You're watching FreeSchool! One of the most powerful civilizations in
the history of the world, ancient Egypt reigned supreme for more than 3,000 years. Settled around the Nile River in northeast
Africa, the ancient Egyptians created huge pyramids, beautiful statues, detailed artwork,
and a complex system of hieroglyphic writing. During their long history they made advances
in agriculture, architecture, and astronomy, and the many artifacts they left behind still
capture our imaginations today. Before Egypt became an empire, it was divided
into two kingdoms: the Upper Kingdom in the south, and the Lower Kingdom in the north. These names may seem backwards to us, but
they were named after the flow of the Nile River. The Upper Kingdom was upstream, and the Lower
Kingdom was downstream. Around 3100 BC, about 5,000 years ago, a king
named Narmer united the two kingdoms, creating an empire that would last thousands of years. To show that the kingdoms were equal, Narmer
established a new city between them - Memphis. This unification marked the official beginning
of Egypt as a civilization. The unification of Upper and Lower Egypt also
gave Egypt control of the entire Nile river, and that was a key to its power. Without the Nile, there would have been no
Egypt. Northeast Africa is almost completely desert,
and receives very little rain. In some areas it may rain only once every
few years! The Nile river provided the Egyptians with
precious water, but also something else, just as important: mud. Every year, between June and September, the
Nile river overflowed its banks, flooding the land on either side. But this annual flood was not a disaster - the
people of Egypt looked forward to it! When the Nile flooded it covered the fields
on both sides with a layer of rich brown mud that could grow wheat, barley, and vegetables. When the river did not flood very much, the
people would not be able to grow enough food. The Nile river provided other important resources,
as well. Mud from the riverbanks was used to make bricks. Papyrus plants growing along its edge were
used to make paper, baskets, rope, and sandals. Even the water itself formed a sort of highway,
allowing boats to transport people and goods from one end of the kingdom to the other. Because of the Nile, the Egyptians became
shipbuilders. Their earliest ships were skiffs, made of
bundles of papyrus reeds tied together. Air trapped in the hollow reeds helped these
skiffs to float. The Egyptians would use long poles to push
these early boats across the river. Later ships were made of wooden planks with
reeds stuffed into the cracks. At first they rowed, but later developed sails
to allow the wind to blow their ships up and down the river. With these ships the ancient Egyptians were
able to trade with other countries around the Mediterranean sea. They also became explorers, traveling as far
as the east coast of Africa, and crossing the Indian Ocean. The Nile river was so important to the people
of ancient Egypt that their calendar was based on it. They divided the year into three seasons:
Inundation, when the Nile would flood, Growing, when it was time to plant crops, and Harvest. When things went wrong, such as the Nile floodwaters
not rising high enough, the Egyptians thought it was because the gods were displeased. The people would perform rituals and make
offerings to try and persuade the gods to put things back the way they should be. The ancient Egyptians had a god for almost
everything - as many as 2,000 of them. There was a god of the underworld, of the
sun, of the sky, of deserts, and of course, a god of the Nile river. The Egyptian gods could take many forms, often
animals, and were sometimes depicted as a person with an animal's head. One of the most important of their gods was
Osiris, god of the underworld. In Egyptian mythology, Osiris was a king,
ruling as Lord of the Earth with Isis, the mother goddess, as his queen. His brother, Set, became jealous of Osiris
and came up with a plan to kill him. Set had a beautiful coffin made that was just
the right size for Osiris and then threw a big party. He told his guests that whoever fit the coffin
best would get it as a gift. When Osiris laid in the box, Set closed the
lid, fastened it, and threw it in the Nile. Osiris died, but eventually Isis found his
body. She was about to use a magic potion to resurrect
him when Set cut the body into pieces and scattered them around Egypt. With the help of her sister, Isis found all
of the body parts but one and put Osiris back together. Because a piece was missing, Osiris could
not be brought back to life. Instead, he went to the afterlife and became
Lord of the Dead. Horus, the son of Isis and Osiris, became
the next king. This story helps explain how the Egyptians
viewed their pharaohs. Pharaohs served as rulers in ancient Egypt,
but these kings and queens were believed to be gods on earth, the sons and daughters of
the other gods. It was the job of a pharaoh to keep things
in balance and maintain the cosmic order. They would lead armies in battle, collect
taxes, and build temples to the gods. After their death, it was believed that the
pharaohs would take their place in the afterlife with the other gods, just like Osiris, and
leave behind an heir to become the new pharaoh, just like Horus. The pharaoh was the most powerful person in
Egyptian society, with all the other social classes underneath them. Second in command was the vizier, who was
also sometimes the high priest. The vizier was the pharaoh's chief advisor,
and was responsible for approving official documents and running the pharaoh's household. Beneath the vizier were nobles and priests. The nobles ruled the different nomes, or regions
of Egypt, making their laws and keeping order in these areas. Egyptian priests were responsible for performing
ceremonies and rituals in their temples, to keep the gods happy and the world in balance. The next rank down contained soldiers and
scribes. Soldiers could become rich when they captured
treasure from enemies, and might be given land for service to their country. Scribes were highly educated people whose
job was to read and write - some of the only Egyptians able to do so. Next were skilled craftsmen - painters, weavers,
sculptors, people who made pottery, jewelry, shoes and clothes. Near the bottom were peasants and farmers,
who worked land belonging to the nobles in exchange for food, clothing, and a place to
live. During the floods, when no farming could be
done, peasants might work on construction projects until it was time to work the fields
again. The lowest rank in Egypt was that of slave. Slaves were usually prisoners captured in
war, and were often used as servants in temples and the homes of nobles. Slaves might also be sent to work in mines
and quarry stone that was used in building projects. The Egyptians believed that after death a
person's soul went on a journey to reach the afterlife. This journey was dangerous, and not everyone
would be allowed in. In the Hall of Truth, the jackal-headed guardian
of the dead, Anubis, would weigh your heart. If it was lighter than a feather, you would
be allowed to enter the Field of Reeds, a place where you could live eternally with
no more sadness, sickness, or death. If your heart was not pure, it would be devoured
by the crocodile-headed demon Ammit instead and you would die a second death. Because the afterlife was thought to be so
much like life on earth, the ancient Egyptians believed that you would need to take things
with you - including your body. This is why they made mummies! Mummification preserved bodies so that they
kept a more lifelike appearance. The process of mummification took up to 70
days. The organs were removed and carefully placed
in jars, except for the brain. Egyptians did not consider the brain important,
so it was removed and thrown away. The body was dried out, stuffed, and carefully
wrapped. The wrapped body was placed in a special coffin
called a sarcophagus, and the sarcophagus was placed in a tomb. Many items were placed into the tombs along
with the mummies to help them in the afterlife. Poor Egyptians were buried with small things
like bowls, combs, and food. Wealthy Egyptians might be buried with jewelry
and furniture. The pharaohs were buried in huge, elaborate
tombs with many treasures, sometimes including statues that were meant to be their servants
in the afterlife. The pyramids are examples of tombs that were
built for pharaohs to be buried in. There are rooms inside of them where the pharaohs'
bodies would be placed, along with any treasures or items that the pharaohs wanted to take
with them to the afterlife. Unfortunately, the treasures of most pyramids
were stolen long ago, leaving the pyramids empty. About 2,000 years ago Egypt was conquered
by the Romans, bringing its reign of power to an end, but the pyramids, statues, mummies,
and art the Ancient Egyptians left behind ensured that they would never be forgotten. One reason we know so much about Egyptian
history is that they wrote it down. The ancient Egyptians had their own form of
writing called hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics were much more complicated than
the alphabet we have, and used around 1,000 different characters. Some symbols stood for words or ideas and
others stood for sounds. Hieroglyphics were so complicated to write
that there were people who trained for years to do it as their job. These people were called scribes. For many years, historians were unable to
read hieroglyphics, but in 1799 a stone tablet was found that had
a message carved on it in both Greek and hieroglyphics. Because the message was the same in both languages,
the hieroglyphics could be translated. This stone, called the Rosetta Stone, has
allowed many records from ancient Egypt to be read and translated, helping us to learn
a great deal about this powerful culture from so long ago. I hope you enjoyed learning about ancient
Egypt today. Goodbye till next time!
