampE but it is not until the (e Bingdom in c1GG ampE

that e ha-e enough e-idence to start seeing these kings as ellrounded

human beings E-en then e lack the personal documents diaries pri-ate

letters etc+ that ould make these longdead people truly come ali-eand e are handicapped by the tradition of preser-ing the memory of the



perfect rather than the actual king We should ne-er forget that hat e

see is only a part of the e-idence that once existed

ur knoledge of ancient Egypt comes from to main sources here are

flas in both types of e-idence

1 Written Records

he sur-i-ing ritten records are just a fraction of the records that once

existed he -ast majority ere ritten by and for the educated elite and

they seldom deal ith personal or daytoday issues Almost in-ariably

they exaggerate the deeds of the author Autobiographies car-ed on tomb

alls for example set out to impress by stressing the -irtues of the

deceased hile royal texts focus on the heroism of the king n a land

entirely lacking our modern idea of accurate history this as not seen as

deceitful or shameful Writing as the gift of the gods and it carried its on

magic ommitting something to riting could actually make it real

2 Archaeological Ecaation

he Egyptians built their houses palaces and offices of mudbrick placing

them close to ater sources on the edge of the fertile land lining the (ile

hey built their tombs of stone in the hot dry desert -er the centuries the

mudbrick architecture has been lost hile the tombs and gra-es ha-e

sur-i-ed his means that todaySs archaeologists ha-e de-eloped a good

understanding of Egyptian expectations of life after death but ha-e

relati-ely little information about the routines of daily life his is

particularly true of the earliest periods hich lack ritten records

his enforced focus on death naturally gi-es the impression that the

Egyptians ere preoccupied ith thoughts of death n fact the Egyptians

lo-ed life heir greatest hope as that they might continue to enjoy a near

identical but e-en better life beyond the gra-e



Problems With DatingHelp Center

EgyptSs priests recorded the mo-ements of the sun moon and stars so that

they might make offerings to the gods at the correct time heir obser-ations led to the de-elopment of a calendar ith a year di-ided into

tel-e months of thirty days plus a spare fi-e days here as no leap year

E-ents ere dated to the reign of the current king ear 1 of Amenhotep

ear 9 and so on+ and because e-ery ne reign as a ne beginning each

king marked his accession ith a ne ear 1

Bings confirmed their right to rule by stressing continuity ith a past that

stretched back through a period of di-ine and semidi-ine rule to the -ery

creation of the orld Bing lists lists of the kings and their reign lengths

ere recorded on papyrus and stone and stored in the state and temple

archi-es he bestpreser-ed king list is found on the all of the Abydos

temple of the 14th Dynasty king Feti ere e can see the king and his

young son 2amesses offering before the names of their royal ancestors

ancestors being a loose term as FetiSs father as of nonroyal birth he

list is hoe-er incomplete as pharaohs ho had failed to conform to

expectation ere omitted

Almost three thousand years after Egypt became one land Ptolemy

Philadelphos a king of acedonian heritage ruled from Alexandria

Determined to understand EgyptSs long history Ptolemy commissioned the

priest anetho of Febennytos to consult the ancient records and compile a

list of kings his anetho did organising his kings into dynasties lines of

kings ho ere connected politically but ho ere not necessarily blood

relati-es anetho ended his history ith the reign of (ectanebo the final

king of Dynasty $ and EgyptSs last nati-e pharaoh



anethoSs istory of Egypt as lost long ago but enough has sur-i-ed

embedded in the ork of the riters Vosephus c gt E+ Africanus c 99

E+ Eusebius c $9 E+ and Fyncellus also knon as lteorge the onk

c N E+ to allo modern historians to reconstruct it ith a fair degree

of accuracy

Egyptologists traditionally group anethoSs dynasties into times of strong

rule and cultural achie-ement the Early Dynastic Period the ld iddle

and (e Bingdoms the ate Period and the ltreco2oman Period+

separated by times of disunity and eak rule the three ntermediate

Periods+ his system has its drabacks 0irst and foremost it is too

simple it is clear for example that the ntermediate Periods ere not the

dark ages that the early Egyptologists imagined them to be n addition

not all Egyptologists are in agreement o-er the allocation of the dynasties

to the -arious periods for example many Egyptologists consider Dynasties

gt and N to belong to the 0irst ntermediate Period rather than the ld

Bingdom+ here are times hen dynasties o-erlap hile some families

are split not only beteen dynasties but also beteen Periods and

Bingdoms

Despite all these problems this system does offer the most accurate means

of referencing e-ents ithin Egypt

D(AF 2(lt

G$$G ampE Predynastic Period

$G95N5 ampE Early Dynastic Period Dynasties 9+

95N5915 ampE ld Bingdom Dynasties $N+

9159GG ampE 0irst ntermediate Period Dynasties gtearly 11+

9GG15G ampE iddle Bingdom Dynasties late 111$+

15G1GG ampE Fecond ntermediate Period Dynasties 181gt+



1GG154 ampE (e Bingdom Dynasties 1N9+

154558 ampE hird ntermediate Period Dynasties 919G+

558$$9 ampE ate Period Dynasties 95$1+

$$9 ampE $4G E ltreco2oman Period

t may be helpful to look at an example Amenhotep is classified as the

ninth king of the 1Nth Dynasty hich itself belongs to the (e Bingdom

istorians are not certain of AmenhotepSs precise dates it is likely that he

ruled c 1$41$G9 ampE+ and so cannot gi-e an exact calendar date for the

ild bull hunt that is knon to ha-e occurred early in his reign t is

hoe-er possible to gi-e an exact regnal date Amenhotep himself tells us

that the exciting hunt occurred in his regnal ear 9

Readings and Resources

1+ Fpend some time exploring the ierakonpolis nline ebsite

http33hierakonpolisonlineorg

9+ ere is a -ery useful publication ritten by a -ariety of experts eeter

E ed+ 911+ ampefore he Pyramids he rigins f Egyptian i-ili7ation

riental nstitute useum Publications $$ he riental nstitute of the

Rni-ersity of hicago

2ead hapter gt Material Culture of the Predynastic Period by Alice

Fte-enson f you ha-e time read other chapters as ell And

http33hierakonpolisonlineorg3





We ill then examine our first object a Predynastic pot reco-ered from a

cemetery As this pot belongs to a nonliterate age e ill speculate about

the meaning of the red images hich decorate the outside of the pot Why

ere Egypts dead being buried ith gra-e goods

As hieroglyphic riting de-eloped at the time of unification e ill then

consider aspects of the hieroglyphic script 0inally e ill consider the

de-elopment of the Egyptology collection in the anchester useum

1 2e-ie the lengthy hronology of the dynastic age paying

particular attention to the Predynastic and Early Dynastic Periods f

you find that the text is too small try accessing the increased

contrast -ersion

https33d$456us7a8orccloudfrontnet3ancientegypt3eb3timeline313ti

melinehtml

9 ook at this eeks map this ill introduce you to some important

Predynastic and Early Dynastic sites ltoogle ap

https33googlecom3maps3d3u33-ieermid=7(2gt-1ltEEk

40x1oEEj

$ 2ead the istorical -er-ie of the Predynastic and Early Dynastic

Periods ou may find it helpful to use the Early Dynastic

Period Bing ist as a reference

The Predynastic and Early Dynastic Periods

f you ha-ent already done this please read the document CProblems of

DatingC as this ill help you interpret this o-er-ie






















farming communities



























magem do pote $D










-ieCM581gt5G9$gt8954GG5G1$89G4158






Predynastic












Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt





















































farming communities



























magem do pote $D










-ieCM581gt5G9$gt8954GG5G1$89G4158






Predynastic












Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt





















































magem do pote $D










-ieCM581gt5G9$gt8954GG5G1$89G4158






Predynastic












Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt



































-ieCM581gt5G9$gt8954GG5G1$89G4158






Predynastic












Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt











































Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt








































Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt






































Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt




































Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt


































Q Q Q Q

Predynastic Pot


0ound lter7eh






Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt


































Discussion



































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt










































pageHid=9


















scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt



































scrapers







helpful











People






correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt



































correctly

bull

Amenhotep

bull Amunhotep

bull Amenhotpe

bull Amenophis











usage

Places







names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt



































names

bull









common usage


















1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt






































1 Written Records
























































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt

































































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt






































of accuracy













Bingdoms



D(AF 2(lt



























































Documents

Ancient Egypt - Week 1