Major Developments: what were the major developments of the ancient Egyptian world?
Who was Amenhotep IV
February 28, 2057 Amenhotep IV was the pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt. His wife was Nefertiti and he was the father of king Tut. He didn’t like that all the priests of Egypt were coming to power, so he decided to create a new religion to lessen the priests’ authority. He ruled for 17 years trying to change Egypt’s religion into monotheism to the god Aten, meaning sun disc.
February 28, 2057 Amenhotep IV was the pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt. His wife was Nefertiti and he was the father of king Tut. He didn’t like that all the priests of Egypt were coming to power, so he decided to create a new religion to lessen the priests’ authority. He ruled for 17 years trying to change Egypt’s religion into monotheism to the god Aten, meaning sun disc.
This picture is of Amenhotep IV worshipping the sun god Aten, the only god
in his new religion. This engraving/picture was found on a broken piece of
stone. The stone was broken, probably because the Egyptians tried to destroy it. After all,
he did cost Egypt much of their empire. Picture found from (primary source): Amenhotep IV. Picture found from devianart.com
psychelicsutra.com
What major affects did Amenhotep IV have on the civilization of Egypt
Amenhotep IV affected Egypt in terrible and good ways. Not one thing he did while his 17 years of ruling helped with the founding of Egypt even though some of his influences were good. In this journal entry I will tell you about what Amenhotep IV did that affected Egypt forever.
February 29, 2057
Amenhotep didn’t like that Egypt’s priests were coming to high power so to lessen their authority he erased all Gods from the Egyptian’s religion and created a god named Aten, meaning sun disk. All of Egypt’s monuments and statues of their previous religion were destroyed, truly symbolizing Amenhotep IV’s power. When the priests opposed this Amenhotep IV removed them from their posts, took away their land, and closed their temples. This infuriated many of the priests and their families along with many of the Egyptians who still believed in their previous religion. For example, bakers no longer made a living from the sale of ceremonial cakes at the temple feasts. Craftsmen no longer sold holy trinkets of the old gods at the temple gateway. Soon after changing Egypt’s religion into a monotheism, Amenhotep changed his name to Akhenaten meaning for Aten. He decided to build a new capital in a place called Amarna. By doing this he moved Egyptians from Thebes to Amarna even though some still worshipped other gods, such as Amun. Soon, he got so caught up in the power he had gained with the god Aten that he neglected his duty as pharaoh, losing most of Egypt’s hard-earned land to invaders. People were even more furious after Akhenaten died because now they could harm his spirit, for the whole environment of existence had been changed suddenly. Their holy places had been eliminated, the shrines sacred with the memories of thousands of years had been closed up, the priests driven away, the offerings and temple incomes confiscated, and the old order erased. They chiseled and scratched out his face from drawings in his burial chamber, destroyed his monuments and temples, and left his beloved city in ruins. Taking out a pharaoh’s face or body from their burial chamber meant they couldn’t survive in the afterlife. This was the worst thing that could be done after death because the Egyptians believed so much in the afterlife, that is was considered cruel to keep someone from it.
Picture of the pyramids of Giza found from discovery.com
Amenhotep IV affected Egypt in terrible and good ways. Not one thing he did while his 17 years of ruling helped with the founding of Egypt even though some of his influences were good. In this journal entry I will tell you about what Amenhotep IV did that affected Egypt forever.
February 29, 2057
Amenhotep didn’t like that Egypt’s priests were coming to high power so to lessen their authority he erased all Gods from the Egyptian’s religion and created a god named Aten, meaning sun disk. All of Egypt’s monuments and statues of their previous religion were destroyed, truly symbolizing Amenhotep IV’s power. When the priests opposed this Amenhotep IV removed them from their posts, took away their land, and closed their temples. This infuriated many of the priests and their families along with many of the Egyptians who still believed in their previous religion. For example, bakers no longer made a living from the sale of ceremonial cakes at the temple feasts. Craftsmen no longer sold holy trinkets of the old gods at the temple gateway. Soon after changing Egypt’s religion into a monotheism, Amenhotep changed his name to Akhenaten meaning for Aten. He decided to build a new capital in a place called Amarna. By doing this he moved Egyptians from Thebes to Amarna even though some still worshipped other gods, such as Amun. Soon, he got so caught up in the power he had gained with the god Aten that he neglected his duty as pharaoh, losing most of Egypt’s hard-earned land to invaders. People were even more furious after Akhenaten died because now they could harm his spirit, for the whole environment of existence had been changed suddenly. Their holy places had been eliminated, the shrines sacred with the memories of thousands of years had been closed up, the priests driven away, the offerings and temple incomes confiscated, and the old order erased. They chiseled and scratched out his face from drawings in his burial chamber, destroyed his monuments and temples, and left his beloved city in ruins. Taking out a pharaoh’s face or body from their burial chamber meant they couldn’t survive in the afterlife. This was the worst thing that could be done after death because the Egyptians believed so much in the afterlife, that is was considered cruel to keep someone from it.
Picture of the pyramids of Giza found from discovery.com
Why was the middle Kingdom period a "golden age" for Egypt
February 30, 2057
A golden age is a time of peace, prosperity, and happiness and when art is at its peak. Ancient Egypt’s golden age was during the era of the Middle kingdom. A new dynasty of pharaohs came to power after the dynasty of pharaohs at Memphis began to weaken. The new pharaohs moved the capital to a city called Thebes allowing Egypt to accomplish many things. During the Middle Kingdom, Egypt conquered new territories. The armies conquered many cities to the north east and required tribute to the pharaoh from the conquered cities. Since the Egyptian army had gained so much land, farming land increased, increasing crop production. More crop production meant more trade and more trade meant more goods. Architecture and art also flourished during the Middle Kingdom. A new canal between the Nile River and Red sea was built and decoration of the walls of tombs and temples were stepped up a notch by adding colorful pictures. The skills of the sculptors were greatly increased, which allowed them to make better statues to honor the pharaohs. Since peace and prosperity was stationed throughout the land, the Egyptians were able to develop a new type of architecture. Instead of tombs in pyramids, they cut them into limestone cliffs, creating a monumental area in Egypt called the Valley of Kings.
Why can the exchange of "envoys" be considered as a major development
March 1, 2057
An envoy is a person sent to represent an empire. When envoys were exchanged between the Babylonian empire and the Egyptian empire, it marked the first time in history that a group of nations tried working together to reach common goals (Mctighe). Without the exchange of envoys, the future civilizations might not have joined forces and instead war over resources or land, affecting who our allies are today.
How did the Egyptians build the pyramids
What were some advancements in math and technology
February 32, 2057
The ancient Egyptians were able to move massive stone blocks across the desert by wetting the sand in front of a contraption built to pull the heavy objects. Wetting the sand in front caused less friction making it easier for the Egyptians to pull the sleds. Workers then unloaded the heavy blocks of stone and dragged or pushed them up ramps to be set in place at each new level of the pyramid. Researchers have different theories about how the ramps looked like. Some say in winded up the pyramid and others say it was just a ramp built on one side of the pyramid. A wall painting discovered in the ancient tomb of Djehutihotep, which dates back to about 1900 B.C., depicts 172 men hauling an immense statue using ropes attached to a sledge (primary source). This shows that some researches findings about how the Egyptians hauled the stones were correct. The Egyptians faced many challenges as they built the pyramids. These challenges, however, led to important discoveries. For example, each pyramid rested on a square-shaped foundation, with an entrance facing north. To find north, the Egyptians studied the skies and developed an understanding of astronomy. With this knowledge, they invented a 365-day calendar with 12 months divided into three seasons. This calendar became the basis for our modern calendar (McTighe). Also, the Egyptians had to calculate how much stone was needed to build the pyramids. They did not want to cut and gather too much or too little stone. They needed to measure angles in order to construct the pyramid’s walls. This eventually led them to create a system of numbers based on 10. Along with the numbers came fractions and operation symbols.
Picture of Egyptian counting system from ancientegyptfacts.com
February 30, 2057
A golden age is a time of peace, prosperity, and happiness and when art is at its peak. Ancient Egypt’s golden age was during the era of the Middle kingdom. A new dynasty of pharaohs came to power after the dynasty of pharaohs at Memphis began to weaken. The new pharaohs moved the capital to a city called Thebes allowing Egypt to accomplish many things. During the Middle Kingdom, Egypt conquered new territories. The armies conquered many cities to the north east and required tribute to the pharaoh from the conquered cities. Since the Egyptian army had gained so much land, farming land increased, increasing crop production. More crop production meant more trade and more trade meant more goods. Architecture and art also flourished during the Middle Kingdom. A new canal between the Nile River and Red sea was built and decoration of the walls of tombs and temples were stepped up a notch by adding colorful pictures. The skills of the sculptors were greatly increased, which allowed them to make better statues to honor the pharaohs. Since peace and prosperity was stationed throughout the land, the Egyptians were able to develop a new type of architecture. Instead of tombs in pyramids, they cut them into limestone cliffs, creating a monumental area in Egypt called the Valley of Kings.
Why can the exchange of "envoys" be considered as a major development
March 1, 2057
An envoy is a person sent to represent an empire. When envoys were exchanged between the Babylonian empire and the Egyptian empire, it marked the first time in history that a group of nations tried working together to reach common goals (Mctighe). Without the exchange of envoys, the future civilizations might not have joined forces and instead war over resources or land, affecting who our allies are today.
How did the Egyptians build the pyramids
What were some advancements in math and technology
February 32, 2057
The ancient Egyptians were able to move massive stone blocks across the desert by wetting the sand in front of a contraption built to pull the heavy objects. Wetting the sand in front caused less friction making it easier for the Egyptians to pull the sleds. Workers then unloaded the heavy blocks of stone and dragged or pushed them up ramps to be set in place at each new level of the pyramid. Researchers have different theories about how the ramps looked like. Some say in winded up the pyramid and others say it was just a ramp built on one side of the pyramid. A wall painting discovered in the ancient tomb of Djehutihotep, which dates back to about 1900 B.C., depicts 172 men hauling an immense statue using ropes attached to a sledge (primary source). This shows that some researches findings about how the Egyptians hauled the stones were correct. The Egyptians faced many challenges as they built the pyramids. These challenges, however, led to important discoveries. For example, each pyramid rested on a square-shaped foundation, with an entrance facing north. To find north, the Egyptians studied the skies and developed an understanding of astronomy. With this knowledge, they invented a 365-day calendar with 12 months divided into three seasons. This calendar became the basis for our modern calendar (McTighe). Also, the Egyptians had to calculate how much stone was needed to build the pyramids. They did not want to cut and gather too much or too little stone. They needed to measure angles in order to construct the pyramid’s walls. This eventually led them to create a system of numbers based on 10. Along with the numbers came fractions and operation symbols.
Picture of Egyptian counting system from ancientegyptfacts.com