Written by Janine
|
|
|
Friday, 20 February 2004
Hi, guys! This is my report on Ancient
Egypt I did for school. Egypt is one of the most interesting places in the
world. The ancient Egyptians achieved many amazing things during their 3000 year
existance. They lived along the Nile river from 3300 BC to 30 BC, and were the
longest enduring civilization of the ancient world. The Egyptians developed
a deep understanding of mathematics, architecture, and astronomy. They had
a very interesting form of writing, called hieroglyphics, that
used pictures to represent words, ideas, or actions. The Egyptians were the
first culture to develop the idea of life after death. In fact, they were
obsessed with the afterlife. They believed that in order for the soul to become
immortal, the body had to be preserved and surrounded by reminders of who that
person was, so their soul wouldn't "forget" and wander aimlessly.
To further prevent the deceased's spirit from getting lost, they also left
instructions on how to cross into the next world. The Ancient Egyptians made no distinctions between art, written language, or architecture. So the pyramids they built, the hieroglphics inside them, and everything about them had a meaning. The position of the Great Pyramids in Giza corresponds with certain astronomical elements. These relationships have led some people to conclude that the ancient Egyptians were influenced by extraterrestrials. I don't know about aliens, but I do think its difficult to believe that a civilization that left records about the way they did everything from planting fields to washing clothes, from practicing medicine to perserving the dead, left absolutely no records of how they built the Great Pyramids or the Sphinx. Scientists have been working to solve that puzzle for years. Unfortunately they will never be able to do anything but speculate.
The Ancient Egyptians will always be remembered for all of the beautiful monuments that have lasted for thousands of years. They achieved the goal of immortality more effectively than almost any other culture. Although we will never be able to understand everything about these people, we can be sure that there will always be something new to learn from them. |
|