Ancient Egypt: The Rule of
The God King
The Old Kingdom 2700-2181 B.C.
The Middle Kingdom: 2060- 1785
B.C.
The New Kingdom:1570-1085 B.C.
The Nile Valley
Chapter 4 Lesson 2 Vocabulary
Diplomacy- relations between countries
Nation-State- region with united people and single government
Dynasty- series of rulers from the same family
Vizier- chief advisor (works for King)
Hieroglyphs- picture symbols
Papyrus- paper-like material used for writing
Pyramids- largest stone structures in the world; served as tombs for
Egyptian rulers
Egypt Unites 3500-3100 BC
-King Narmer united Upper/Lower Egypt
-Named Memphis the capitol
-First established nation-state
-King controlled all land, economy, and government
-Unified all of Egypt and allowed Kings to maintain
authority
-Members of royal family held highest public offices
Crowns of Egypt
Upper
Lower
Unified
The Old Kingdom:Sacred
Writings
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Influenced by Sumerian writing-Egyptians
introduce Hieroglyphs
Hieroglyphs or “scared words” were called
so because it was believed that the symbols
represented a real or mythical power
Hieroglyphs had three meanings
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It signified an object
An idea associated with the object
A sound associated with the object
The Old Kingdom:Sacred
Writings
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Hieroglyphs carved on stone
but everyday records
written on papyrus
Papyrus was a paper made
from the papyrus reed
Pharaoh
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Egyptians believed that their kings
were gods
Pharaoh’s were rulers of Egypt
Pharaoh’s purpose was to bring
truth, justice and order to Egypt
Egyptians were expected to follow
a code of order as well
This order was called ma’at a
concept of justice or social order
based on the balance or
reconciliation of conflicting
principles
The Old Kingdom:Prosperity
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Soil rich fields provided a surplus of food which could
be used for trade
Rich deposits of mineral resources such as
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Silver
Gold
Turquoise
Copper was Egypt's most profitable resource because
it was in demand for tools
Abundance of food surpluses and minerals helped
Egypt trade for goods like textiles for clothes and
timber for ships and housing
Prosperity was responsible for the growth of families
The Old Kingdom: The Family
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Families were large and
encouraged to be so
Families were loving and
caring
Wives had equal
relationships in households
Wealth still had it’s
privileges in respect to life
opportunities and
experiences
The Old Kingdom: Egyptian
Society
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Housing design (small v.
spacious), construction
(brick v. stone) and placing
(city v. countryside)
Jewelry showed wealth
Women protected by laws
but could still be beat
Food consumption based
on social rank
The Old Kingdom: Egyptian
Society
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Egyptian Society was ranked by
importance
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Pharaoh
High Priest,Nobles and generals
Engineers, doctors and Priest
Scribes
Craftsmen and merchants
Soldiers, farmers and tomb makers
Possible to move up one’s social rank
The Old Kingdom: Pyramids
and the Afterlife
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Pyramids were vast funeral
monuments which held
dead pharaoh remains and
served as the center of
worship to the dead king
Size of pyramids symbolized
the the Pharaoh’s
immortality and length of
order he brought to the
land
Great Pyramid of Giza took
twenty years to construct
and required 100,000
workers to complete
The Old Kingdom: Pyramids
and the Afterlife
The Old Kingdom: Pyramids
and the Afterlife
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Egyptians introduced the
version of a pleasant afterlife
On death of Pharaoh an
embalmer would remove
internal organs and preserve
them as well as body
Tomb was then stocked with
items the dead would need
in the afterlife
Used Book of the Dead as
their guide to the afterlife
The Old Kingdom: 2200-1570
B.C.
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Pepi II (2270-2180 B.C.)
ruled for 90 years
(longest) by consolidating
power through marriage
and favorable
appointments (made
people loyal to him)
Following rulers were
weak and indecisive
Droughts and infighting
signal an end to the Old
Kingdom