8/31/2023 0 Comments Papyrus definition mesopotamia![]() ![]() By 4000 B.C., Egypt was made up of two large kingdoms. Lower Egypt was in the north in the Nile delta. Irrigation systems needed to be built and maintained. Grain had to be stored. There they may have learned new ideas about writing and government. Then they traveled to Mesopotamia to trade. They also shaped copper into weapons and tools. Artisans wove cloth, made pottery, and carved statues. This freed some people to work as artisans instead Skillful farming led to more food than was needed, or a surplus. For everyday use, scribes invented a simpler script and wrote on papyrus. Scribes carved these into stone walls and monuments. Some hieroglyphics conveyed public messages. They learned to become scribes, or record keepers for the rulers, priests, and traders. ![]() Some Egyptian men went to special schools to study reading and writing. In ancient Egypt, few people could read and write. Other symbols stood for sounds, like the letters of our own alphabet. For example, to communicate the idea of a boat, a scribe would draw a tiny boat. Some symbols stood for objects and ideas. It was made up of thousands of picture and sound symbols. Like the Mesopotamians, Egyptians developed their own system of writing called hieroglyphics. ![]() The Egyptians also used papyrus for making writing paper. They harvested papyrus to make baskets, sandals, and river rafts. This was a reed plant that grew along the shores of the Nile. It could lift water from the river into the basins.Įgyptians also developed ways to use papyrus. They used a shadoof, a bucket on a long pole. Then they dug canals to carry water from the basins to the fields. To trap floodwaters, Egyptian farmers first dug basins, or bowl-shaped holes, in the earth. They used irrigation when the weather was dry. They grew enough food to feed themselves and their animals. They planted wheat, barley, and flax seeds. When the waters went down, they left a layer of dark, rich mud. Then, during the summer, the Nile spilled over its banks. Water came to the Nile from rain and melted snow. Farmers did not have to worry that floods would destroy crops or farms. In Egypt, the Nile River also flooded, but its floods were regular. Egyptian villages, however, had friendly contact.įarmers in Mesopotamia never knew when the nearby rivers would overflow or if flooding would be bad. There, city-states constantly fought each other. This made Egypt different from Mesopotamia. Winds from the north pushed sailboats south. Beyond the desert to the east was the Red Sea. These waters allowed Egyptians to trade with others. Within Egypt, people used the Nile for trade and transportation. The deserts and Nile rapids did not completely close Egypt to the outside world. As a result, Egyptian civilization grew and prospered. Mesopotamians constantly fought off attackers. Egypt rarely faced such threats. The deserts and the rivers did not keep out invaders. The geography of Mesopotamia did not protect people in the same way. In the north, the delta marshes kept enemies from sailing into Egypt. To the south, dangerous cataracts blocked enemy boats. Because the deserts were so hot, the ancient Egyptians called them “the Red Land.” These areas kept outside armies away from Egypt. Deserts lie on both sides of the Nile River valley. These branches spread out over an area of rich soil. Just before it reaches the Mediterranean Sea, it divides into many branches. In Egypt, the Nile runs through a narrow valley. Large ships cannot sail through the cataracts. The water forms rapids where the rivers meet. These are called cataracts. They are the Blue Nile in eastern Africa and the White Nile in central Africa. The Nile River flows north from the heart of Africa to the Mediterranean Sea, about 4,000 miles. They used its water for fishing, farming, cooking, and cleaning. These people became the earliest Egyptians.īecause Egypt gets little rainfall, Egyptians relied on the Nile River for water. They settled there, farmed the land, and built villages. By 5000 B.C., hunters and gatherers had moved into the Nile River valley.
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