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 The
ancient Egyptians themselves traced their origin to a land
they called Punt, or "Ta Nteru" ("Land of the Gods"). Once
commonly thought to be located on what is today the Somali
coast, Punt now is thought to have been in either southern
Sudan or Eritrea. The history of ancient Egypt proper starts
with Egypt as a unified state, which occurred sometime
around 3000 BC, though archaeological evidence indicates a
developed Egyptian society may have existed for a much
longer period.
Along the Nile, in 10th millennium BC, a grain-grinding culture using the
earliest type of sickle blades had been replaced by another culture of hunters,
fishers, and gathering peoples using stone tools. Evidence also indicates human
habitation in the southwestern corner of Egypt, near the Sudan border, before
8000 BC. Climate changes and/or overgrazing around 8000 BC began to desiccate
the pastoral lands of Egypt, eventually forming the Sahara (c.2500 BC), and
early tribes naturally migrated to the Nile river where they developed a settled
agricultural economy and more centralized society (see Nile: History). There is
evidence of pastoralism and cultivation of cereals in the East Sahara in the 7th
millennium BC. By 6000 BC ancient Egyptians in the southwestern corner of Egypt
were herding cattle and constructing large buildings. Mortar (masonry) was in
use by 4000 BC. The Predynastic Period continues through this time, variously
held to begin with the Naqada culture. Some authorities however begin the
Predynastic Period earlier, in the Lower Paleolithic (see Predynastic Egypt).
Egypt unified as a single state circa 3000 BC. Egyptian chronology involves
assigning beginnings and endings to various dynasties beginning around this
time. The conventional Egyptian chronology is the accepted developments during
the 20th century, but do not include any of the major revision proposals that
have also been made in that time. Even within a single work, often archeologists
will offer several possible dates or even several whole chronologies as
possibilities. Consequently, there may be discrepancies between dates shown here
and in articles on particular rulers. Often there are also several possible
spellings of the names.
Egyptian Pyramids
The pyramids of Egypt,
some of which are among the largest man-made constructions ever conceived,
constitute one of the most potent and enduring symbols of Ancient Egyptian
civilization. Although no ancient Egyptian rulers have been found buried in an
Egyptian pyramid, it is generally accepted by most archaeologists that they were
constructed as burial monuments associated with royal solar and stellar cults,
and most were built during the Old and Middle Kingdom periods. Egyptian homes
were built on the east bank of the river, the land where the Sun rises.
Egyptians built the pyramids on the west bank of the River Nile. They believed
this was the land of the dead, because the Sun sets there.
List of pharaohs
The
pharaohs stretch from before 3000 BC to around 30 BC.
Dynasties (see also: List of Egyptian dynasties):
Early Dynastic Period of Egypt (1st - 2nd Dynasties; until ca. 27th century BC)
Old Kingdom (3rd - 6th Dynasties; 27th - 22nd centuries BC)
First Intermediate Period (7th - 11th Dynasties)
Middle Kingdom of Egypt (11th - 14th Dynasties; 20th - 17th centuries BC)
Second Intermediate Period (14th - 17th Dynasties)
Hyksos (15th - 16th Dynasties)
New Kingdom of Egypt (18th - 20th Dynasties; 16th - 11th centuries BC)
Third Intermediate Period (21st - 25th Dynasties; 11th - 7th centuries BC)
Late Period of Ancient Egypt (26th - 31 Dynasties; 7th century BC - 332 BC)
Achaemenid Dynasty
Graeco-Roman Egypt (332 BC - AD 639)
Ptolemaic Dynasty
Roman Empire
Above is one of the many Egyptian
Pyramids |
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