Chapter 2 Section 2 Egypts Old Kingdom Old

Chapter 2 Section 2 Egypt’s Old Kingdom

Old Kingdom Egypt grew and prospered during this time Built cities and expanded trade Kings set up strong governments

Pharaohs Egyptian kings were known as pharaohs Pharaoh literally means “great house” He was an all powerful-ruler who guided Egypt’s every activity, his word was law and had to be obeyed

Why did people support the pharaoh? They believed that he brought unity to the kingdom They believed that he was the son of Re- the Sun God They showed respect by playing music and bowing down when he passed by They believed he was God on earth who controlled Egypt’s welfare

Religion was deeply woven into everyday life Is this like Mesopotamia? They worshipped many deities- gods/ goddesses who are believed to have controlled the forces of nature and human activities

Gods/Goddess Re- Sun God, most important! Hapi- ruled the Nile River Isis- represented the loyal wife and mother She and her husband Osiris rule over the dead

Life after Death What was the Egyptians view on the afterlife? Was it similar to Mesopotamia? Book of the Dead- spells and prayers to help the Egyptian’s to obtain life after death Believed that you needed your body to make it into the after life

Embalming Priest removed the body’s organs Special salt was applied to the body and left to dry The body was then filled with spices and perfumes then stitched close Coated with oil and wrapped in cloth Now it was known as a mummy Placed in many wooden coffins

Medicine Embalming lead the Egyptians to learn much about the human body They were able to prescribe medications for illnesses, stitch up cuts, and reset broken bones These were the first people to specialize in certain aspects of medicine

Pyramids Tombs made for pharaohs to be buried in with their possessions to take into the after life The building of the pyramids allowed the Egyptians to develop astronomy (365 day year, 12 month year, 3 season) and mathematics (a number system based off 10)

The Great Pyramid Located 10 miles outside of modern-day Cairo Built for King Khufu in Giza on the west bank 500 feet tall, 9 football fields long, more than 2 million blocks (2. 5 tons each) Was made without modern tools, not even the wheel was used to help make these pyramids