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Chapter 5 Lesson 1 Notes: The Gift of the Nile

Geography of Ancient Egypt

The Longest River

• The ______________ River is 4,160 miles long

- is the world’s longest river

- begins near equator in Africa

- flows north to Mediterranean Sea

• South has __________________ which are waterfalls

• A __________________ is an area near river’s mouth

- Water leaves _______________ which is fine soil

• Heavy rains flooded Nile every summer

- Soil left on shores was ___________________ and was good for growing crops Red Land, Black Land

• Ancient ______________________ lived in narrow land on sides of Nile

- called this region the ____________________ land because of fertile soil

- _____________________ land was desert beyond fertile region

• _________________ months of year were sunny, hot

- four months of winter were sunny, cooler

• ______________ inch of rain a year in most of region Isolation

• Desert acted as barrier to ________________________

• Sea coast was _____________________ with no good harbors

• Early Egyptians stayed close to home

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Land of Plenty

Agricultural Techniques

• Egyptians watched for ____________________ to determine flood, planting

seasons

• By about ________________ B.C., farmers used technology to expand

farmland

- dug ___________________ canals to carry water to dry areas

- Used ______________________ - bucket on a lever - to spread water across fields

Egyptian Crops

• Grew vegetables, fruits; were the first to grind wheat into ________________

- mixed flour with yeast and water to make _______________________

• Wove flax plant fibers into linen which is a lightweight cloth

- wore clothing made from linen

Egyptian Houses

• Houses were built with bricks of mixed _________________ and straw

- Narrow windows, white walls reduced sunlight, heat

- Sticks, palm trees woven into roof; reed mats covered floor

• _________________________ had fancy homes, courtyards, pools

• Poor people cooled off on roof; cooked, ate, slept outside

Geography Shapes Egyptian Life Mining

• ____________________ was used for tools, weapons as early as 6000 B.C.

- Egyptians later sought iron, which was stronger than copper

• Africa’s richest gold mines were located in the __________________ Nile in

an area called Nubia

• Mining minerals was difficult in the hot _________________ Peninsula east of

Egypt

- Chipped rock to get at hidden mountain veins

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• Mined precious stones such as __________________________, lapis lazuli

Fishing and Hunting

• Reed rafts were used for river travel; caught _______________ with nets and

harpoons

• Some hunters speared hippopotamuses and ___________________

• Hunted quail and duck with nets and ________________________ Transportation and Trade

• Later used sails to let wind carry boats south on Nile

- When following current north, used oars, paddles for speed

• Began to ____________________ or trade goods with no exchange of money

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Chapter 5 Lesson 2 Notes: Life in Ancient Egypt

Work and Family Life

Specialized Jobs

• Food ____________________ let people do jobs other than farm

• _____________________ wrote and kept records

• Some artisans built stone and brick houses and _____________________

- Others made pottery, furniture, clothing, jewelry

• Some Egyptians ________________ with other Africans on upper Nile

- scrolls, linen, gold, jewelry traded for woods, skins, animals

Rulers and Priests

• Government divided empire into 42 provinces, created army

• ______________ was one of highest jobs—performed rituals, cared for temples

• Together priests and the ruler held ceremonies to please the ______________

- believed if gods happy, Nile would _________________, crops would grow

Slaves

• Slaves were at _________________ of society but generally treated well

- except slaves working in mines, who often ________________ from labor

• People enslaved if had ______________, committed crime, were captured in war

- usually ________________ after time

Life for Women

• Women had almost ________________ rights, could own property

• Most cared for children, home; others wove cloth, worked in fields

- some rose to ________________________ positions

Childhood

• Children had ____________, board games, marbles; played ball games

• Children of wealthy went to _______________; most learned parents’ jobs

- almost all married in their early _________________

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__________________

The bottom two tiers made up the largest

segment of the population.

Considered a

________ by the

people

Cared for the

___________ and held

ceremonies to keep the

gods happy Trained in the art

of ___________

and record keeping

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Expanding Knowledge

Astronomy

• Priests studied world to find ways to please gods

- Some advances came from practical discoveries

• Priests studied __________ for religious reasons

• Used __________-day cycle of star to create first practical _________________

- Star used now called Sirius

Geometry

• Surveyors used knotted ____________ to mark boundaries washed out by floods

• Geometric shapes were sacred, used in design of _______________, monuments

Medicine

• Doctors prepared bodies for ___________________, knew body parts

- performed some of first ___________________

- Some specialized in herbal medicines

• Believed that ____________ controlled thought, _____________ circulated blood

Hieroglyphs

• Hieroglyphs—____________________ that stand for different words, sounds

• In use from 3000 B.C., writing system started with 700 characters

- grew to include over 6,000 symbols

• ____________________—paper-like material from papyrus reed

- pressed, rolled into scrolls; light, easy to carry

- used to create some of the first _______________

Beliefs and Religion

Life After Death

• Egyptians along the Nile had ___________________ view of life

- Nile’s _________________ land provided for most of their needs

• Egyptians believed gods favored them, believed in happy afterlife

- Afterlife—life believed to follow __________________

• Other cultures, such as ___________________, thought afterlife was miserable

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Many Gods

• _______________________—belief in many gods

• Egyptian gods included those of afterlife, nature

- ___________ was sun god, later called Amon-Re

- __________________ was a god who judged Egyptians after death

- _________________ was a fertility goddess, Osiris’ wife

- ________________ was a god of the dead

Making Mummies

• Dead bodies __________________ so people would have their bodies in afterlife

- embalm—to preserve a body after death

• Removed all organs but ________________, filled body with salt, herbs

- created mummy—a body dried so it won’t ________________

• Dried body wrapped in ________________ strips; process took about 70 days

• Put in coffin in tomb with every day __________________ for use in afterlife

(You will insert a page here later on about Egyptian Afterlife)

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Famous Places in Egypt (Part 2 of Lesson 2 Notes)

1. Step Pyramid of Djoser (Zoser)

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2. The Pyramids of Giza

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3. The Great Sphinx of Giza

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4. The Temple of Hatshepsut

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5. Temple of Ramses II

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6. Tomb of King Tutankhamen

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Chapter 5 Lesson 3 Notes - The Pyramid Builders

The Old Kingdom

The First Dynasty

• Legend says a king, Narmer, united _______________________ and

_________________ Egypt

- Some historians believe several rulers united Egypt

• Ruler of united Egypt wore the _________________________ crown

• First dynasty—line of rulers from same family—about 2925 B.C.

• When a king died, he was usually replaced by one of his

_____________________

- _________________________—order in which royal family members inherit

a throne

• Historians divided dynasties into Old, _____________________, and New

kingdoms

- Old Kingdom began around 2575 B.C. as empire gained strength

Pharaohs Rule

• King of Egypt became known as pharaoh, which means

“_____________________”

- The pharaoh ruled from capital city of _______________________________

• Egyptians believed pharaoh was a god, blamed him for hard times

- in such times, a rival might replace pharaoh, start new dynasty

• Since pharaoh seen as god, government and religion not separate

- priests had much power, were often high officials in

_________________________

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Khufu’s Great Pyramid

Early Pyramids

• First rulers were buried in _______________________ tombs, topped with bricks

• Later the tombs were replaced bricks with small _____________________

- pyramid is a triangle-shaped structure with four sides that meet at a point

• King ________________________ built larger pyramid over his tomb around

2630 B.C.

- it was called a ___________________ pyramid because the sides rise in series

of big steps

- it is the oldest-known large stone structure in world

The Great Pyramid

• 80 years later, pharaoh ____________________ wanted to show world his

greatness

- he ordered construction of largest pyramid ever, with 760-foot sides

- 2.3 million stone blocks cut, pulled up _________________, dragged into

place

• Farmers worked during Nile’s flood season, others worked all year

• Took an estimated ________________________ people almost 20 years to build

- city of ______________________ was built for the workers who were

building the Great Pyramid

Grave Robbers

• Egyptians later stopped building pyramids, in part due to robbery

- grave robbers often stole the tombs’ treasures, even the

____________________

• Egyptians believed robbery kept the buried from a ___________________

afterlife

• Pharaohs built secret tombs in the _____________________________________

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- built during ________________________ Kingdom to protect treasures,

bodies

- burial chambers were hidden in mountains near Nile

Inside the Tombs

• Several passageways led to different rooms to confuse robbers

- ________________________ and other relatives were sometimes buried in

other rooms of the pyramids

• Tomb was palace of pharaoh’s ___________________. It was filled with food

and furniture and other things they would need during their afterlife

• Wall paintings and _________________________glorified the dead person, the

gods

- the paintings showed head, arms, legs from side, and body from front

- showed pharaohs enjoying themselves and sometimes fighting battles

Middle Kingdom

Invasions

• By _____________________ B.C., kings began to lose power to local province

rulers

- weak central government held Egypt together for 500 more years

- this period known as the _______________________ Kingdom

• Nomadic Hyksos invaded from northeast with ________________________and

better weapons

- after 100 years, Egyptians drove out ____________________, began New

Kingdom

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Chapter 5 Lesson 4 - The New Kingdom

A Woman Pharaoh

Taking Power

• Powerful New Kingdom rulers set up the new capital at

_____________________

• Queen ________________________ was the first woman pharaoh. She was the

wife of pharaoh who died and she ruled with her stepson

__________________________;

-She became the sole ruler in ______________ B.C.

Trade Grows

• Hatshepsut expanded Egypt through ______________________ as well as war

• Brought Egypt riches with trade expeditions. Her biggest expedition crossed

the desert to the _______________________ where large ships sailed south to

an African land called _____________________.

Hatshepsut’s Monuments

• She built ________________________ which were four-sided shafts with

pyramid-shaped tops

-All of them were carved from red granite; hieroglyphs describe her deeds on

them

Mysterious End

• Hatshepsut ruled for 15 years, then mysteriously

_____________________________

- may have died peacefully or been killed by

______________________________

• Thutmose became pharaoh, tried to destroy all records of Hatshepsut

- Archaeologists restored her damaged temple and tomb

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A Reforming Pharaoh

A New Belief

• ___________________________________ became pharaoh in 1353 B.C.

• Raised sun god _________________ to highest status, closed other gods’

temples

- For first time in Egypt’s history, Egyptians worshiped ______________ god

• Priests serving other gods lost power, became ___________________

- To avoid conflict, Akhenaton moved capital 200 miles away to a city called

________________________________

Realistic Art

• Under Akhenaton, art showed realistic pharaohs, not “perfect”

Reform Ends

• Akhenaton’s new religion didn’t last long after his death

• Three years later, young ________________________ became pharaoh in 1333

B.C.

- The young king had _____________________ to help him rule Egypt who

convinced him to reject new religion and worship the old gods

A Powerful Pharaoh

_______________________________

• _________________________ ruled in 1279 B.C., 44 years after Tutankhamen

died

• Also called ______________________________________________

Empire Builder

• Wanted to make Egypt powerful through war

- extended territory south into _________________________ and to eastern

Mediterranean

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Military Leader

• Ramses led army against old Egyptian enemies, the

________________________

- Nobody won battle, but Ramses claimed victory

- negotiated first-known peace treaty with Hittites

Ramses’ Reign

• Built city called ___________________________ with four 66-foot statues of

himself

- wanted to appear godlike

• Reigned until age ________________, 1213 B.C.

- 66-year reign was among history’s longest, stabilized government

• Reign was time of __________________—no enemies after Hittite treaty

• Nile flooding was predictable during reign, crops were plentiful

Egypt’s Decline

• Following Ramses’ death, the central government weakened

• After about 1070 B.C., a series of foreign powers ruled Egypt

• _______________________________________of Macedonia conquered Egypt

- ______________________________ ruled after Alexander’s death

- Last Macedonian ruler was queen _______________________________

• Eventually Roman Empire conquered Egypt