Egyptian Civilization

1
Egyptian Civilization

• Ch. 2
• Section 2

2
Egyptian Religion

• Egyptians were polytheistic or believed in more
  than one god.
• Their chief was the sun god Amon-Re. The pharaoh
  who Egyptians viewed as a god was closely linked
  to him.
• Egyptians also believed in an afterlife, however
  to win eternal life each soul had to pass a test
  and that it needed its body later in the next
  life.
• Consequently, Egyptians preserved their dead
  through a process known as mummification.

3
Osiris Judging the Dead
4
A Religious rebel

• In 1380 B.C. a young pharaoh attempted to
  convince Egyptians to worship a minor sun god
  called Aton. The pharaoh took the name
  Akhenaton.
• With the support of his wife Nefretiti, he tried
  to wipe away all the other gods.
• This was short lived and after his death, high
  priests returned to polytheism.

5
Egyptian Society

• Egypt like other civilizations had its own class
  system.
• The Pharaoh was most important followed by high
  priests and priestesses.
• Next came nobles and a tiny class of scribes,
  artisans, and merchants.
• Most Egyptians were peasant farmers who farmed in
  season and worked on building projects during
  other parts of the year.

6
Women

• Enjoyed a higher degree of status in Egypt
  compared to other societies.
• They could hold jobs outside the home however
  some were off limits to women such as becoming a
  scribe or government official.
• Women did not learn to read or write however they
  could inherit property, enter business contracts,
  buy and sell goods, go to court, and obtain a
  divorce.

7
Lasting Records

• Like many early civilizations, Egyptians
  developed a form of picture writing called
  Hieroglyphics.
• They were used to keep important records by
  priests and were initially carved in stone.
• Later scribes learned to read and write and kept
  records such as for ceremonies, taxes, and gifts.
• Over time a demotic or simpler form of writing
  developed for everyday use. Papyrus or a
  reed-like plant was also used to make a type of
  paper
• The papyrus plant was commonly found along the
  Nile.

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Hieroglyphics
9
Papyrus
10
The Rosetta Stone

• Knowledge of Hieroglyphics decreased after the
  New Kingdom and its meaning remained a secret
  until the 1800s when a French scholar Jean
  Champollion discovered the Rosetta Stone.
• Deciphering the meaning of the Hieroglyphic text
  using a translation from the Greek, Champollion
  was able to unlock the secret of Egyptian
  writing.

11
The Rosetta Stone