Ancient World

The Black and the Red

An Ancient World

People began to live beside the River Nile many thousands of years ago. The river cut through the desert and provided them with water. The valley of Upper Egypt in the south formed a long narrow strip; the delta of Lower Egypt in the north spread out across the river mouth. Every year, floods washed thick mud over the banks and lef good soil behind. Early Egyptians called this the “Black Land” and used it for growing crops. Beyond it was the “Red Land,” an immense stony waste where it hardly ever rained and nothing useful grew. Where the Black Land ended, the Red Land began. A person could stand with one foot on fertile ground and the other on dry sand. Wolves and jackals hunted along the edges of the desert, but human enemies were seldom able to cross it and attack ancient Egypt.

The Cliffs of Thebes

Limestone cliffs line the western boundary of the valley of Thebes. Pharaohs built temples on the edge of the floodplain and tombs in the hills beyond.

Alexander's Alexandria

Alexander the Great invaded Egypt in 331 BC, and planned a great city called Alexandria.

The Monuments of Giza

The pyramids and the sphinx at Giza are landmarks of ancient Egypt, visible from a great distance across the desert.

Ancient World. Photo by Elena.

Queen Hatshepsut's temple

Queen Hatshepsut, who ruled as pharaoh, built a terraced temple at Deir el-Bahri on the west bank of the Nile. She filled the gardens with sweet-smelling plants.

Abu Simbel

Ramesses II ordered two huge temples to be built in the desert at Abu Simbel in Nubia. They were carved out of the sandstone cliffs.

Temples at Karnak

Karnak was an important religious center. Stone columns with elaborately carved tops supported the heavy roofs of the huge temples.

Marsh Hunt

The hunter felled birds with his throwing stick after his trained cat had startled them from the papyrus reeds.

Land of the Lotus

People in modern times likened ancient Egypt to a lotus plant, with its valley as the stem and its delta as the flower.

The Civilization of Ancient Egypt

Old Stone Age: Before 12,000 BC. The earliest Egyptians hunted lions, goats and wild cattle on land, and hippopotamuses and crocodiles in the river marshes.

New stone Age: Begins about 4500 BC, during this period, people discovered fire for cooking. They learned to herd animals and to grow grain. New stone-age pottery witness that.

Land of two kingdoms: Begins about 3000 BC. Ditches were dug to irrigate the land and villages became more established. In 3100 BC, Narmer united Upper and Lower Egypt. Narmer”s palette shows his victory.

Rule of the Pharaohs: 2920 BC to 322 BC. Egypt was strong for much of this time. Monuments were built and trade with foreign countries developed.