Since there were so many kings of Egypt, scholars organized them into dynasties according to periods. If Egypt was in a stable period, with one king following the next, the times were called kingdoms. The three kingdoms were called the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, and the New Kingdom. These long stretches were times of peace and harmony (called ma'at) that came from a stable government. The times in between peaceful periods were called "intermediate periods". This is when the king's authority was challenged.
During the Old Kingdom, around 2700 BCE, the Nile River receded and there was not enough water for the people. In order to help this situation, the Egyptian people devised irrigation systems to move water through parts of the country that were farther away from the Nile River. A less important challenge was a lack of wood, which was easily solved by trading with the nearby country of Lebanon, which had a lot of wood. Also during this time, King Djoser ruled and wanted everyone to see how powerful he was, so he hired an architect named Imhotep to design and build a great stone monument: the world's first step pyramid.
The construction of the step pyramid was dangerous because the higher up the stones were placed, the less stable they became, and loose stones could fall. Imhotep set up a small hospital for those who were injured by the loose stones. He wrote directions on how to recognise an injury and how to treat it. this is the oldest known medical document, bought by Edwin Smith in 1862. It is known as the Edwin Smith papyrus.
(This summary is taken from chapter 3 of The Ancient Egyptian World by Eric H. Cline and Jill Rubalcaba.)
Monday, July 9, 2012
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
The Palette of Narmer
The Palette of Narmer is like a two-page comic book in the shape of a shield and carved on both sides. It tells the story of the unification of Egypt under King Narmer. On one side of the palette, Narmer wears the white crown of upper Egypt. On the other side of the palette, he wears the red crown of lower Egypt. He is the first king to rule both. Narmer's name is written on top of both sides and means "angry catfish." He has the head of a cow and that may represent the goddess Hathor. Ancient Egyptians thought that the goddess Hathor was Narmer's mother.
There are two scenes on the first side of the Palette of Narmer. The first scene shows King Narmer about to smash the head of a man kneeling in front of him. The victim is either a man or group that Narmer has beaten in battle. The falcon perched on the reeds is Horus of Nekhen, a symbol of Egyptian royalty and protection of the king. Each papyrus blossom represents the number 1000, and the six papyrus reeds represent the 6000 people of lower Egypt that King Narmer conquered and captured. King Narmer is wearing a bowling pin-shaped hat that represents the white crown of upper Egypt. The person carrying Narmer's sandals is smaller than Narmer to show that he is less important than Narmer. In the second scene, the men who look like they are swimming are really sprawled inside their town because they were conquered.
The back of the Palette of Narmer is divided into three scenes. In the top scene, Narmer is wearing the red crown of lower Egypt. The sandal bearer is still following Narmer, and Narmer is carrying a staff which is a symbol of royalty. Narmer is parading with a group of less important people toward ten bodies with their heads cut off and placed between their legs. These are cowering, conquered enemies - just as cowardly dogs run with their tails between their legs.
In the middle scene, there are two panthers with long necks that intertwine, symbolizing the two parts of Egypt now joined together. The bottom scene shows a bull trampling its enemies as Narmer did - the enemies lie naked and helpless beneath his feet.
Overall, the palette shows Narmer victorious over the forces of evil.
(This summary is taken from chapter 2 of The Ancient Egyptian World by Eric H. Cline and Jill Rubalcaba)
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