1. EGYPT-Study Guidepart 2de Beaufort<br />COLLAPSE OF THE OLD KINGDOM<br />After the reigns of Userkaf and Sahure, civil wars arose as the powerful nomarchs (regional governors) no longer belonged to the royal family. The worsening civil conflict undermined unity and energetic government and also caused famines. Additionally, massive building projects of the Fourth Dynasty had exceeded the capacity of the treasury and populace. The final blow was a severe drought in the region that resulted in a drastic drop in precipitation between 2200 and 2150 BCE, which in turn prevented the normal flooding of the Nile The result was the collapse of the Old Kingdom followed by decades of famine and strife.<br /> An important inscription on the tomb of Ankhtifi, a nomarch during the early First Intermediate Period, describes the pitiful state of the country when famine stalked the land.<br />quot;
The whole of Upper Egypt died of hunger and each individual had reached such a state of hunger that he ate his own children. But I refused to see anyone die of hunger and gave to the north grain of Upper Egypt. And I do not think that anything like this has been done by the provincial governors who came before me....I brought life to the provinces of Hierakonpolis and Edfu, Elephantine and Ombos!quot;
<br />FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD<br />The First Intermediate Period, often described as a “dark period” in ancient Egyptian history, spanned approximately one hundred years after the end of the Old Kingdom from ca. 2181-2055 BCE. The end of the First Intermediate Period is placed at the time when Mentuhotep II of the eleventh dynasty defeats the kings of Lower Egypt and reunites Egypt under a single ruler. This act helps usher in a period of great wealth and prosperity, known as the Middle Kingdom.<br />MIDDLE KINGDOM<br />Thebes of Upper Egypt rises in prominence<br />Pharaohs made fewer claims to divinity, more “approachable” than past pharaohs and less despotic<br />Increased efficiency<br />Expanded irrigation systems<br />Stockpiled granaries<br />Expanded overseas trade<br />Secured Egypt’s borders<br />Effectiveness of leadership still relied on personal attributes<br />Also no more Pyramids<br />Statue head of Senusret III<br />Unprecedented realism-heavy eyes and brooding expression<br />Large ears in other works show a king who is “listening to the people”<br />Beni Hasan<br />There are 39 ancient tombs here of Middle Kingdom nomarchs<br />Two distinct cemeteries here: the upper range and the lower necropolis- each associated with the different levels of resources available to the deceased.<br />SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD<br />Succession disputes erupted<br />Thousands of Asians (Hyksos) invaded Lower Egypt<br />Divided again into Upper and Lower Egypt<br />Lower Egypt under traditional pharaohs<br />Upper Egypt under Hyksos<br />Hyksos introduced new technology :<br />Bronze<br />Horse-drawn chariots<br />New weapons<br />NEW KINGDOM<br />Ahmose the Liberator created militaristic state<br />Egypt attempts to create a buffer between the Levant and Egypt, and attained its greatest territorial extent. They also expanded far south into Nubia and hold wide territories in the Near East where Egyptian armies fought Hittite armies for control of modern-day Syria.<br />Hatshepsut 1473-1458 BCE<br />From Regent for Thutmose III (too young) to Pharaoh.<br />Thutmose III never forgave.<br />“Foremost of Noble Ladies” was the fifth pharaoh of the eighteenth dynasty of Ancient Egypt. She is generally regarded by Egyptologists as one of the most successful pharaohs. <br />Punt<br />Hatshepsut re-established the trade networks that had been disrupted during the Hyksos occupation of Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period and oversaw the preparations and funding for a mission to the Land of Punt. Egyptians returned from the voyage bearing thirty-one live myrrh trees, the roots of which were carefully kept in baskets for the duration of the voyage. This was the first recorded attempt to transplant foreign trees. It is reported that Hatshepsut had these trees planted in the courts of her Deir el Bahri mortuary temple complex. <br />She had the expedition commemorated in relief at Deir el-Bahri, which also is famous for its realistic depiction of the Queen of the Land of Punt, Queen Iti, who appears to have had a genetic trait called steatopygia. <br />Morturary Temple<br />Designed by Senemut (possible lover), the building is an example of perfect symmetry that predates the Parthenon, and it was the first complex built on the site she chose, which would become the Valley of the Kings. Hatshepsut was one of the most prolific builders in ancient Egypt, commissioning hundreds of construction projects throughout both Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt, that were grander and more numerous than those of any of her Middle Kingdom predecessors. Later pharaohs attempted to claim some of her projects as theirs.<br />Pharaoh as Woman/Man<br />To deal with the problem of being a female king, she emphasized that she was daughter of Thutmose I. She also traced her lineage to Mut, a primal mother goddess of the Egyptian pantheon, which gave her another ancestor who was a deity as well as her father and grandfathers.<br />While Hatshepsut was depicted in official art wearing regalia of a pharaoh, such as the false beard that male pharaohs also wore, it is most unlikely that she ever wore such ceremonial decorations, just as it is unlikely that the male pharaohs did. Statues depicting her seated wearing a tight-fitting dress and the nemes crown, are thought to be a more accurate representation of how she would have presented herself at court.<br />Erased by Thutmose III<br />Toward the end of the reign of Thutmose III and into the reign of his son, an attempt was made to remove Hatshepsut from certain historical and pharaonic records. This elimination was carried out in the most literal way possible. Her cartouches and images were chiselled off some stone walls, leaving very obvious Hatshepsut-shaped gaps in the artwork.<br />Ramses II1279 BC – 1213 BC<br />Warrior pharaoh <br />He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh <br />66 year rule, very tall (for Egyptian), lived to age 90<br />Ramses II was also famed for the huge number of children he sired by his various wives and concubines; the tomb he built for his sons, many of whom he outlived, in the Valley of the Kings has proven to be the largest funerary complex in Egypt.<br />The Battle of Kadesh.<br />Rameses sought to recover territories in the Levant that had been held by the 18th Dynasty. His campaigns of reconquest culminated in the Battle of Kadesh, where he led Egyptian armies against those of the Hittite king Muwatalli II and was caught in history's first recorded military ambush but Ramses was able to rally his troops and turn the tide of battle against the Hittites thanks to the arrival of the re-enforcements The outcome of the battle was undecided with both sides claiming victory at their home front, ultimately resulting in a peace treaty between the two nations.<br />Abu Simbel<br />Ramses x 4<br />65 feet high<br />Queen Nefertari at his feet<br />Commemorate battle of Kadesh and intimidate the Nubians<br />Interior Temple<br />Ramses as Osiris<br />1st day of summer rays of light enter the deepest part of the tomb<br />Atlantid: Male statue used as a column<br />No load-bearing function, 32 feet tall<br />New Kingdom Pylon Temples<br />Pylon=gateway<br />Karnak, Temple of Amen Re<br />Tomb of Nebamun<br />Nebamun: scribe and counter of grain<br />Recreation in eternal afterlife<br />Fresco Secco: dry fresco wet pant on a dry surface<br />Musicians and Dancers<br />Funeral banquet<br />Profile view=lesser status<br />Composite view=power<br />Frontal view=rare<br />Nude Belly dancers: sensual: meaning?<br />Fertility, Rebirth and regeneration<br />Conquest of death<br />Amarna Period<br />During the New Kingdom the priesthood of Amen had become more powerful than the Pharaoh<br />Monotheism: Aton the sun God represented as a sun disk not human or animal form<br />Akhenaton forms new religious order, he is the sun and sole prophet of God <br />Changes in politics were reflected by changes in artistic style<br />One of the best-known 18th Dynasty pharaohs is Amenhotep IV, who changed his name to Akhenaten in honor of the Aten and whose exclusive worship of the Aten is often interpreted as history's first instance of monotheism. Akhenaten's religious fervor is cited as the reason why he was subsequently written out of Egyptian history. Under his reign, in the 14th century BC, Egyptian art flourished and attained an unprecedented level of realism.<br />Towards the end of the 18th Dynasty, the situation had changed radically. Aided by Akhenaten's apparent lack of interest in international affairs, the Hittites had gradually extended their influence into Phoenicia and Canaan to become a major power in international politics—a power that both Seti I and his son Ramses II would need to deal with during the 19th dynasty.<br />[edit]Nineteenth Dynasty<br />Ramses was the pharaoh most responsible for erasing the Amarna Period from history He, more than any other pharaoh, sought deliberately to deface the Amarna monuments and change the nature of the religious structure and the structure of the priesthood, in order to try to bring it back to where it had been prior to the reign of Akhenaten<br />Akenaten<br />Formerly Amenhotep IV<br />Starts new religion with ONE god<br />Moves capital to Amarna, builds brand new city (Akhetaten)<br />ART<br />Androgynous: (having male and female qualities)<br />Sexless sun disk-a manifestation of ATON OR a product of geneology?<br />Frontal pose, Curving contours<br />Long face, full lips, heavy eyelids, dreamy expression<br />Misshapen body, Narrow waist, Protruding belly, Wide hips, fat thighs<br />Unusual familial intimacy<br />LATE PERIOD<br />(1070 BC-30 BC)<br />A period of political weakness<br />Attacks from Nubians to south (controlled Egypt during 8th Century BC<br />Invasions by Assyrians and Persians<br />Alexander the Great takes over Egypt in 332 BC—rule by Ptolemy I and his successors<br />Roman conquest in 30 BC<br />