starting from the Neolithic Period (c. 4500–3000 BC) to Early Dynastic Period (c. 3000–2650 BC) leading to the Graeco-Roman Period (c. 332 BC–AD 642)."/>
Figure 1.3 Chronology of ancient Egypt.
Around 3100 BC, Upper and Lower Egypt were unified by Narmer, who became the founder of the first dynasty and thus the first king, or pharaoh, of Egypt.5 The history of ancient Egypt is divided into 31 dynasties beginning in c. 3100 BC and concluding in 30 BC, and further divided into the Early Dynastic Period, Old Kingdom, First Intermediate Period, Middle Kingdom, Second Intermediate Period, New Kingdom (or Empire), and Post‐Empire.
The pharaohs of the Old Kingdom (c. 2700–c. 2200 BC) ruled from Memphis in Upper Egypt. Unlike the kings in Mesopotamia, who were servants of the gods, the pharaoh was a living god, often associated with the falcon‐headed god Horus. Upon death, the pharaoh became Osiris, god of the dead. In life, it was his duty to maintain Ma'at – harmony, continuity, unchanging order, justice, and truth. In so doing, the pharaoh guaranteed the safety and prosperity of the people. If he failed to rule wisely, chaos would return in the form of famine or some other disaster. As the possessor of Ma'at, the pharaoh was the source of law and justice. Hence, the Egyptians never developed a law code. There was no need for one.
During the Old Kingdom only the pharaoh, and those he chose to be with him, enjoyed an afterlife. It was important to preserve the pharaoh's body and to provide him with the things he would need in his afterlife. Pyramids of great size, and later tombs, were constructed and filled with the objects, or models of them, that the pharaoh would need. Scenes depicting hunting or other events that the pharaoh enjoyed in life were carved or painted on the walls. They would become reality in the afterlife.
The Egyptians developed a system of writing that combined pictographs and symbols representing sounds in a script referred to as hieroglyphs (“sacred carvings”), meaning “god's words.” By inventing the 24 signs for the sounds of consonants, the Egyptians invented the alphabet, or at least the principle of the alphabet. Because of the abundance of Cyperus papyrus, an aquatic plant that grew along the Nile especially in the Delta, the Egyptians were able to make a form of paper known simply as papyrus. Instead of having to make wedge‐shaped marks in clay tablets as in Sumerian cuneiform, the Egyptians could use pen and ink to write hieroglyphs on papyrus, as well as carve them or paint them on stone.
The construction of the pyramids during the Old Kingdom testifies to the absolute power of the pharaohs, as well as the engineering skills of the Egyptians. Contrary to the impression one may get from Hollywood, the pyramids were not built by slaves. During the three months each year when the flood waters of the Nile covered the arable land and farming ceased, thousands of peasants were put to work constructing the pyramids. By ensuring the preservation of the pharaoh's body, they were ensuring the continuity of the rhythm of life, especially the regularity of the Nile's flooding upon which life depended.
The pyramids are among the most impressive man‐made wonders in history. The first pyramid was built for Djoser (r. c. 2686–c. 2613 BC) at Saqqara, on the west bank of the Nile River opposite Memphis. It has six stepped layers of stone that reached a height of 204 ft. (62 m). The pyramid was surrounded by a 40‐acre (16‐ha) complex of temples and other buildings enclosed by a 30 ft. (9.1m) high wall. The Step pyramid, as it is called, was designed by history's first known architect, Imhotep (c. 3000–c. 2950 BC).
Most impressive of the pyramids built during the Old Kingdom is the Great Pyramid, built one century later for Khufu (or Cheops, r. c. 2589–2566 BC). It was the first and largest of the pyramids built at Giza on the west bank of the Nile River close to modern‐day Cairo, and is the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing.
Figure 1.4 The Great Pyramid of Khufu, or Cheops, completed c. 2560 BC.
Source: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Collections.
To build the Great Pyramid, workers cut approximately 2.3 million limestone blocks at quarries 500 miles (804.7 km) away and brought them to Giza. Each block weighed an average of 2.5 tons (2.3 MT), though some were as heavy as 16 tons (14.5 MT). The base is 755 ft. (230.4 m) long on each side (570 000 sq. ft., or 52 954.7 sq. m). The stones are so accurately placed that there is no more than an 8‐in. (20.3 cm) difference between the lengths of the sides. The original height was 481 ft. (147 m), making the Great Pyramid the tallest manmade structure well into the nineteenth century AD. The pyramid was encased in smooth limestone. The outer stones fit together so well that a hair cannot be wedged between them. It is estimated that in order to finish the pyramid in 30 years, it would have been necessary to set in place one block every two and a half minutes. The ancient Greek historian Herodotus wrote in The Histories (c. 430 BC) that the Egyptians told him it took 100 000 men 20 years to build the Great Pyramid.
A series of weak pharaohs toward the end of the Old Kingdom allowed much of the central government's power to slip into the hands of powerful regional nobles. The result was roughly one century of weak central government and general turmoil between c. 2150 and c. 2050 BC. Mentuhotep II (r. c. 2046–c. 1995 BC), who ruled from Thebes in Upper Egypt, reunited Egypt sometime around the 39th year of his 51‐year reign. He was the first pharaoh of the Middle Kingdom, a period of stability and prosperity that lasted from c. 2050 to c. 1652 BC.
The pharaoh's role changed somewhat during the Middle Kingdom. His power over the whole of Egypt was restored, but he was no longer the absolute ruler that he was during the Old Kingdom. The age of the great pyramids was over. The pharaohs of the 11th and 12th dynasties undertook great building projects that benefitted the people by providing employment, but nothing on the scale of the Great Pyramid. It was the pharaoh's role as shepherd of his people that was emphasized. The conquest of Lower Nubia on the southern border of Upper Egypt and military expeditions north along the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea enhanced the power of the pharaohs of the Middle Kingdom.
During the latter part of the eighteenth‐century BC, Lower Egypt (the Delta region) was invaded by a people whom the Egyptians called the Hyksos (meaning “rulers of foreign lands”). The Hyksos spoke a Semitic language and migrated away from the Middle East after Indo‐Europeans migrated into it in the second millennium. The Hyksos kings, or pharaohs, ruled Lower Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period from their capital at Avaris in the eastern Delta.
The Hyksos invaders enjoyed the advantage of advanced military organization and technology. The Egyptian army was outdated both in its weaponry and its emphasis on infantry. They relied on their infantry organized into sections of spearmen, bowmen, and archers. Their main weapons were the mace, a solid shaft with a heavy round head used to bludgeon the enemy, and a simple bow. One can only imagine the fear that must have possessed the Egyptians when confronted with a mobile army of warriors with lightweight, horse‐drawn chariots. The Egyptians had never seen horses before. Furthermore, the Hyksos warriors had a new composite bow that could fire an arrow at least 200 yards further than the simple bows used by the Egyptians. They wore helmets and body armor and carried penetrating axes, swords, and quivers of arrows. Weapons made of bronze gave the Hyksos a decisive advantage on the battlefield, and subsequently brought Egypt into the Bronze Age.
The Hyksos controlled Lower Egypt, while Upper Egypt remained under a native Egyptian line that ruled from Thebes. Pharaoh Ahmose I (1570–1546 BC) eventually drove the Hyksos out of Egypt and pursued them north into Palestine as far as the Euphrates River. Ahmose I also led a campaign south into Nubia. Ahmose I's reign marks the beginning of the New Kingdom, or the Egyptian Empire (1550–1069 BC). His conquered lands were consolidated
