The Genius of the ancient EGYPTIANS INNOVATIONS FROM PAST CIVILIZATIONS SONYA NEWLAND CRABTREE PUBLISHING COMPANY WWW.CRABTREEBOOKS.COM
the ANCIENT EGYPTIANS This map shows the area of ancient Egypt along with some of the key sites the Egyptians built along the Nile River Who were the Egyptians People began to live along the banks of the Nile River in Egypt around 9,000 years ago As time passed these small groups of hunters and fishers began to settle and grow crops In turn these farming communities grew into villages and towns Systems of trade developed and by 3000 b c e a civilization had been established that would become one of the greatest in the world Egyptian kingdoms Ancient Egyptian history is generally divided into three kingdoms the Old Kingdom 2686 2181 b c e the Middle Kingdom 2050 1786 b c e and the New Kingdom 1567 1085 b c e The Egyptian civilization flourished during the years of these kingdoms The time periods between the kingdoms were years of weaker rule when there was fighting and unrest in Egypt 4
Powerful leaders What happened The rulers of Egypt were called pharaohs They showed their power and wealth by building impressive temples and pyramids to honor themselves and the many gods they worshiped For more than 2,500 years great pharaohs such as Khufu Hatshepsut and Rameses II ruled over a prosperous land Wall paintings such as this one from the tomb of Setau named for a high-ranking Egyptian reveal much about the lifestyle and beliefs of the ancient Egyptians Throughout this time the Egyptians sometimes had to fight neighboring peoples such as the Nubians and the Assyrians But Egypt’s desert location kept it fairly safe from invaders and for the most part life there went on the same for centuries Eventually in 30 b c e this great civilization fell under the control of the Romans The ancient Egyptians left behind a huge legacy of information This is contained in many different artifacts from palaces and temples to paintings hieroglyphics see pages 10 11 and even dead bodies 5
