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people begin settling. they start with hunting and gathering. later they begin growing plants and building houses. -
Egyptian burials form into the grave dug in the ground with their body placed in a curled-up position, with jars, baskets for food and a drink for the afterlife. -
Writing using hieroglyphic signs develops. The Egyptians have used hieroglyphics for over 3,600 years to record important information. -
Narmer is among the first Egyptian kings to conquer and rule over both Upper and Lower Egypt. -
Hieratic script (cursive hieroglyphic sign) is now fully developed so that everyday information can be written more quickly and easily. -
Artificial preservation of bodies, which may have begun in earlier periods, continues to be developed. The Egyptians advance mummification by removing organs and drying the using natron( natural salt), as well as applying oils and wrappings. -
Three large stone pyramids are built at Giza (near present-day cairo. The pyramid built for the king Khafre is guarded by a huge stone sphinx with with the body of a lion and king's head. -
Coffin texts are first used. These spells help the dead person travel through the underworld to the afterlife. They are written on the coffins of wealthy ancient Egyptians. -
During the Middle Kingdom,wealthy people have wooden models of people preparing food or sailing on a boat put in there tombs to ensure good meals and safe travel in the afterlife. -
In about 2200 BC the government in Egypt collapses and Upper and Lower Egypt have different rulers. Around 2055 BC, Mentuhotep ll became king of Upper Egypt. He later takes control of all of Egypt. -
Senusret iii rules as king. He expands the territory controlled by Egypt and, during his 39-year reign, ancient Egypt is wealthy and powerful. -
Queen Neferusobek is one of the first female rulers of Egypt. She is the first ruler associated with crocodile god Sobek by name. -
The Book of Dead, a collection of about 200 spells to protect the dead during their journey to the afterlife, is first used. it is usually written on papyrus and put in a coffin or in a small hollow statue. -
Ahmose rules as king. In about 1550, Ahmose defeated the foreign Hyksos rulers, who control Lower Egypt, and becomes king of all Egypt. -
The ancient Egyptians take full control of Nubia, A region to the south of Egypt with valuable natural resources such as gold and semi-precious stones. -
Some ancient Egyptians have small figures called shabtis placed in their tombs to magically work for them in the afterlife. From about 1500 BC onwards, the number of shabtis in royal tombs increases. by 1000 BC, many wealthy people are buried with hundreds of them. -
Hatshepsut rules Egypt, initially because her stepson Thutmose III is too young to rule. Her most famous monument is a funerary temple opposite Thebes (present day Luxor). -
Akhenaten is king. He believes that the sun disc, Aten, should be worshipped as the only Egyptian god, and he discourages the worship of other gods and goddesses- particularly Amun. Many people do not agree and, after Akhenaten dies, his monuments are destroyed, his name is removed from statues,and the original religion is restored. -
Tutankhamun becomes king at the tender age of nine years. In 1922, the archeologist Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamun's nearly intact tomb in the valley of the kings. -
Ramses ll rules for 66 years. He builds temples everywhere and has many statues of himself put up within Egypt and in conquered lands. -
The mummification process changes and instead of placing the internal organs into special canopic jars, the organs are put back into the body after being fried. However, the ancient Egyptians continue to put empty or solid ' model' canopic jars in tombs. -
Kings from a region to the south called Kush conquer Egypt. Kushite kings ruled Egypt until about 664 BC. The last Kushite king of Egypt is called Tantamani. -
Demotic script replaces hieratic script. Demotic script is faster and easier to write. It is used for business documents and everyday writing. -
Egypt is controlled by rulers from other countries. The Assyrians invaded Egypt in 673 BC and controlled local Egyptian kings. The Persians directly rule Egypt from 525 to 404 BC and again from 343 to 332 BC. -
After King Alexander of Macedon conquers Egypt, the country is ruled by his general, who becomes King Ptolemy l. His descendents continue to rule for 300 years. Greek becomes the main government language, official documents are written in greek as well as egyptian. -
The Rosetta Stone is a broken monumental slab recording an agreement between Egyptian priests and King Ptolemy V. It is inscribed in three different scripts ;hieroglyphics and demotic ( both egyptian), and Greek. -
Cleopatra- VII is the independent ruler of Egypt. She speaks both Greek and Egyptian. When Cleopatra is defeated by Octavian, later Emperor Augustus, Egypt becomes part of the Roman Empire. -
When Egypt was part of the Roman Empire, people began to paint a more true to life portrait of a dead person a board that was fitted to the outer wrappings of the mummified body.