Egypt: Old Kingdom

Learning Objective

• Explain the reasons for the rise and fall of the Old Kingdom

United under King Menes. 2686 to 2181 B.C.E,. Included the 3rd to the 6th dynasties. Capitol was Memphis. “Age of Pyramids”. Ancient Egypt had its origin in the course of the Nile River. It reached three periods of great pharaonic splendor: the Ancient Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom and the New Kingdom. Ancient Egypt map domain stretched from the delta of the Nile in the north, to Elephantine Island, where is the first cataract of the Nile in the south.

Key Points

• The Old Kingdom is the name commonly given to the period when Egypt gained in complexity and achievement, spanning from the Third Dynasty through the Sixth Dynasty (2686-2181 BCE).
• The royal capital of Egypt during the Old Kingdom was located at Memphis, where the first notable king of the Old Kingdom, Djoser, established his court.
• In the Third Dynasty, formerly independent ancient Egyptian states became known as Nomes, which were ruled solely by the pharaoh. The former rulers of these states were subsequently forced to assume the role of governors, or otherwise work in tax collection.
• Egyptians during this Dynasty worshipped their pharaoh as a god, and believed that he ensured the stability of the cycles that were responsible for the annual flooding of the Nile. This flooding was necessary for their crops.
• The Fourth Dynasty saw multiple large-scale construction projects under pharaohs Sneferu, Khufu, and Khufu’s sons Djedefra and Khafra, including the famous pyramid and Sphinx at Giza.
• The Fifth Dynasty saw changes in religious beliefs, including the rise of the cult of the sun god Ra, and the deity Osiris.

Egypt Old Kingdom Economics

Terms

Ra

The sun god, or the supreme Egyptian deity, worshipped as the creator of all life, and usually portrayed with a falcon’s head bearing a solar disc.

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Osiris

The Egyptian god of the underworld, and husband and brother of Isis.

Nomes

Subnational, administrative division of Ancient Egypt.

nomarchs

Semi-feudal rulers of Ancient Egyptian provinces.

Facts About Old Kingdom Egypt

Old Kingdom

Encompassing the Third to Eighth Dynasties, the name commonly given to the period in the 3rd millennium BCE, when Egypt attained its first continuous peak of complexity and achievement.

Djoser

An ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the Third Dynasty, and the founder of the Old Kingdom.

necropolis

A cemetery, especially a large one belonging to an ancient city.

Egypt Old Kingdom Map

Sneferu

A king of the Fourth Dynasty, who used the greatest mass of stones in building pyramids.

The Old Kingdom is the name commonly given to the period from the Third Dynasty through the Sixth Dynasty (2686-2181 BCE), when Egypt gained in complexity and achievement. The Old Kingdom is the first of three so-called “Kingdom” periods that mark the high points of civilization in the Nile Valley. During this time, a new type of pyramid (the step) was created, as well as many other massive building projects, including the Sphinx. Additionally, trade became more widespread, new religious ideas were born, and the strong centralized government was subtly weakened and finally collapsed.

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The king (not yet called Pharaoh) of Egypt during this period resided in the new royal capital, Memphis. He was considered a living god, and was believed to ensure the annual flooding of the Nile. This flooding was necessary for crop growth. The Old Kingdom is perhaps best known for a large number of pyramids, which were constructed as royal burial places. Thus, the period of the Old Kingdom is often called “The Age of the Pyramids.”

Egypt’s Old Kingdom was also a dynamic period in the development of Egyptian art. Sculptors created early portraits, the first life-size statues, and perfected the art of carving intricate relief decoration. These had two principal functions: to ensure an ordered existence, and to defeat death by preserving life in the next world.

The first notable king of the Old Kingdom was Djoser (reigned from 2691-2625 BCE) of the Third Dynasty, who ordered the construction of the step pyramid in Memphis’ necropolis, Saqqara. It was in this era that formerly independent ancient Egyptian states became known as nomes, and were ruled solely by the king. The former rulers of these states were forced to assume the role of governors or tax collectors.

The Old Kingdom and its royal power reached a zenith under the Fourth Dynasty, which began with Sneferu (2613-2589 BCE). Using a greater mass of stones than any other king, he built three pyramids: Meidum, the Bent Pyramid, and the Red Pyramid. He also sent his military into Sinai, Nubia and Libya, and began to trade with Lebanon for cedar.

Sneferu was succeeded by his (in)famous son, Khufu (2589-2566 BCE), who built the Great Pyramid of Giza. After Khufu’s death, one of his sons built the second pyramid, and the Sphinx in Giza. Creating these massive projects required a centralized government with strong powers, sophistication and prosperity. Builders of the pyramids were not slaves but peasants, working in the farming off-season, along with specialists like stone cutters, mathematicians, and priests. Each household needed to provide a worker for these projects, although the wealthy could have a substitute.

Old Kingdom Of Ancient Egypt

The later kings of the Fourth Dynasty were king Menkaura (2532-2504 BCE), who built the smallest pyramid in Giza, Shepseskaf (2504-2498 BCE), and perhaps Djedefptah (2498-2496 BCE). During this period, there were military expeditions into Canaan and Nubia, spreading Egyptian influence along the Nile into modern-day Sudan.

The Fifth Dynasty began with Userkaf (2494-2487 BCE), and with several religious changes. The cult of the sun god Ra, and temples built for him, began to grow in importance during the Fifth Dynasty. This lessened efforts to build pyramids. Funerary prayers on royal tombs (called Pyramid Texts) appeared, and the cult of the deity Osiris ascended in importance.

Egyptians began to build ships to trade across maritime routes. Goods included ebony, incense, gold, and copper. They traded with Lebanon for cedar, and perhaps with modern-day Somalia for other goods. Ships were held together by tightly tied ropes.

The power of the king and central government declined during this period, while that of nomarchs (regional governors) increased. These nomarchs were not part of the royal family. They passed down the title through their lineage, thus creating local dynasties that were not under the control of the king. Internal disorder resulted during and after the long reign of Pepi II (2278-2184 BCE), due to succession struggles, and eventually led to civil war. The final blow was a severe drought between 2200-2150 BCE, which prevented Nile flooding. Famine, conflict, and collapse beset the Old Kingdom for decades.

Sources

The Old Kingdom is the name for Egypt during the 3rd millennium BC when the civilization of Egypt had its first peak. It was the first of three so-called 'Kingdom' periods, which mark the high points of civilization in the lower Nile Valley (the others being Middle Kingdom and the New Kingdom).

Egypt Old Kingdom Achievements

Old Kingdom was the best by the Third Dynasty through to the Sixth Dynasty (2686 BC – 2134 BC). Many Egyptologists also include the Memphite Seventh and Eighth Dynasties in the Old Kingdom as a continuation of the administration centralized at Memphis. The Old Kingdom was followed by a period of disunity and relative cultural decline that is called the First Intermediate Period by Egyptologists.

The royal capital of Egypt during the Old Kingdom was Memphis. During the Old Kingdom era the great pyramids were built to be burial tombs for the Pharaohs. Because Pharaohs were believed to be given authority from heaven, they wished to walk to Ra, their Sun-god, after death. King Zoser's adviser Inhotep designed the pyramid, hoping to easily reach Ra. The tombs were built on the west bank of the Nile where the sun seemed to set. For this reason, the Old Kingdom is sometimes called 'The Age of the Pyramids.'

Khufu, called Cheops, was the Pharaoh who built the Great Pyramid at Giza, near Cairo. He believed his soul never died, so they stored food, clothes, and things he owned in the rooms of the pyramid. The Great Pyramid is one of the Seven Wonders of the World: tall as a forty-story building, it took a hundred thousand men twenty years to build. With only ramps and physical energy, they had to move and lift into place 2,300,000 blocks of limestone that were about two and one-half tons apiece. Slaves, farmers, and gangs of men had to work on the Great Pyramid, and were paid with valuable things, not coins (Egyptians had no coins).
To guard the pyramids, a huge stone statue called the Great Sphinx was created and placed nearby. The Great Sphinx has a man's head and a lion's body, with paws 50 ft (15 m) long.

At last, the priests overthrew the Pharaohs. Then the nobles and priests ruled.

Further reading[changechange source]

• Jaromir Malek, In the Shadow of the Pyramids: Egypt During the Old Kingdom, University of Oklahoma Press, 1986. ISBN0-8061-2027-4
• Egyptian Art in the Age of the older set of Pyramids, New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1999. ISBN0-87099-906-0 (catalogue for travelling exhibition of the same name)

Other websites[changechange source]

• Middle East on the Matrix: Egypt, The Old Kingdom – Photographs of many of the historic sites dating from the Old Kingdom