Egyptian civilization

Abu Dhabi Education councit Al-Ain Education office Zayed adult Education center

Produce By: Khaled Khamis Class: 12 Art 2 Teacher: Wael Thiab

Semester 1 2011 2012

Table of Content

Egyptian Religion..3 The Pyramid..6 The Mummy.7 The Afterlife....10 The Hieroglyphic Alphabet.....10 History.....12 Sources and references14

Egyptian Religion

Religion was integral to Egyptian life. Religious beliefs formed the basis of Egyptian art, medicine, astronomy, literature and government. The great pyramids were burial tombs for the pharaohs who were revered as gods on earth. Magical utterances pervaded medical practices since disease was attributed to the gods. Astronomy evolved to determine the correct time to perform religious rites and sacrifices. The earliest examples of literature dealt almost entirely with religious themes. The pharaoh was a sacrosanct monarch who served as the intermediary between the gods and man. Justice too, was conceived in religious terms, something bestowed upon man by the creator-god. Finally, the Egyptians developed an ethical code which they believed the gods had approved.

J. A. Wilson once remarked that if one were to ask an ancient Egyptian whether the sky was supported by posts or held up by a god, the Egyptian would answer: "Yes, it is supported by posts or held up by a god -- or it rests on walls, or it is a cow, or it is a goddess whose arms and feet touch the earth" (The Intellectual Adventure of Ancient Man, 1943). The ancient Egyptian was ready to accept any and all gods and goddesses that seemed appropriate. For instance, if a new area was incorporated into the Egyptian state, its gods and goddesses would be added to the pantheon of those already worshipped.

From its earliest beginnings, Egyptian religious cults included animals. It is no accident that sheep, bulls, gazelles and cats have been found carefully buried and preserved in their own graves. As time passed, the figures of Egyptian gods became human (anthropomorphism) although they often

retained the animal's head or body. Osiris, the the Egyptian god who judged the dead, first emerged as a local deity of the Nile Delta in Lower Egypt. It was Osiris who taught the Egyptian agriculture. Isis was his wife, and animal-headed Seth, his brother and rival. Seth killed Osiris. Isis persuaded the gods to bring him back to life, but thereafter he ruled below. Osiris was identified with the life-giving, fertilizing power of the Nile, and Isis with with the fertile earth of Egypt. Horus, the god of the sky, defeated the evil Seth after a long struggle.

But Horus was only one kind of sky god. There was also Re, the sun god, later conjoined with Amen, and still later Aten. The moon god was the baboon-headed Thoth, who was the god of wisdom, magic and numbers. In the great temple cities such as Heliopolis ("city of the sun"), priests worked out and wrote down hierarchies of divinities. In the small communities of villages, all the forces of nature were deified and worshipped. One local god was part crocodile, part hippopotamus, and part lion.

Despite the ever-increasing number of deities which could be added to this hierarchy of deities, one thing is certain: Egyptian religion, unlike the religion of Mesopotamia, was centralized. In Sumer, the temple was the focus of political, economic and religious organization. Indeed, it was often difficult to know where one aspect began and another ended. By contrast, the function of an Egyptian temple was focused on religion.

We are certain that ancient Egyptians were preoccupied with life after death. They believed that after death each human being would appear before Osiris and recount all the evil that had been committed during one's earthly existence: "I have not done evil to men. I have not ill-treated animals," and so on. This was a negative confession and justification for admittance into the blessed afterlife. Osiris would then have the heart of the person weighed in order to determine the truth of their confession.

The Egyptians believed not only in body and soul, but in ka, the indestructible vital principle of each person, which left the body at death but which could also return at other times. This explains why the Egyptians mummified the dead: so that the ka, on its return, would find the body not decomposed. And this also explains why tombs were filled with wine, grain, weapons, sailing ships and so on -- ka would find everything it needed, otherwise it might come back to haunt the living.

The Pyramid Back in ancient times, the Egyptians built pyramids out of huge blocks of stones. For this fun project, you won't have to worry about rocks, or even pebbles. In fact, you can even eat this pyramid while you make it! You'll need about 220 sugar cubes, so raid your mom's kitchen cupboard for a new package.

Glue one side of a sugar cube onto a big piece of cardboard. Make a square of 10 cubes across and 10 cubes down.

Make a second layer of 9 cubes, but glue this row about two cm in from the first row.

Continue these steps, using eight cubes, then seven and so on until you reach the top.

Once you're done with the glue, you can paint your pyramid!

The Mummy Ancient Egyptians believed that when you died, your soul went to the underworld to be judged by Osiris, Lord of the Underworld. If he judged you to have been a good person, then your soul would re-unite with your body and you would live in eternal paradise. But in order for your soul to recognize your body, you had to look the way you had while you were alive, which is why corpses were mummified. Now that you know why bodies were mummifed, you can make your own mummy - but instead of wrapping your little brother in sheets, try using a Barbie doll.

Take the doll and wrap it in cloth strips until it's completely covered. You may want to start at the feet and work your way up to the head.

Insert amulets (special charms) between linen wrappings. You can use anything from jewelry to coins.

For bonus points, make a sarcophagus (coffin) out of a cardboard box and decorate it with hieroglyphics.

Dissecting Mummies

Mummy

Canopic Jars When you hear about a Mummy do you think about some stiff-legged, skeleton wrapped in loose cloth trying to seek revenge? Or maybe you think of young King Tut laid out in his golden tomb. Whatever the case, these shriveled, icky looking bodies go back a long way.

What is a Mummy? A mummy is a very old, dead body. It's not a skeleton or a fossil cuz some soft tissue (skin, organs and muscles) is still stuck on the bones. This mummification can happen on purpose or by accident. Some of the world's best-known mummies were accidentally created when a body was put in a place where no air or moisture could get to it. Lack of air and moisture delays the decaying process and mummifies the body. Bodies can be dried in the sun, with fire or smoke, or by freezing it.

Master Mummy Makers Egyptians weren't the first or the last to create mummies but they were probably the best known for them. This might have more to do with their very hot climate than their skill. Desert winds and scorching hot sand would quickly dry out a dead body. In fact, one of the oldest Egyptian mummies (from about 3500 B.C). might have been created this way. Back then, if you wanted your body mummified by the pros it would have cost an arm and a leg, or your weight in gold. How to Make a Mummy - Step One It takes 70 days to make a well preserved mummy. First, internal parts of the body have to be removed. Take a special hooked tool - it looks like a crochet needle - and carefully put it up the nose and scoop out brain tissue. Then make a cut on the left side of the stomach and remove stomach and chest organs. The heart stays where it is but the stomach, liver, lungs and intestines are put in special boxes or jars, known as canopic jars. These jars go in the tomb with the body.

How to Make a Mummy - Step Two Next, all the moisture must be taken out of the body. Cover the body with natron, a salt that works great for this process, and put natron packets inside the body. When the body is dried out completely, remove all the natron. The body will look like a blackened dried out human. Fill sunken parts of the body with linen and add false eyes. How to Make a Mummy - Step Three Now it's time to wrap the body. You'll need about 150 yards of linen - the length of one and a half football fields. Use long strips of the linen to carefully wrap the body. This might take up to 15 days. Fingers and toes can be wrapped individually, but they don't have to be. In between layers put warm sticky stuff like pitch or tree sap on the linen. You might also want to add good luck charms and jewelry. When this is done, the mummy is complete. The Afterlife

Egyptians believed that mummifying a person's body after he or she died was an important part of a person's safe passage to the afterlife. The tomb

was also prepared for this journey. Furniture, food, wall paintings, statues and, of course, jewelry were buried with the body. A mask was put over the face so the soul would recognize the body when it returned to Earth. Between the fourth and seventh century A.D. many Egyptians became Christians so they stopped making mummies. During the 3000 year mummy-making period it is thought that more than 70 million mummies were made in Egypt. Thanks to vandals, grave robbers and treasure hunters, most of them will never be found.

The Hieroglyphic Alphabet Another fun project idea can be done by using hieroglyphics, the ancient Egyptian alphabet. You can spell your name or initial your mummy, but better yet, try going one step further. Translate a short phrase into pictures, and paint it onto a big poster board. This is a great opportunity for you to learn about the symbolism used in Egyptian art and the alphabet

Famous Pharaohs

Tutankhamen

Ramesses II

Egyptian history is measured by dynasties - how long a family ruled for. Rulers of Egypt were called pharaohs, the only country to call them this. Since Egypt has a history that goes back more than seven thousand years the list of pharaohs is long. Here are a few of the more interesting ones:

Hatshepsut (1473 - 1458 BC) One of only a few female pharaohs, Hatshepsut who was the first wife Thutmose II. After Thutmose's death, his son, Thutmose III, (by a minor wife) was named the heir. Because the boy was so young, Hatshepsut ruled with him until she declared herself pharaoh. She claimed the god Amon-Ra said she was to be pharaoh. Dressed not as a lady, but in men's clothes, Hatshepsut took charge of the nation and had the support of the high priest and other officials. For 20 years she ruled Egypt and during that time the economy was great. She started trading with more countries, built impressive temples and restored many others. One of these magnificent buildings was the temple at Deir el Bahari. Hatshepsut disappeared after Thutmose III reclaimed the throne, and what became of her is a mystery. Thutmose III (1479 - 1425 BC)

Thutmose III might be responsible for the mysterious disappearance of Hatshepsut, but he was still a great ruler. He has been called the Napoleon of ancient Egypt. After taking the throne he had Hatshepsut's name cut from the temple walls and tried to erase her name from history. Thutmose never lost a battle. Thutmose III was a national hero and he was respected throughout Egyptian history. Besides being a military genius he is well known for his many buildings. He set up several obelisks. One, which is mistakenly called Cleopatra's Needle, can be seen on the Embankment in London. Another one is in Central Park in New York, one in Rome and another in Istanbul. (Obviously he didn't build them in these locations, they were excavated and moved centuries later). Tutankhamen (1336 - 1327 BC) At the age of nine Tutankhamen became pharaoh. King Tut, as a lot of people call him, was too young to rule Egypt so his uncle Ay, who was the highest minister, ruled for him while he was a boy. Tut married Ankhsenoomun. Tutankhamen died at 18. His body was found with his skull bashed in. It is thought that Ay may have had something to do with the sudden and mysterious death. Only a person of great importance could get

near enough to harm him, one of them would have been Ay. Ay married Tut's widow (who is also a suspect in Tut's murder), despite being her grandfather, so that he could have power. Ramesses II (1279 - 1213 BC) Ramesses II was one of the longest ruling pharaohs of ancient Egypt. He was called Ramesses the Great and ruled for 67 years, although beside his father in the beginning. It is said that Ramesses lived for over 80 years. The average person lived to about 40 so he must have seemed like a god. Ramesses made a name for himself as a builder and a warrior but he also had a rep as a ladies man. He had over a dozen wives and more than 100 children.

References
http://www.kidzworld.com http://en.wikipedia.org www.historyguide.org