EGYPTIAN PHARAOHS

The most powerful person in ancient Egypt was the pharaoh. The pharaoh was the political and religious leader of the Egyptian people, holding the titles: 'Lord of the Two Lands' and 'High Priest of Every Temple'. As 'Lord of the Two Lands' the pharaoh was the ruler of Upper and Lower Egypt. He owned all of the land, made laws, collected taxes, and defended Egypt against foreigners. As 'High Priest of Every Temple', the pharaoh represented the gods on Earth. He performed rituals and built temples to honor the gods. Many pharaohs went to war when their land was threatened or when they wanted to control foreign lands. If the pharaoh won the battle, the conquered people had to recognize the Egyptian pharaoh as their ruler and offer him the finest and most valuable goods from their land.

MUMMIES OF EGYPT

The earliest ancient Egyptians buried their dead in small pits in the desert. The heat and dryness of the sand DEHYDRATED the bodies quickly, creating lifelike and natural 'mummies'.
Later, the ancient Egyptians began burying their dead in coffins to protect them from wild animals in the desert. However, they realized that bodies placed in coffins decayed when they were not exposed to the hot, dry sand of the desert.

Over many centuries, the ancient Egyptians developed a method of preserving bodies so they would remain lifelike. The process included embalming the bodies and wrapping them in strips of linen. Today we call this process mummification.

GEOGRAPHY OF EGYPT

The ancient Egyptians thought of Egypt as being divided into two types of land, the 'black land' and the 'red land'.

The 'black land' was the fertile land on the banks of the Nile. The ancient Egyptians used this land for growing their crops. This was the only land in ancient Egypt that could be farmed because a layer of rich, black silt was deposited there every year after the Nile flooded.

The 'red land' was the barren desert that protected Egypt on two sides. These deserts separated ancient Egypt from neighboring countries and invading armies. They also provided the ancient Egyptians with a source for precious metals and semi-precious stones.

EGYPTIAN GODS AND GODDESSES

The ancient Egyptians believed in many different gods and goddesses. Each one with their own role to play in maintaining peace and harmony across the land.
	Some gods and goddesses took part in creation, some brought the flood every year, some offered protection, and some took care of people after they died. Others were either local gods who represented towns, or minor gods who represented plants or animals. The ancient Egyptians believed that it was important to recognise and worship these gods and goddesses so that life continued smoothly. The ancient Egyptians thought that it was very important to please the gods and goddesses. For that reason, worshipping the deities was a large part of life in ancient Egypt. Some gods and goddesses were worshipped by the pharaoh and priests in large temples. These were the 'official' gods and goddesses of the state, like Amun, Horus and Bastet. Other gods and goddesses were worshipped by ordinary people in their homes. These were the gods and goddesses like Bes and Tawaret who protected people from the dangers of daily life, like scorpion bites, crocodile attacks and childbirth.

EGYPTIAN LIFE

Daily life in ancient Egypt revolved around the Nile and the fertile land along its banks. The yearly flooding of the Nile ENRICHED the soil and brought good harvests and wealth to the land.

The people of ancient Egypt built mudbrick homes in villages and in the country. They grew some of their own food and traded in the villages for the food and goods they could not produce.

Most ancient Egyptians worked as field hands, farmers, craftsmen and SCRIBES. A small group of people were nobles. Together, these different groups of people made up the population of ancient Egypt

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PYRAMIDS

The ancient Egyptians built pyramids as tombs for the PHARAOHS and their queens. The pharaohs were buried in pyramids of many different shapes and sizes from before the beginning of the old kingdom to the end of the middle kingdom.

There are about eighty pyramids known today from ancient Egypt. The three largest and best-preserved of these were built at GIZA at the beginning of the Old Kingdom. The most well-known of these pyramids was built for the pharaoh Khufu. It is known as the 'Great Pyramid'.