EGYPT
BY KIRK H. BEETZ
In modern works Egyptian history is subdivided into three
kingdoms—Old, Middle, and New—and 31 dynasties. How-
ever, the ancient Egyptians did not divide their history into
kingdoms or dynasties; instead, they recorded one continu-
ous line of kings. Th e modern subdivisions are derived from
those of Greek historians of the later fi rst millennium b.c.e.,
who may have been inspired by Egyptian hieroglyphic lists
that are now lost. Although the Greek historians made some
signifi cant mistakes, historians and archaeologists still use
their list of dynasties. Th ey also continue to use the labels
Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, and New Kingdom for con-
venience, because at the end of each was a period in which
the succession of kings was muddled, usually because two,
three, or even more people were claiming to rule Egypt at the
same time.
PREDYNASTIC ERA
Egyptians were forming large communities for coopera-
tive farming by 5000 b.c.e. Based on artifacts discovered
by archaeologists, it appears the southern part of Egypt had
formed a single culture by 4000 b.c.e. Th is is known as the
Naqâda I Period, named for an ancient settlement on the west
side of the Nile River. By 3500 b.c.e. the Naqâda II Period
had begun. Artifacts from that time indicate a common cul-
ture had spread from southern Egypt throughout northern
Egypt. Burials indicate that by 3000 b.c.e. Egyptian society
was forming an elite class. At this time they also were build-
ing small cities.
EARLY DYNASTIC PERIOD
(CA. 2920–CA. 2575 B.C.E.)
Sometime between 3200 and 2900 b.c.e. Egypt was united
under the rule of a single king. He was called Meni by the
Egyptians of later ages and Menes by Greek historians.
Menes is credited with founding the First Dynasty (ca.
2920–ca. 2770) and creating the capital city of Memphis.
Supposedly, he was the king of Upper Egypt, or southern
Egypt, and he conquered the kingdom of Lower Egypt, or
northern Egypt. Th e double crown worn by Egyptian pha-
raohs represented a combination of the crowns of the two
kingdoms, and Egyptians called their rulers dual kings. Ar-
chaeologists now believe Menes was a mythical fi gure and
that Lower Egypt was not a kingdom when it was absorbed
by Upper Egypt.
Historians continue to dispute the names of the First
Dynasty kings. Th e fi rst king for whom there is evidence is
Narmer, who appears in written artifacts from his own time.
He became king of all Egypt in about 2950 b.c.e. He either
founded a dynasty of kings whose names are lost in mytho-
logical Egyptian tales, united Egypt without founding a dy-
nasty, or founded the First Dynasty. Some historians name
Narmer and Aha as two separate kings, and some assert that
Aha was the legendary Menes, calling him Aha Men; others
say Narmer and Aha were the same person. Before Narmer’s
rule, there may have been six leaders who were kings of parts
of Egypt, including Ip, the legendary Scorpion King.
Th e kings of the First Dynasty developed a centralized
government and established the belief that the king of Egypt
ruled as a god on earth. All government offi cials derived their
authority from the king, and they had to attend the king at
his court periodically to show they served only at his whim.
Th e term for king was nyswt. Th e word pharaoh did not come
into use until late during the New Kingdom. Second in com-
mand to the king was a vizier, who during the Old Kingdom
remained at the king’s court.
Th e Second Dynasty (ca. 2770–ca. 2649 b.c.e.) had seven
kings of uncertain date. Because these kings came and left
quickly, some historians believe there was a civil war during
the Second Dynasty, though archaeological discoveries reveal
no disruptions during this time. Perhaps the number of kings
is incorrect, or the kings’ names represent palace coups that
did not disturb the common people.
Th e most famous king of the Th ird Dynasty (ca. 2649–
ca. 2575 b.c.e.) was Netjerykhet (r. ca. 2630–ca. 2611 b.c.e.),
better known in later times as Djoser, meaning something
like “the special one.” Until Djoser’s reign a king’s tomb con-
sisted of underground chambers, oft en carved out of solid
rock, topped aboveground by a platform of mud brick called
a mastaba. When the mastaba for Djoser’s tomb at Saqqara
was built, either he or his vizier, Imhotep, decided to make
it grander. Imhotep designed the resulting Step Pyramid,
Egypt’s fi rst great stone pyramid, which is built of limestone
blocks and was coated with polished white limestone. Th e
Step Pyramid is surrounded by a temple complex where spir-
its could roam.OLD KINGDOM (CA. 2575–CA. 2134 B.C.E.)
Th e Old Kingdom consisted of the Fourth through Seventh/
Eighth Dynasties. Imhotep’s grand design marked the begin-
ning of the age of the giant pyramids, the most characteristic
structures built during the Old Kingdom. Th e foremost public
work of each royal reign was the king’s tomb, and Egyptians
devoted parts of each year to working on its construction.
Contrary to popular myth, slaves were not used. Th e building
of a pyramid served to unify Egyptians by focusing them on
a project to honor their god-king. Th e biggest of these works
was the Great Pyramid built near Giza for Khufu (r. ca. 2551–
ca. 2528 b.c.e.), a ruler of the Fourth Dynasty (ca. 2575–ca.
2465 b.c.e.).
Th e Fift h Dynasty lasted from about 2465 to 2323 b.c.e.
and the Sixth Dynasty from about 2323 to 2150 b.c.e. Th e last
king of the Sixth Dynasty was Pepi (or Pepy) II (r. ca. 2246–ca.
2150 b.c.e.). His was the longest reign of any Egyptian ruler,
and his was the last great pyramid built on the Giza plateau.
During his reign, Pepi II solidifi ed Egypt’s domination of the
Nubians of the south, but the king’s central authority dimin-
ished for unknown reasons.392 empires and dynasties: Egypt