Ancient Egypt was a civilization
A civilization (or civilisation) is any complex society that is characterized by urban development, social stratification, a form of government, and symbolic systems of communication (such as writing).
Civilizations are intimately associat ...
of ancient
Ancient history is the aggregate of past eventsWordNet Search – 3.0
"History" from t ...
"History" from t ...
North Africa
North Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in the west, to Egypt's Su ...
, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River
The Nile ( ar|النيل|an-Nīl, , Bohairic , lg|Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. The longest river in Africa, it has historically been considered the longest river in the world, though this ...
, situated in the place that is now the country Egypt
Egypt ( ; ar|مِصر ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia by a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt is a Mediterranean count ...
. Ancient Egyptian civilization followed prehistoric Egypt
The prehistory of Egypt spans the period from the earliest human settlement to the beginning of the Early Dynastic Period around 3100 BC, starting with the first Pharaoh, Narmer for some Egyptologists, Hor-Aha for others, with the name Menes also ...
and coalesced around 3100 (according to conventional Egyptian chronology
The majority of Egyptologists agree on the outline and many details of the chronology of Ancient Egypt. This scholarly consensus is the so-called Conventional Egyptian chronology, which places the beginning of the Old Kingdom in the 27th century B ...
) with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt
Upper may refer to:
* Shoe upper or ''vamp'', the part of a shoe on the top of the foot
* Stimulant, drugs which induce temporary improvements in either mental or physical function or both
* ''Upper'', the original film title for the 2013 found foot ...
under Menes
Menes (fl. c. 3200–3000 BC; ; egy|mnj, probably pronounced *; grc|Μήνης) was a pharaoh of the Early Dynastic Period of ancient Egypt credited by classical tradition with having united Upper and Lower Egypt and as the founder of the First ...
(often identified with Narmer
Narmer ( egy|nꜥr-mr, meaning "painful," "stinging," "harsh," or "fierce catfish;" ) was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the Early Dynastic Period. He was the successor to the Protodynastic king Ka. Many scholars consider him the unifier of Egypt ...
). The history of ancient Egypt#REDIRECT History of ancient Egypt#REDIRECT History of ancient Egypt {{R from other capitalisation ...
{{R from other capitalisation ...
and became 
The 
In Predynastic and 
The Badari was followed by the 
The transition to a unified state happened more gradually than ancient Egyptian writers represented, and there is no contemporary record of Menes. Some scholars now believe, however, that the mythical Menes may have been the king 
With the rising importance of central administration in Egypt, a new class of educated scribes and officials arose who were granted estates by the king in payment for their services. Kings also made land grants to their mortuary cults and local temples, to ensure that these institutions had the resources to worship the king after his death. Scholars believe that five centuries of these practices slowly eroded the economic vitality of Egypt, and that the economy could no longer afford to support a large centralized administration. As the power of the kings diminished, regional governors called [[nomarchs began to challenge the supremacy of the office of king. This, coupled with [[4.2 kiloyear event|severe droughts between 2200 and 2150BC, is believed to have caused the country to enter the 140-year period of famine and strife known as the First Intermediate Period.
The kings of the Middle Kingdom restored the country's stability and prosperity, thereby stimulating a resurgence of art, literature, and monumental building projects. Mentuhotep II and his [[Eleventh Dynasty of Egypt|Eleventh Dynasty successors ruled from Thebes, but the vizier [[Amenemhat I, upon assuming the kingship at the beginning of the [[Twelfth dynasty of Egypt|Twelfth Dynasty around 1985BC, shifted the kingdom's capital to the city of [[Itjtawy, located in [[Faiyum Oasis|Faiyum. From Itjtawy, the kings of the Twelfth Dynasty undertook a far-sighted [[land reclamation and irrigation scheme to increase agricultural output in the region. Moreover, the military reconquered territory in 
The New Kingdom pharaohs established a period of unprecedented prosperity by securing their borders and strengthening diplomatic ties with their neighbours, including the [[Mitanni Empire, 
Around 1279BC, [[Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses the Great, ascended the throne, and went on to build more temples, erect more statues and obelisks, and sire more children than any other pharaoh in history. A bold military leader, Ramesses II led his army against the [[Hittites in the [[Battle of Kadesh (in modern [[Syria) and, after fighting to a stalemate, finally agreed to the first recorded [[Egyptian–Hittite peace treaty|peace treaty, around 1258BC.
Egypt's wealth, however, made it a tempting target for invasion, particularly by the [[Ancient Libya|Libyan [[Berber people|Berbers to the west, and the [[Sea Peoples, a conjectured confederation of seafarers from the [[Aegean Sea. Initially, the military was able to [[Battle of Perire|repel these invasions, but Egypt eventually lost control of its remaining territories in southern 
Around 727BC the Kushite king [[Piye invaded northward, seizing control of Thebes and eventually the Delta, which established the [[25th Dynasty. During the 25th Dynasty, Pharaoh [[Taharqa created an empire nearly as large as the [[New Kingdom's. Twenty-fifth Dynasty pharaohs built, or restored, temples and monuments throughout the Nile valley, including at Memphis, Karnak, Kawa, and Jebel Barkal. During this period, the Nile valley saw the first widespread construction of [[Nubian pyramids|pyramids (many in modern Sudan) since the Middle Kingdom.
Egypt's far-reaching prestige declined considerably toward the end of the Third Intermediate Period. Its foreign allies had fallen under the 
In 332BC, 
Egypt became a province of the 
The 
Egyptian society was highly stratified, and [[social status was expressly displayed. Farmers made up the bulk of the population, but agricultural produce was owned directly by the state, temple, or [[Nobility|noble family that owned the land. Farmers were also subject to a labor tax and were required to work on irrigation or construction projects in a [[corvée system. Artists and craftsmen were of higher status than farmers, but they were also under state control, working in the shops attached to the temples and paid directly from the state treasury. Scribes and officials formed the upper class in ancient Egypt, known as the "white kilt class" in reference to the bleached linen garments that served as a mark of their rank. The upper class prominently displayed their social status in art and literature. Below the nobility were the priests, physicians, and engineers with specialized training in their field. It is unclear whether [[slavery as understood today existed in ancient Egypt, there is difference of opinions among authors.
The ancient Egyptians viewed men and women, including people from all social classes, as essentially equal under the law, and even the lowliest [[peasant was entitled to petition the [[vizier (Ancient Egypt)|vizier and his court for redress.
The head of the legal system was officially the pharaoh, who was responsible for enacting laws, delivering justice, and maintaining law and order, a concept the ancient Egyptians referred to as [[Ma'at. Although no [[legal codes from ancient Egypt survive, court documents show that Egyptian law was based on a common-sense view of right and wrong that emphasized reaching agreements and resolving conflicts rather than strictly adhering to a complicated set of statutes.
[[File:Rope stretching.jpg|left|Measuring and recording the harvest is shown in a wall painting in the tomb of [[TT69|Menna, at [[Thebes, Egypt|Thebes (Eighteenth Dynasty).
A combination of favorable geographical features contributed to the success of ancient Egyptian culture, the most important of which was the rich [[fertile soil resulting from annual inundations of the Nile River. The ancient Egyptians were thus able to produce an abundance of food, allowing the population to devote more time and resources to cultural, technological, and artistic pursuits. [[Land management was crucial in ancient Egypt because taxes were assessed based on the amount of land a person owned.
Farming in Egypt was dependent on the cycle of the Nile River. The Egyptians recognized three seasons: ''[[Season of the Inundation|Akhet'' (flooding), ''[[Season of the Emergence|Peret'' (planting), and ''[[Season of the Harvest|Shemu'' (harvesting). The flooding season lasted from June to September, depositing on the river's banks a layer of mineral-rich silt ideal for growing crops. After the floodwaters had receded, the [[growing season lasted from October to February. Farmers plowed and planted seeds in the fields, which were irrigated with ditches and canals. Egypt received little rainfall, so farmers relied on the Nile to water their crops. From March to May, farmers used [[sickles to harvest their crops, which were then [[Threshing|threshed with a [[flail to separate the straw from the grain. [[Winnowing removed the [[chaff from the grain, and the grain was then ground into flour, brewed to make beer, or stored for later use.
The ancient Egyptians cultivated [[emmer and [[barley, and several other cereal grains, all of which were used to make the two main food staples of bread and beer. [[Flax plants, uprooted before they started flowering, were grown for the fibers of their stems. These fibers were split along their length and spun into thread, which was used to weave sheets of [[linen and to make clothing. [[Papyrus growing on the banks of the Nile River was used to make paper. Vegetables and fruits were grown in garden plots, close to habitations and on higher ground, and had to be watered by hand. Vegetables included leeks, garlic, melons, squashes, pulses, lettuce, and other crops, in addition to grapes that were made into wine.
The Egyptians believed that a balanced relationship between people and [[animals was an essential element of the cosmic order; thus humans, animals and plants were believed to be members of a single whole. Animals, both 
[[Egyptian hieroglyphs|Hieroglyphic writing dates from c. 3000BC, and is composed of hundreds of symbols. A hieroglyph can represent a word, a sound, or a silent determinative; and the same symbol can serve different purposes in different contexts. Hieroglyphs were a formal script, used on stone monuments and in tombs, that could be as detailed as individual works of art. In day-to-day writing, scribes used a cursive form of writing, called [[hieratic, which was quicker and easier. While formal hieroglyphs may be read in rows or columns in either direction (though typically written from right to left), hieratic was always written from right to left, usually in horizontal rows. A new form of writing, [[Demotic (Egyptian)|Demotic, became the prevalent writing style, and it is this form of writing—along with formal hieroglyphs—that accompany the Greek text on the Rosetta Stone.
Around the first century AD, the Coptic alphabet started to be used alongside the Demotic script. Coptic is a modified [[Greek alphabet with the addition of some Demotic signs. Although formal hieroglyphs were used in a ceremonial role until the fourth century, towards the end only a small handful of priests could still read them. As the traditional religious establishments were disbanded, knowledge of hieroglyphic writing was mostly lost. Attempts to decipher them date to the Byzantine and Islamic periods in Egypt, but only in the 1820s, after the discovery of the Rosetta Stone and years of research by [[Thomas Young (scientist)|Thomas Young and [[Jean-François Champollion, were hieroglyphs [[decipherment of ancient Egyptian scripts|substantially deciphered.
Most ancient Egyptians were farmers tied to the land. Their dwellings were restricted to immediate family members, and were constructed of [[mudbrick designed to remain cool in the heat of the day. Each home had a kitchen with an open roof, which contained a grindstone for milling grain and a small oven for baking the bread. [[Ancient Egyptian pottery|Ceramics served as household wares for the storage, preparation, transport, and consumption of food, drink, and raw materials. Walls were painted white and could be covered with dyed linen wall hangings. Floors were covered with reed mats, while wooden stools, beds raised from the floor and individual tables comprised the furniture.
The ancient Egyptians placed a great value on hygiene and appearance. Most bathed in the Nile and used a pasty soap made from [[animal fat and chalk. Men shaved their entire bodies for cleanliness; perfumes and aromatic ointments covered bad odors and soothed skin. Clothing was made from simple linen sheets that were bleached white, and both men and women of the upper classes wore wigs, jewelry, and [[Beauty and Cosmetics in Ancient Egypt|cosmetics. Children went without clothing until maturity, at about age 12, and at this age males were circumcised and had their heads shaved. Mothers were responsible for taking care of the children, while the father provided the family's [[income.
Music and dance were popular entertainments for those who could afford them. Early instruments included flutes and harps, while instruments similar to trumpets, oboes, and pipes developed later and became popular. In the New Kingdom, the Egyptians played on bells, cymbals, tambourines, drums, and imported [[lutes and [[lyres from Asia. The [[sistrum was a rattle-like [[musical instrument that was especially important in religious ceremonies.
The ancient Egyptians enjoyed a variety of leisure activities, including games and music. [[Senet, a board game where pieces moved according to random chance, was particularly popular from the earliest times; another similar game was [[mehen (game)|mehen, which had a circular gaming board. “[[Hounds and Jackals” also known as 58 holes is another example of board games played in ancient Egypt. The first complete set of this game was discovered from a [[List of Theban tombs|Theban tomb of the Egyptian pharaoh [[Amenemhat IV that dates to the [[13th Dynasty. Juggling and [[ball games were popular with children, and wrestling is also documented in a tomb at [[Beni Hasan. The wealthy members of ancient Egyptian society enjoyed [[Hunting, fishing and animals in ancient Egypt|hunting, fishing, and boating as well.
The excavation of the workers' village of [[Deir el-Medina has resulted in one of the most thoroughly documented accounts of community life in the ancient world, which spans almost four hundred years. There is no comparable site in which the organization, social interactions, and working and living conditions of a community have been studied in such detail.
The ancient Egyptians produced art to serve functional purposes. For over 3500 years, artists adhered to artistic forms and iconography that were developed during the Old Kingdom, following a strict set of principles that resisted foreign influence and internal change. These artistic standards—simple lines, shapes, and flat areas of color combined with the characteristic flat projection of figures with no indication of spatial depth—created a sense of order and balance within a composition. Images and text were intimately interwoven on tomb and temple walls, coffins, stelae, and even statues. The [[Narmer Palette, for example, displays figures that can also be read as hieroglyphs. Because of the rigid rules that governed its highly stylized and symbolic appearance, ancient Egyptian art served its political and religious purposes with precision and clarity.
Ancient Egyptian artisans used stone as a medium for carving statues and fine reliefs, but used wood as a cheap and easily carved substitute. Paints were obtained from minerals such as iron ores (red and yellow ochres), copper ores (blue and green), soot or charcoal (black), and limestone (white). Paints could be mixed with [[gum arabic as a binder and pressed into cakes, which could be moistened with water when needed.
Pharaohs used [[reliefs to record victories in battle, royal decrees, and religious scenes. Common citizens had access to pieces of [[funerary art, such as [[Ushabti|shabti statues and books of the dead, which they believed would protect them in the afterlife. During the Middle Kingdom, [[Wooden tomb model|wooden or clay models depicting scenes from everyday life became popular additions to the tomb. In an attempt to duplicate the activities of the living in the [[afterlife, these models show laborers, houses, boats, and even military formations that are scale representations of the ideal ancient Egyptian afterlife.
Despite the homogeneity of ancient Egyptian art, the styles of particular times and places sometimes reflected changing cultural or political attitudes. After the invasion of the Hyksos in the Second Intermediate Period, [[Minoan civilization|Minoan-style frescoes were found in [[Avaris. The most striking example of a politically driven change in artistic forms comes from the [[Amarna Period, where figures were radically altered to conform to [[Akhenaten's revolutionary religious ideas. This style, known as [[Amarna art, was quickly abandoned after Akhenaten's death and replaced by the traditional forms.
Beliefs in the divine and in the afterlife were ingrained in ancient Egyptian civilization from its inception; pharaonic rule was based on the [[Divine Right of Kings|divine right of kings. The Egyptian pantheon was populated by [[Egyptian pantheon|gods who had supernatural powers and were called on for help or protection. However, the gods were not always viewed as benevolent, and Egyptians believed they had to be appeased with offerings and prayers. The structure of this [[Ancient Egyptian deities|pantheon changed continually as new deities were promoted in the hierarchy, but priests made no effort to organize the diverse and sometimes conflicting [[Egyptian mythology|myths and stories into a coherent system. These various conceptions of divinity were not considered contradictory but rather layers in the multiple facets of reality.
Gods were worshiped in cult [[Egyptian temple|temples administered by priests acting on the king's behalf. At the center of the temple was the cult statue in a shrine. Temples were not places of public worship or congregation, and only on select feast days and celebrations was a shrine carrying the statue of the god brought out for public worship. Normally, the god's domain was sealed off from the outside world and was only accessible to temple officials. Common citizens could worship private statues in their homes, and amulets offered protection against the forces of chaos. After the New Kingdom, the pharaoh's role as a spiritual intermediary was de-emphasized as religious customs shifted to direct worship of the gods. As a result, priests developed a system of [[oracles to communicate the will of the gods directly to the people.
The Egyptians believed that every human being was composed of physical and spiritual parts or ''aspects''. In addition to the body, each person had a ''šwt'' (shadow), a ''ba'' (personality or soul), a ''ka'' (life-force), and a ''name''. The heart, rather than the brain, was considered the seat of thoughts and emotions. After death, the spiritual aspects were released from the body and could move at will, but they required the physical remains (or a substitute, such as a statue) as a permanent home. The ultimate goal of the deceased was to rejoin his ''ka'' and ''ba'' and become one of the "blessed dead", living on as an ''akh'', or "effective one". For this to happen, the deceased had to be judged worthy in a trial, in which the heart was weighed against a "[[Maat#The afterlife|feather of truth." If deemed worthy, the deceased could continue their existence on earth in spiritual form. If they were not deemed worthy, their heart was eaten by [[Ammit the Devourer and they were erased from the Universe.
The ancient Egyptians maintained an elaborate set of burial customs that they believed were necessary to ensure immortality after death. These customs involved preserving the body by [[Mummy|mummification, performing burial ceremonies, and interring with the body goods the deceased would use in the afterlife. Before the Old Kingdom, bodies buried in desert pits were naturally preserved by [[desiccation. The arid, desert conditions were a boon throughout the history of ancient Egypt for burials of the poor, who could not afford the elaborate burial preparations available to the elite. Wealthier Egyptians began to bury their dead in stone tombs and use artificial mummification, which involved removing the [[Organ (anatomy)|internal organs, wrapping the body in linen, and burying it in a rectangular stone sarcophagus or wooden coffin. Beginning in the Fourth Dynasty, some parts were preserved separately in [[canopic jars.
By the New Kingdom, the ancient Egyptians had perfected the art of mummification; the best technique took 70 days and involved removing the internal organs, removing the brain through the nose, and desiccating the body in a mixture of salts called [[natron. The body was then wrapped in linen with protective amulets inserted between layers and placed in a decorated anthropoid coffin. Mummies of the Late Period were also placed in painted [[cartonnage mummy cases. Actual preservation practices declined during the Ptolemaic and Roman eras, while greater emphasis was placed on the outer appearance of the mummy, which was decorated.
Wealthy Egyptians were buried with larger quantities of luxury items, but all burials, regardless of social status, included goods for the deceased. [[Ancient Egyptian funerary texts|Funerary texts were often included in the grave, and, beginning in the New Kingdom, so were [[Ushabti|shabti statues that were believed to perform manual labor for them in the afterlife. Rituals in which the deceased was magically re-animated accompanied burials. After burial, living relatives were expected to occasionally bring food to the tomb and recite prayers on behalf of the deceased.
The ancient Egyptian military was responsible for defending Egypt against foreign invasion, and for maintaining Egypt's domination in the [[ancient Near East. The military protected mining expeditions to the Sinai during the Old Kingdom and fought civil wars during the First and Second Intermediate Periods. The military was responsible for maintaining fortifications along important trade routes, such as those found at the city of [[Buhen on the way to Nubia. Forts also were constructed to serve as military bases, such as the fortress at Sile, which was a base of operations for expeditions to the [[Levant. In the New Kingdom, a series of pharaohs used the standing Egyptian army to attack and conquer [[Kingdom of Kush|Kush and parts of the Levant.
Typical military equipment included [[Bow (weapon)|bows and arrows, spears, and round-topped shields made by stretching [[Leather|animal skin over a wooden frame. In the New Kingdom, the military began using [[Chariotry in ancient Egypt|chariots that had earlier been introduced by the Hyksos invaders. Weapons and armor continued to improve after the adoption of bronze: shields were now made from solid wood with a bronze buckle, spears were tipped with a bronze point, and the [[khopesh was adopted from Asiatic soldiers. The pharaoh was usually depicted in art and literature riding at the head of the army; it has been suggested that at least a few pharaohs, such as [[Seqenenre Tao II and his sons, did do so. However, it has also been argued that "kings of this period did not personally act as frontline war leaders, fighting alongside their troops." Soldiers were recruited from the general population, but during, and especially after, the New Kingdom, mercenaries from Nubia, Kush, and Libya were hired to fight for Egypt.
In technology, medicine, and mathematics, ancient Egypt achieved a relatively high standard of productivity and sophistication. Traditional [[empiricism, as evidenced by the [[Edwin Smith Papyrus|Edwin Smith and [[Ebers Papyrus|Ebers papyri (c. 1600BC), is first credited to Egypt. The Egyptians created their own alphabet and [[decimal|decimal system.
Even before the Old Kingdom, the ancient Egyptians had developed a glassy material known as [[Egyptian faience|faience, which they treated as a type of artificial semi-precious stone. Faience is a non-clay ceramic made of [[Silicon dioxide|silica, small amounts of [[Calcium oxide|lime and [[Sodium oxide|soda, and a colorant, typically copper. The material was used to make beads, tiles, figurines, and small wares. Several methods can be used to create faience, but typically production involved application of the powdered materials in the form of a paste over a clay core, which was then fired. By a related technique, the ancient Egyptians produced a pigment known as [[Egyptian blue, also called blue frit, which is produced by fusing (or [[sintering) silica, copper, lime, and an alkali such as natron. The product can be ground up and used as a pigment.
The ancient Egyptians could fabricate a wide variety of objects from glass with great skill, but it is not clear whether they developed the process independently. It is also unclear whether they made their own raw glass or merely imported pre-made ingots, which they melted and finished. However, they did have technical expertise in making objects, as well as adding [[Micromineral|trace elements to control the color of the finished glass. A range of colors could be produced, including yellow, red, green, blue, purple, and white, and the glass could be made either transparent or opaque.
Ancient Egyptian physicians were renowned in the ancient Near East for their healing skills, and some, such as [[Imhotep, remained famous long after their deaths. [[Herodotus remarked that there was a high degree of specialization among Egyptian physicians, with some treating only the head or the stomach, while others were eye-doctors and dentists. Training of physicians took place at the ''Per Ankh'' or "House of Life" institution, most notably those headquartered in [[Bubastis|Per-Bastet during the New Kingdom and at 
Large seagoing ships are known to have been heavily used by the Egyptians in their trade with the city states of the eastern Mediterranean, especially 
The earliest attested examples of mathematical calculations date to the predynastic [[Naqada period, and show a fully developed [[Egyptian numerals|numeral system. The importance of mathematics to an educated Egyptian is suggested by a New Kingdom fictional letter in which the writer proposes a scholarly competition between himself and another scribe regarding everyday calculation tasks such as accounting of land, labor, and grain. Texts such as the [[Rhind Mathematical Papyrus and the [[Moscow Mathematical Papyrus show that the ancient Egyptians could perform the four basic mathematical operations—addition, subtraction, [[Ancient Egyptian multiplication|multiplication, and division—use fractions, calculate the areas of rectangles, triangles, and circles and compute the volumes of boxes, columns and pyramids. They understood basic concepts of [[Egyptian algebra|algebra and [[Egyptian geometry|geometry, and could solve simple sets of [[simultaneous equations.
[[Mathematical notation was decimal, and based on hieroglyphic signs for each power of ten up to one million. Each of these could be written as many times as necessary to add up to the desired number; so to write the number eighty or eight hundred, the symbol for ten or one hundred was written eight times respectively. Because their methods of calculation could not handle most fractions with a numerator greater than one, they had to write [[Egyptian fraction|fractions as the sum of several fractions. For example, they resolved the fraction ''two-fifths'' into the sum of ''one-third'' + ''one-fifteenth''. Standard tables of values facilitated this. Some [[Vulgar fraction|common fractions, however, were written with a special glyph—the equivalent of the modern two-thirds is shown on the right.
Ancient Egyptian mathematicians knew the [[Pythagorean theorem as an empirical formula. They were aware, for example, that a triangle had a right angle opposite the [[hypotenuse when its sides were in a 3–4–5 ratio. They were able to estimate the area of a [[circle by subtracting one-ninth from its diameter and squaring the result:
:Area ≈ [()''D'']2 = ()''r''2 ≈ 3.16''r''2,
a reasonable approximation of the formula .
The [[golden ratio seems to be reflected in many Egyptian constructions, including the [[Egyptian pyramids|pyramids, but its use may have been an unintended consequence of the ancient Egyptian practice of combining the use of knotted ropes with an intuitive sense of proportion and harmony.