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THE ANCIENT EGYPT PORTAL

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The golden funeral mask of king Tutankhamun, a symbol for many of ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt was a civilization of ancient Northeast Africa. It was concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River, situated in the place that is now the country Egypt. Ancient Egyptian civilization followed prehistoric Egypt and coalesced around 3100 BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology) with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under Menes (often identified with Narmer). The history of ancient Egypt unfolded as a series of stable kingdoms interspersed by periods of relative instability known as "Intermediate Periods". The various kingdoms fall into one of three categories: the Old Kingdom of the Early Bronze Age, the Middle Kingdom of the Middle Bronze Age, or the New Kingdom of the Late Bronze Age.

Ancient Egypt reached the pinnacle of its power during the New Kingdom, ruling much of Nubia and a sizable portion of the Levant. After this period, it entered an era of slow decline. During the course of its history, ancient Egypt was invaded or conquered by a number of foreign powers, including the Hyksos, the Nubians, the Assyrians, the Achaemenid Persians, and the Macedonians under Alexander the Great. The Greek Ptolemaic Kingdom, formed in the aftermath of Alexander's death, ruled until 30 BC, when, under Cleopatra, it fell to the Roman Empire and became a Roman province. Egypt remained under Roman control until the 640s AD, when it was conquered by the Rashidun Caliphate.

The success of ancient Egyptian civilization came partly from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River valley for agriculture. The predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops, which supported a more dense population, and social development and culture. With resources to spare, the administration sponsored mineral exploitation of the valley and surrounding desert regions, the early development of an independent writing system, the organization of collective construction and agricultural projects, trade with surrounding regions, and a military intended to assert Egyptian dominance. Motivating and organizing these activities was a bureaucracy of elite scribes, religious leaders, and administrators under the control of a pharaoh, who ensured the cooperation and unity of the Egyptian people in the context of an elaborate system of religious beliefs.^[1]

The many achievements of the ancient Egyptians include the quarrying, surveying, and construction techniques that supported the building of monumental pyramids, temples, and obelisks; a system of mathematics, a practical and effective system of medicine, irrigation systems, and agricultural production techniques, the first known planked boats, Egyptian faience and glass technology, new forms of literature, and the earliest known peace treaty, made with the Hittites. Ancient Egypt has left a lasting legacy. Its art and architecture were widely copied, and its antiquities were carried off to far corners of the world. Its monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of travelers and writers for millennia. A newfound respect for antiquities and excavations in the early modern period by Europeans and Egyptians has led to the scientific investigation of Egyptian civilization and a greater appreciation of its cultural legacy. (Full article...)

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The Eye of Ra or Eye of Re, usually depicted as sun disk or right wedjat-eye (paired with the Eye of Horus, left wedjat-eye), is an entity in ancient Egyptian mythology that functions as an extension of the sun god Ra's power, equated with the disk of the sun, but it often behaves as an independent goddess, a feminine counterpart to Ra and a violent force that subdues his enemies. This goddess, also known with the theonym Wedjat, can be equated with several particular deities, including Hathor, Sekhmet, Bastet, Raet-Tawy, and Mut. The eye goddess acts as mother, sibling, consort, and daughter of the sun god. She is his partner in the creative cycle in which he begets the renewed form of himself that is born at dawn. The eye's violent aspect defends Ra against the agents of disorder that threaten his rule. This dangerous aspect of the eye goddess is often represented by a lioness or by the uraeus, or cobra, a symbol of protection and royal authority. The disastrous fury and rampages of the eye goddess and the efforts of the gods to appease her are a prominent motif in Egyptian mythology.

The Eye of Ra was involved in many areas of ancient Egyptian religion, including in the cults of the many goddesses who are equated with it. Its life-giving power was celebrated in temple rituals, and its dangerous aspect was invoked in the protection of the pharaoh, of sacred places, and of ordinary people and their homes. (Full article...)

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Credit: Maison Bonfils (Beirut, Lebanon)

The Great Sphinx of Giza, partially excavated, with two pyramids in the background.

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... that the tomb of pharaoh Sekhemre Khutawy Sobekhotep (pictured) was discovered in 2013?

... that Sihathor reigned as coregent with his brother Neferhotep I?

... that rulers of the Fourteenth Dynasty of Egypt were of Canaanite descent?

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5th September 2018. Rock-cut Tomb discovered in a 4,000-year-old Elite Cemetery

August 2018: in the tomb of the mayor of Memphis Ptahmose who dates around 1300 BC was found well preserved cheese, more than 3000 years old. [1]

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Bust of Ptolemy II, National Archaeological Museum, Naples

Ptolemy II Philadelphus (Ancient Greek: Πτολεμαῖος Φιλάδελφος, Ptolemaîos Philádelphos, "Ptolemy, sibling-lover"; 309 – 28 January 246 BC) was the pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt from 284 to 246 BC. He was the son of Ptolemy I, the Macedonian Greek general of Alexander the Great who founded the Ptolemaic Kingdom after the death of Alexander, and Queen Berenice I, originally from Macedon.

During Ptolemy II's reign, the material and literary splendour of the Alexandrian court was at its height. He promoted the Museum and Library of Alexandria. In addition to Egypt, Ptolemy's empire encompassed much of the Aegean and Levant. He pursued an aggressive and expansionist foreign policy with mixed success. From 275 to 271 BC, he led the Ptolemaic Kingdom against the rival Seleucid Empire in the First Syrian War and extended Ptolemaic power into Cilicia and Caria, but lost control of Cyrenaica after the defection of his half-brother Magas. In the Chremonidean War (c. 267–261 BC), Ptolemy confronted Antigonid Macedonia for control of the Aegean and suffered serious setbacks. This was followed by a Second Syrian War (260–253 BC) against the Seleucid empire, in which many of the gains from the first war were lost. (Full article...)

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Amenhotep I Ahmose I Akhenaten Philitas of Cos Darius the Great Artaxerxes III Thutmose I Tutankhamun Djedkare Isesi Atlanersa Neferefre Unas Menkauhor Kaiu Nyuserre Ini Userkaf Isis Sheshi Hathor Neferirkare Kakai Ramesses VI Ptolemy VI Philometor Sneferu Seth-Peribsen

General images

The following are images from various ancient Egypt-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Mesopotamian king as Master of Animals on the Gebel el-Arak Knife, dated to the Naqada II period circa 3300-3200 BC, Abydos, Egypt. Louvre Museum, reference E 11517. This work of art both shows the influence of Mesopotamia on Egypt at an early date, and the state of Mesopotamian royal iconography during the Uruk period. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 2The prisoners on the Battlefield Palette may be the people of the Buto-Maadi culture subjected by the Egyptian rulers of Naqada III. (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 3Egypt and its world in 1300 BC. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 4Egyptian soldier of the Achaemenid army, circa 470 BCE. Xerxes I tomb relief. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 5Bull palette, Naqada III (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 6Greywacke statue of the pharaoh Menkaure and his queen consort, Khamerernebty II. Originally from his Giza temple, now on display at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 7Portrait of "Black Pharaoh" Taharqa, Louvre Museum reconstruction (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 8Aterian point from Zaccar, Djelfa region, Algeria. (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 9A guardian statue which reflects the facial features of the reigning king, probably Amenemhat II or Senwosret II, and which functioned as a divine guardian for the imiut. Made of cedar wood and plaster c. 1919–1885 BC (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 1025th Dynasty (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 11Colossal depictions of Ramesses II at one of the Abu Simbel temples. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 12Possible prisoners and wounded men of the Buto-Maadi culture devoured by animals, while one is led by a man in long dress, probably an Egyptian official (fragment, top right corner). Battlefield Palette. (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 13An Osiris statue of Mentuhotep II, the founder of the Middle Kingdom (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 14Carved catfish bones, and jar discovered in Maadi (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 15Evolution of Egyptian prehistoric pottery styles, from Naqada I to Naqada II and Naqada III (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 16Pottery model of a house used in a burial from the First Intermediate Period, on display at the Royal Ontario Museum. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 17Naqada figure of a woman interpreted to represent the goddess Bat with her inward curving horns. Another hypothesis is that the raised arms symbolize wings and that the figure is an early version of the white vulture goddess Nekhbet, c. 3500–3400 B.C.E. terracotta, painted, 11+1⁄2 in × 5+1⁄2 in × 2+1⁄4 in (29.2 cm × 14.0 cm × 5.7 cm), Brooklyn Museum (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 18Tasian beaker, found in a Badarian grave at Qau; tomb 569, around 4000 BC; Upper Egypt; British Museum (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 19Golden mask from the mummy of Tutankhamun (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 20Ovoid Naqada I (Amratian) black-topped terracotta vase, (c. 3800–3500 BC). (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 21Ancient Egypt Predynastic Stone Vessels. Louvre Museum, Paris (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 22Map of Egypt (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 23Clapper discovered in Maadi, Louvre Museum (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 24Arrowheads from Al Fayum (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 25Statuette of Merankhre Mentuhotep, a minor pharaoh of the Sixteenth Dynasty, reigning over the Theban region c. 1585 BC. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 26Stela of the Second Dynasty Pharaoh Nebra, displaying the hieroglyph for his Horus name within a serekh surmounted by Horus. On display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 27A Gerzeh culture vase decorated with gazelles, on display at the Louvre. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 28Ancient Badarian mortuary figurine of a woman, held at the Louvre (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 29Merimde culture clay head, circa 5,000 BC. This is one of the earliest known representations of a human head in Egypt. (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 30Nabta Playa "calendar circle", reconstructed at Aswan Nubia museum. (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 31A typical Naqada II pot with ship theme (from Prehistoric Egypt)
Image 32Ring with engraved portrait of Ptolemy VI Philometor as Pharao (3rd–2nd century BCE). Louvre Museum. (from History of ancient Egypt)
Image 33Map of Lower Egypt, and location of the Faiyum oasis (from Prehistoric Egypt)