Egyptian Civilisation Essay Example

Egyptian Civilisation Essay Example Egyptian Civilisation Essay Egyptian Civilisation Essay A civilization can be define as an advanced stage or system of human development characterized by social hierarchy and government, the division of labor and economic specialization, economic organization, settled agriculture, cultural traditions and practices, religion, art and architecture. A region must contain most or all of these characteristics if they are to be considered a civilization. Without these characteristics a society will have no structure and its people will be considered to be in a state of barbarism. The characteristics of a civilization help not only to give a society a sense identity, but a sense of history as well; this ensures that people in the present could look to the pass and know that a group of people existed during a particular period, in a particular region and carried out certain practices that would have distinguished them from other groups existing during their time. The Egyptians were a group of people that established their civilization alon g the banks of the Nile River in Egypt. Egypt is located between Africa and the Middle East and the Egyptian society contained many characteristics that distinguished them as a civilization. In this essay I will discuss some of the major features of the Egyptian civilization from the Early Dynastic period to the Late Intermediate period. The Early Dynastic period was the period which saw the unification of Lower and Upper Egypt into a single kingdom and it consisted of two dynasties. This unification occurred around 3100 BC and ancient Egyptians acknowledged this to be the start of their civilization. It was during this period that government was established in Egypt in the form of kingship. Egyptians believed that a king named Menes was responsible for the unification of Lower and Upper Egypt. However according to archaeological findings, the real historical figure and the last king of the Protodynastic Period was Narmer, the first pharaoh to claim to have united Upper and Lower Egypt. The pharaoh of the Royal Cemetery of Abydos resembled tombstones and contained a pair of carved stone funerary stelae. Prior to the fourth dynasty pharaohs were known by their Horus name and the stelae bore a hieroglyphic called a serekh which served as a representation of the Horus name of the ruler at that time. The Horus name of th e Pharaoh would also be written on serekh panels panel the first of which appeared to be the Narmer Palette. In North Saqquara there existed some elaborately niched mudbricked superstructures. The Saqquara tombs comprised of a superstructure above ground as well as an underground chamber in which the high officials of the north were buried. The Early Dynastic Period brought the development of Egyptian writings from a few signs to a more composite system of several hundred signs. The Old Kingdom was the foundational period of Egyptian civilization; it was during this period that developments in Egyptian architecture, religion and the beginning of hereditary nobility took place. The pharaohs of the Old kingdom had great power and held the monopoly, they granted estates to scribes and officials and made land grants to local cults and temple. They held superiority in all matters and were responsible for law making until their power was diminished and local rulers and priests who challenged their supremacy became more powerful. During the Old Kingdom around 2686BC- 2134BC, Egypt was under a strong central government ruled by Zoser who gained enough power to rule the entire country. Zoser established his court in Memphis and previous rulers occupied positions as governors. Egypt became wealthy and extensive irrigation projects brought the evolution of agriculture and with it an increase in trade. Because of the importance of the Nile River to agricultural success and the power of the pharaohs, Egyptians during this time saw the pharaohs as being responsible for the yearly flooding of the Nile and worshipped them as Gods. The Egyptians scheduled their agriculture in accordance with the cycle of the Nile River and the river was used as their main source of water since there was very little rainfall. The three seasons acknowledged by the Egyptians were Akhet, the season of flooding, Peret, the season of planting and Shemu, the season of harvesting. The Old Kingdom is also known for its pyramids which were used as burial places for pharaohs in Ancient Egypts. The first pyramid was built by Imhotep to house the body of King Zoser, initially it was built as a large tomb but remodeled into a towering pyramid. During the fourth dynasty of the Old Kingdom Sneferu the initiator the Dynasty was responsible for the construction of at least two pyramids, the Bent and the Red pyramids. His son and successor Khufu later constructed the Great pyramids of Giza on the Giza plateau. In this period the practice of mummification emerged, mummifications were used to preserve the bodies of the pharaohs so that the spirit would return to the body periodically and so assure the kingâ„ ¢s immortality. in an attempt to preserve the body for life in the next world. The pyramids were built during the lifetime of Sneferu, his son Khufu, and his grandson Menkaura and served as long lasting monuments. Immense exploration took place during the old kin gdom, groups were sent to Nubia for mining, Egyptians journeyed to the Phoenician coast by ship to source cedar wood and Nubia was conquered. The fifth dynasty was initiated by Userkhaf and after his supremacy there existed a power struggle. Civil conflict arose which caused the deterioration of the Egyptian government, the situation was compounded by a severe drought which caused the collapse of the Old Kingdom. The First Intermediate period lasted for approximately two hundred years and was a period in which Egypt was not ruled by a single Government. Pharaohs of this time ruled from the end of the sixth dynasty to most of the eleventh dynasty and their power was limited only to their domain. Few monuments exist from this period but the decorated tombs of governors during this period remain as evidence that there was a continuation artistic practices. Burials during the intermediate period were rich and the writing on the tomb was used to depict the independence of the governors and at times also referred to local conflict The most outstanding monument from the First Intermediate Period is the mortuary temple of Nebhepetre Mentuhotep II at Deir el-Bahari. The middle kingdom saw reemergence of the pharaohâ„ ¢s supremacy, the expansion of the civilisation and the worsening of labor conditions. Mentuhotep II was the first pharaoh of the Middle Kingdom and the establisher of the eleventh dynasty. During the reign of Mentuhotep II and other kings Egypt was able to regain its power. dynasty began to consolidate their rule. Mentuhotep II sent armies into Nubia and reconquered them after they had become independent the First Intermediate Period. Armies were sent to Palestine to look after trade relations and ships ventured to Greece, Crete and Syria. A vizier was appointed by the king as the head of civil administration for the country. New projects were initiated and irrigation systems were fixed.Senusret III, a warrior king during the period 1878 BC?  Ã¢â‚¬Å" 1839 BC, constructed forts which served as security for Egyptâ„ ¢s south border. Amenemhat III, a great ruler in the Middle Kingdom encouraged Asiatic settlers to enter the Delta region in order to use their labor for active mining and building campaigns. The Egyptian population began to experience a surplus in food as production levels rose. The Middle Kingdom birthed fresh ideas for art and literature. Gorgeous regal sculptures were created and wooden replicas of houses, soldiers and animals adorned tombs. Pyramids were constructed during this period using cheaper materials. However the inability of weaker kings to deal with powerful immigrants that had settled in the Delta brought the decline of Egypt. During the second intermediate period at around 1700 B.C.E. the Hyksos invaded Egypt and the pharaohs were forced to retreat to Thebes where there were treated as subordinates. The Hyksos who were from West Asia had superior weaponry as well as horse drawn chariots which enabled them to gain control of the Delta and reign over a large part of Egypt. The Hyksos adapted much of the Egyptian culture and many of them portrayed themselves as pharaohs. Salatis was the first king of the Second Intermediate Period, he ruled over Lower and Upper Egypt and the third king, Apophis I, relinquished some of his power to gave some of his power to a branch of the Hyksos family. The reign of the Hyksos, was a significant period of technical improvement which saw the encouragement of arts, crafts and literature. The Second Intermediate period comprised of the fifteenth, sixteenth and seventh dynasties and the Hyksos contributed the harness and war chariots to Egyptian civilization. War eventually brok e out between the Egyptians and Hyksos and Egypt emerged victorious. The New Kingdom consisted of the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth dynasty and saw the production of many famous arts, artefacts and architecture. The eighteenth dynasty was one of prosperity and power. Hatshepsut, a female pharaoh reigned during this period; she served with great competence and it was under her that Egyptian trade expanded into Somalia and the Mediterranean. Thutmose III, Hatshepsutâ„ ¢s successor expanded the Eyptian army. He was respected for his imperial policies and was an avid builder. Amenhotep III kept the tradition of building and worked on the temple of Karnak, and later began the temple of Ame-Re at Luxor. Amenhotep IV who later changed his name to Akhenaten introduced the religious system of monotheism to Egypt. Akhenaten believed in Aten who was the representation of a sun disk. The period in which Akhenaten reigned facilitated artistic, architectural and poetic expression. However, the system of monotheism was not popular with the priests that bel ieved in polytheism. Consumed by religious matters Akhenaten lost control of some his provinces and after his death, his successor Tutankhamen returned Egypt to polytheism. Rameses I reigned in Egypt around 1290 BC and was followed by his son Seti I. Seti I ruled the Egyptian Empire for eleven years and constructed a temple complex at Abydos. Ramses II, established major building projects and it was under him that the Egyptian struggle against the Hittites in Syria was resolved calmly. Ramses II, finished the work started by his father at Karnak he also constructed great monuments and the temples such as Abu Simbel. Rameses had many children for his wives and constructed tombs for his sons in the Valley of the Kings. Ramesesâ„ ¢ reign brought great prosperity and tranquility to Egypt and his greatness members of the twentieth dynasty to retain his name. Several battles in the twentieth dynasty under the rule of Rameses the III saw the exhaustion of the Egyptian treasury and the decline of the Egyptian Empire. After his death his sons became pharaohs as Rameses IV, VI and VIII. During this time Egypt was plagued with a series of droughts and after the death of Rameses XI Egypt entered into the third intermediate period. The third intermediate period included four dynasties. Smendes was the first king of this period and served as a vizier of Lower Egypt. He established his capital in Tanis while Upper Egypt was The result of the feeble rule of the last Ramessids was a lapse into the division of the two lands. The first king was Smendes (ruled 1069- 1043BC), a vizier of Lower Egypt, who set up his capital in the Delta city of Tanis. Upper Egypt was ruled from Thebes, where Herihor, who combined the offices of high priest of Amun and vizier of Upper Egypt, was placed as effective king. Unity was briefly restored when his grandson Pinudjem I, who at first reigned as high priest, formally assumed the kingship and ruled at Tanis (1054-1042BC). In his reign, the royal mummies that had been violated and robbed in the Valley of the Kings were rewrapped and reentered in a secret place behind the temple of Hatshepsut, where they were found in modern days. After his death the power fluctuated between Tanis and Thebe sometimes under one king, sometimes under a combination of a king in the north and a high priest in the south. The priests were the real rulers, using the powers of Amun-Ra to deal with all matters. . This period involved 4 dynasties from the twenty-first to the twenty-fourth. The era opens the final millennium of ancient Egyptâ„ ¢s history. Apart from a brief time of unified rule by the Theban priest-king Pinudjem I, it was marked by divisions within, with pharaohs in control only of Lower Egypt and Upper Egypt ruled by hereditary chief priests at Thebe. Thebes had no foreign policy and the pharaohs at Memphis were incapable of firm rule. The international standing of Egypt sank to a low level until the assumption of power by Shoshenq I and the commencement of the twenty-second, or Libyan Dynasty. The Libyans ruled for a century and a half, with their base in the north, until a branch set up a separate kingdom at Thebes, the twenty-third Dynasty, whose succession of five kings co-existed with the parents branch until uprising of Tefnakht at Sais, and the invasion of the Nubians, which brought the era to an end. IDuring the New Kingdom, Egypt kept a large permanent army. Under a series of warrior kings, they soon became the dominant force throughout the near east. Kings from as far away as Syria paid homage to the great pharaoh in Egypt. With gold, copper, ivory, ebony, and slaves pouring into the land, Egypt became richer than ever before. During this period, the 18th dynasty rulers pioneered a new style of royal burial, abandoning the pyramids in favor of less conspicuous tombs in The Valley of the Kings. The Egyptian civilization was openly stratified. Their social hierarchy consisted of a pharaoh or king who head the hierarchy, followed by viezier who was the trusted adviser of the pharaoh then the nobles and high Priests, the officials and scribes, the craftsmen and lastly the slaves, laborers, and peasants. The farmers, who were at the bottom of the social hierarchy, made up the majority of the Egyptian society similar to contemporary societies where the poor are considered to be in the majority. The farmers were subjected to paying tax and their agricultural produce was owned by the state. In Ancient Egypt people from all social classes were treated with equality under the law except the slaves. Both men and women were entitled to property ownership and sale, marriage and divorce as well as the pursuit of legal matters. In the legal system of Egypt was controlled by the pharaohs, they were responsible for passing laws as well as ensuring that justice is carried out. Common sense was used as a measuring rod in determining right from wrong and conflict resolution was preferred to the adherence of a strict set of laws. A local council of elders ruled over minor claims and disputes while critical cases were presided over by the vizier or the pharaoh. Those up for trial were required to represent themselves and swear an oath that they were telling the truth. The accused were sometimes subjected to beatings from the state in an effort to get a confession. All cases were comprehensively documented by the scribes and punishment ranged from fines, exile and facial mutilation for minor crimes to execution by decapitation for more serious crimes. Oracles also played an important part in making legal decisions in the new kingdom. Various duties were distributed to members of the Egyptian civilization. The scribes were among those most versed in reading and writing, therefore their responsibilities included writing letters, keeping recordings as well as military accounts. The scholarly scribes held positions as doctors, engineers and priests. The priests were required to spend three months in the temple where they fulfilled their duties. The medical field in Egypt consisted of positions such as chief medical officers, inspectors, superintendants, and physicians. The doctors possessed great knowledge of herbal remedies as well as surgical techniques. Engineers were knowledgeable in mathematics and architecture and used this knowledge for precision in the building of monuments, pyramids and temples. The high priests and noblemen constituted the government and served as assistants, generals and administrators. The vizier served as the pharaohâ„ ¢s closest advisor. The Old Kingdom was the foundational period of Egyptian civilization; it was during this period that developments in Egyptian architecture, religion and the beginning of hereditary nobility took place. The pharaohs of the Old kingdom had great power and held the monopoly, they granted estates to scribes and officials and made land grants to local cults and temple. They held superiority in all matters and were responsible for law making until their power was diminished and local rulers and priests who challenged their supremacy became more powerful. The middle kingdom saw a reemergence of the pharaohâ„ ¢s supremacy. While this period brought the expansion of the civilisation it also saw the worsening of labor conditions. Amenemhat III, a ruler in the Middle Kingdom encouraged Asiatic settlers to enter the Delta region in order to use their labor for active mining and building campaigns. During the second intermediate period at around 1700 B.C.E. the Hyksos invaded Egypt and the pharaohs were forced to retreat to Thebes where there were treated as subordinates. The Hyksos who were from West Asia adapted much of the Egyptian culture and many of them portrayed themselves as pharaohs. In the New Kingdom from 1550-700 B.C.E, the new kingdom pharaohs arose and overthrew the Hyksos. These pharaohs secured borders and strengthened diplomatic ties. The vizier commanded the treasury in Egyptian society and the economy was well managed. The temples of Egypt served as store houses for wealth and the financial system of Ancient Egypt was one of money bartering in which workers were paid in grains. This took place until the introduction of coinage. Trading was facilitated at standard price. The Egyptianâ„ ¢s obtained commodities that was rare to their society through trade. They were able to obtain gold, incense, timber ebony and ivory through trade with other countries as well as olive oil from Greece. Egyptâ„ ¢s Natural resources included decorative copper, lead ores, gold and semi precious stones which enabled them to have great architecture, art, tools and fashion jewelry. The Egyptian civilization contained settled agriculture. The Nile River which was at the core of Egyptian civilization was considered to be a gift from God to the Egyptian people. The Nile River overflowed its banks annually leaving behind a rich, fertile top soil which was responsible for the Egyptianâ„ ¢s agricultural success. The Egyptians scheduled their agriculture in accordance with the cycle of the Nile River and the river was used as their main source of water since there was very little rainfall. The three seasons acknowledged by the Egyptians were Akhet, the season of flooding, Peret, the season of planting and Shemu, the season of harvesting. The Egyptianâ„ ¢s produced an abundance of food and was the only place in the world to export grain surpluses. The grains produced by the Egyptians included emmer and barley, and their plants were used to make sheets and clothing. Their garden plots comprised of vegetables and fruits such as squashes, lettuce, grapes melons and garlic. They also had an abundant supply of fish, sourced from the Nile River. The most important livestock of the Egyptianâ„ ¢s was the cattle, donkeys and oxen were used to assist in agriculture. The donkey and oxen plowed the fields and compressed seeds into the ground and the ox was used in spiritual rituals. Sheep, goats and pigs were also reared. The villagers were not afforded as luxurious a lifestyle as the wealthy Egyptians. Their villages were compact and their houses made of stones. These houses were so inferior that they deteriorated after time and new houses were usually built on top the rubble. The houses contained little furniture and water for the village was sourced from a well. Wealthy Egyptians had large estates and luxurious homes. They comprised of pools, gardens, servants shrines and tiled floors however they too had limited furniture. The clothing of the Egyptianâ„ ¢s was made from linen and their style was common throughout their classes. Egyptians took great pride in their appearance and used wigs, oils, perfumes and jewelry. The wealthy in their society were privileged to some of the most exquisite jewelry. Women in the Egyptian society were responsible for childcare while the men sought to provide economic stability. At the age of twelve, Egyptian males were circumcised and their heads shaved. The diet of the Egyptians included bread, beer, figs, dates, garlic and onion and it was only during feasts that the lower class was privileged enough to eat meat and drink wine. Music and dance made up a significant part of Egyptâ„ ¢s culture and the harp and flute were popular instruments. The Egyptians activities included board games, juggling, wrestling as well as hunting and boating which were done by the upper class. The Egyptians were polytheistic and believed in the after life. The Egyptians believed in several supernaturally gods who they were required to keep contented through offerings and sacrifices. Deities incessantly arose to prominence, none contradicting the other. Worship was carried on by a priest in cult temples which contained shrines. However, the temples were not used for public worship and only the upper class was allowed to worship at the shrines. The lower class was subjected to private worship in their homes and many of them wore amulets as spiritual guards. In the new kingdom oracles were used as means of direct communication to the Gods. The Egyptians believed that everyone had a shadow a personality or soul, a life source and a name. The heart was considered to be responsible for thought and emotion. They believed that the dead will reunite its life source, with its soul and become the blessed dead existing effectively inn their afterlife. Mummifications were used to prese rve the bodies of the pharaohs so that the spirit would return to the body periodically this assured the kingâ„ ¢s immortality. The pyramids were used to store the bodies of the pharaohâ„ ¢s and their material belongings. They believed that their spirit would either be rewarded or punished and that heaven held no suffering. Egyptian art was created to serve particular purposes. Its accuracy, simplicity and symbolism played an important role in politics and religion. Images were engraved on the walls of the temples and tombs. Artists used stones and wood to make statues and paints were derived from minerals. The lower class had access to funerary arts and clay models used to show the daily life of the Egyptians were displayed in the tombs. The Egyptians used hieroglyphics as their system of writing which incorporated up to five hundred symbols. Initially they were pictorial but then developed into phonetic scripts. They were formal in structure and written on monuments and in tombs and eventually papyrus. The Egyptianâ„ ¢s architecture distinguished them from any other civilization. Dominance of the pharaoh was reiterated through their architecture and the state financed architectural works. The buildings were constructed with simple tools and expert builders exercised immense precision during constru ction. Buildings that were suppose to last forever, were constructed with stones while others especially the homes of the lower class Egyptians were constructed with mud bricks. The greatest architecture of the Egyptians was the Pyramids of Giza and the Temples of Thebes. The Egyptians had one of the greatest civilizations ever known to man and the precision and design of their pyramids still baffle many and seem even more advanced than present time. The Egyptian society embodied all the characteristics that was necessary for them to be considered as a civilization. It contained social hierarchy and government, the division of labor and economic specialization, economic organization, settled agriculture, cultural traditions and practices, religion, art and architecture. Their hieroglyphics made it possible for us to gain incite as to who the Egyptians were and when they existed. They provided for us more information than any other civilization, information that can be seen as reliable since it was written by the Egyptians themselves and represented their daily life. Their achievements not only justify their categorization as a civilization but set a standard for all civilizations that followed. WORKS CITED Asante, Molefi. Culture and Customs of Egypt. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. 2002. David, Rosalie. The Experience of Ancient Egypt. London: Routledge. 2000. Erman, Adolf. Life in Ancient Egypt. London: Macmillan. 1894. Glanville, K. The Legacy of Egypt. Oxford England: Clarendon. 1942. Issawi, Charles. Egypt: An Economic and Social Analysis. London: Oxford University Press. 1947. Little, Tom. Egypt. New York: Frederick A. Praeger. 1958.