Ancient Egypt

The Nile river gave rise to the one of the greatest civilizations. Ancient Egyptians left behind numerous treasures that we continue to learn about. The massive pyramids that contain lavish tombs for their rulers (pharoahs and queens) are still standing. The Rosetta Stone was one of the first tools historians had to understand the heiroglyphs it bore. It is believed that ancient Egyptians invented toothpaste, cosmetic makeup (hello kohl eyeliner!), clocks, surgical instruments, and wigs. They also invented many of the mathematics concepts we learn and use today. Just think about all the geometry that went into building the pyramids in Giza.

It is estimated that settlers along the Nile River in present-day Egypt created small villages as early as 6000 BCE. The villages clustered into Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt until the first recorded pharoah, or king, of Egypt united the two lands circa 3100 BCE. Pharoahs were considered gods and they ruled the Egyptian Empire during years of massive growth and innovation. The Egyptian empire was conquered by Alexander the Great, then ruled by Greek pharoahs. Queen Cleopatra, the last Egyptian ruler, lost a war to Roman ruler Octavian in 30 BCE.

Explore Ancient Egypt with NOVA is a great resource to start learning more about Egypt or to help you write that paper for school.

Secrets of the Dead explores the discovery of a rare mass grave with the bones of nearly 60 people outside Luxor. Archaeologists are on a quest to find out who the remains belong to, why they were buried the way they were and what was happening in ancient Egypt that would have led to a mass burial. Could the collapse of the empire’s Old Kingdom provide any clues?

From NOVA: 

Follow archaeologists as they discover a long lost ancient cemetery in Egypt’s sacred desert. Treasures emerge unlike anything seen by the team, revealing details of a unique period, when women had extraordinary power.

In this clip, go beneath the sand and mud bricks of Egypt, where a sealed tomb reveals its secrets for the first time in centuries. As archaeologists carefully break through the entrance, they uncover an unusual vase that doesn’t resemble any known Egyptian artifact - but the most breathtaking discovery is a never-before-seen sculpture.

From Digital Studios' Be Smart: When the pyramids were built, the ancient Egyptians hadn’t invented the wheel, developed bronze tools, or discovered pi. How were they able to stack two million stone blocks, each weighing more than two tons, into precise geometric alignments that would survive more than 4,000 years and capture the imaginations of explorers throughout history?

After you watch this explanation of who built the pyramids, check out The INCREDIBLE Ancient Engineering That Built the Pyramids next!

The vehicle of choice for Pharoahs was a royal chariot. While riding this feat of advanced engineering (we're talking anti-roll balls, shock absorption, and rear-view mirrors) ancient Egyptians would sometimes battle. Here are two videos from NOVA's "Building Pharoah's Chariot" featuring information on the Egyptian armor that was worn and an example of the weapons used when holding the reins. 

From NOVA: Almost all the letters of the Latin alphabet are derived from the hieroglyphs that the Canaanites of Serabit chose to represent the sounds of their tongue.