Ancient Egypt
The Nile, pharaohs and pyramids, gods and the afterlife, trade and war, and Egypt's place in the Bible's story.
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.”
For more than 3000 years, a long green ribbon of farms along the Nile fed one of the greatest civilisations the world has ever seen. The Egyptians built pyramids that still stand today, wrote with pictures, and believed their king was a god. Egypt also plays a big part in the Bible's story: Abraham, Joseph, Moses and even the young Jesus all spent time there.
The big question
How did the Nile make Egypt great, and what did the Egyptians believe about life, death and the gods?
Keep this question in mind as you work. By the end of the topic you should be able to answer it in a well-argued paragraph, using evidence.
What you'll learn
- How we know: archaeologists, tombs, papyrus and the Rosetta Stone, and why we should look after the remains of the past.
- The Nile: how a river in the desert made farming, wealth and a united kingdom possible.
- Who's who: pharaohs, officials, priests, scribes, farmers, women and slaves.
- Beliefs: the gods of Egypt, mummies, tombs and the journey to the afterlife.
- Contact and conflict: trade with distant lands, wars, and one of the world's first peace treaties.
- A significant person: in the project you'll investigate one pharaoh and argue how significant they were.
Key words
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| pharaoh | the king of Egypt, believed by Egyptians to be a god on earth |
| dynasty | a line of rulers from the same family |
| inundation | the Nile's yearly flood, which left rich black soil on the fields |
| hieroglyphs | Egyptian picture-writing, carved on monuments and written on papyrus |
| scribe | a trained writer who kept records for the pharaoh, temples and officials |
| mummification | preserving a dead body by drying and wrapping it |
| archaeologist | someone who studies the past by digging up and examining what people left behind |
| BCE | "before the Common Era": years counted back from the traditional date of Jesus' birth |
Timeline
| When (about) | What happened |
|---|---|
| 3100 BCE | Upper and Lower Egypt are united into one kingdom |
| 2686 to 2181 BCE | Old Kingdom: the age of the great pyramids at Giza |
| 2055 to 1650 BCE | Middle Kingdom: Egypt is reunited and grows strong again |
| 1550 to 1069 BCE | New Kingdom: Egypt's empire is at its biggest: Hatshepsut, Akhenaten, Tutankhamun, Ramesses II |
| 1274 BCE | Battle of Kadesh between Egypt and the Hittites, later followed by a peace treaty |
| 332 BCE | Alexander the Great takes Egypt; Greek kings (the Ptolemies) rule from Alexandria |
| 30 BCE | Cleopatra dies and Egypt becomes part of the Roman Empire |
Egypt in the Bible's story. Abraham goes down to Egypt in a famine (Genesis 12). Joseph rises from slave to Pharaoh's chief official (Genesis 37 to 50). Israel is enslaved, then rescued in the Exodus under Moses (Exodus 1 to 14). Solomon marries a Pharaoh's daughter (1 Kings 3:1), and King Shishak of Egypt raids Jerusalem (1 Kings 14:25). Jesus' family flees to Egypt to escape King Herod (Matthew 2:13 to 15). Christians and historians date the earliest of these events differently, so they aren't placed on the timeline above.
Faith thread
The Egyptians were deeply religious. They worshipped hundreds of gods, believed Pharaoh was a god on earth, and spent enormous effort preparing for life after death. The Bible takes us right into this world, and makes some bold claims about it:
- There is one true God, who made the Nile, the sun and every living thing, and who showed his power over "all the gods of Egypt" in the Exodus (Exodus 12:12).
- Every person is made in God's image (Genesis 1:27), not just the king. A farmer, a slave and a pharaoh all matter equally to God.
- God rescues people. The God of the Bible introduces himself as the one "who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery" (Exodus 20:2).
- Life after death is a gift, not a test you pass. Egyptians hoped their hearts would be light enough on the scales of judgement. Christians trust that Jesus, who rose from the dead, gives eternal life by grace (John 11:25 to 26).
Each reading ends with a Faith connection that explores one of these ideas.
How this topic works
- Readings: read each one, then answer the questions. Start with Reading 1.
- Skills: learn the historian's tools: the source box, maps, timelines and PEEL paragraphs.
- Quizzes: check what you remember. Try them without your notes first.
- Project: Pharaoh profile. Choose a pharaoh, use the source pack, and argue how significant they were.
Each reading and skill sheet also comes as an A5 sheet: questions only, to cut out and paste into your book.
Readings
Read the page, then answer the questions in your book or on the sheet.
Skills
Each skill sheet shows you how, step by step, then gives you a go.
Quizzes
Short quizzes to check what you remember. Try them without your notes first.
Project
The big task for this topic. Start with the brief, then use the source pack and planner.
Curriculum outcomes
What this topic covers in the Australian Curriculum (version 9).
the different methods and sources of evidence used by historians and archaeologists to investigate early societies, and the importance of archaeology and conserving the remains, material culture and heritage of the past
how the physical, environment and geographical features influenced the development of the ancient society
the organisation and roles of key groups in ancient society such as the nobility, bureaucracy, women and slaves, and how they influenced and changed society
key beliefs, values and practices of an ancient society, with a particular emphasis on one of the following areas: everyday life, warfare, or death and funerary customs
causes and effects of contacts and conflicts within ancient societies and/or with other societies, resulting in developments such as the conquest of other lands, the expansion of trade and peace treaties
the role and achievements of a significant individual in an ancient society
develop historical questions about the past to inform historical inquiry
locate and identify primary and secondary sources to use in historical inquiry
identify the origin, content, context and purpose of primary and secondary sources
identify and describe the accuracy and usefulness of primary and secondary sources as evidence
describe causes and effects, and explain continuities and changes
identify perspectives, attitudes and values of the past in sources
explain historical interpretations about significant events, individuals and groups
create descriptions, explanations and historical arguments using historical knowledge, concepts and terms that reference evidence from sources
Outcomes lesson by lesson
- Reading 1: How do we know about ancient Egypt?AC9HH7K08
- Reading 2: The gift of the NileAC9HH7K09
- Reading 3: Who's who in ancient EgyptAC9HH7K10
- Reading 4: Gods, death and the afterlifeAC9HH7K11
- Reading 5: Trade, war and peaceAC9HH7K12
- Skill 1: The source box (analysing a source)AC9HH7S03AC9HH7S04AC9HH7S06
- Skill 2: Map skills on the NileAC9HH7S02
- Skill 3: Timelines with BCE datesAC9HH7S05
- Skill 4: Writing a PEEL paragraphAC9HH7S08
- Quizzes 1 to 3AC9HH7K08AC9HH7K09AC9HH7K10AC9HH7K11AC9HH7K12
- Project: Pharaoh profile (who was the most significant pharaoh?)AC9HH7K13AC9HH7S01AC9HH7S02AC9HH7S07AC9HH7S08