FAMOUS PERSONALITIES

Imhotep
Imhotep was the architect who designed the Step Pyramid of
Djoser. He was a high official during the reign of King Djoser. He
was deified and worshiped in the Ptolemaic period and during the
Roman period. Imhotep served under the Third
Dynasty king, Djoser, as chancellor to the pharaoh and high priest
of the sun god Ra at Heliopolis. He is considered to be the first
architect engineer and physician in early history though two other
physicians, Hesy-Ra and Merit-Ptah lived around the same time.
He is titled as Chancellor of the King of Egypt, Doctor, First in line
after the King of Upper Egypt, Administrator of the Great Palace,
Hereditary nobleman, High Priest of Heliopolis, Builder, Chief
Carpenter, Chief Sculptor and Maker of Vases in Chief.

Hemiunu
Hemiunu, sometimes called Hemon, who is best known as the
architect of the Great Pyramid of Khufu at Giza. In his tomb he is
described as a hereditary prince, count, sealer of the king of Lower
Egypt and on a statue found in his serdab (and now located in
Hildesheim), Hemiunu is given the titles: king's son of his body, chief
justice and vizier, greatest of the five of the House of Thoth.As Vizier
he succeeded Kanefer, his uncle, and his father Nefermaat.
Senenmut












Senenmut was an 18th dynasty ancient Egyptian architect known for the mortuary temple
complex of Queen Hatshepsut. His name translates literally as "mother's brother." He was born
to a modest family from Armant. However, he became the first man in the court of Queen
Statue of Imhotep
Statue of Hemiunu
Seated Senenmut holding the princess
Neferure in his arms
Djeser-Djeseru temple
One of the few surviving
three-dimensional
representations of
Amenhotep I
Hatshepsut. He was also the tutor of Princess Neferure, the
daughter of Hatshepsut. Nevertheless, he was disgraced at the
end of Hatshepsut's reign, builder of Temple of Hatshepsut.
Amenhotep I
Amenhotep I -- Son of Hapu, Prophet and Architect of King
Amenhotep III started his official life as a scribe in the court of
Amenhotep the Third at Thebes. Later on, he succeeded to a
higher rank and became the chief of the public works. During the
Ptolemaic period, he was venerated as a god of science and
healing.

King Narmer: Successor to King Scorpion and succeeded by King Hor-Aha.
King Narmer was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the Early Dynastic Period (c. 31st century BC).
Probably the successor to the Protodynastic pharaohs Scorpion and/or Ka, some consider him
the unifier of Egypt and founder of the First Dynasty, therefore
the first pharaoh of unified Egypt.
King Djoser: Successor to King Sanakhte and succeeded by
King Sekhemkhet.
The 2nd king of the 3rd Dynasty (approx. 2668-2649 BC), he
was the first to build an Egyptian pyramid - the Step Pyramid.
He was advised by his Vizier Imhotep and faced the obstacles
of a 7 year long drought and famine.



King Sneferu: Successor to King Huni and succeeded by King Khufu.
Dynasty 4 (approx. 2613 BC) begins with King Snefru inheriting the throne of his father and
completing his unfinished pyramid. He goes on to build two of his own, one of which is the first
True Pyramid.

King Khufu: Successor to King Snefru and succeeded by King
Djedefre.
The 2nd king of the fourth Dynasty, King Khufu is the builder of
the only wonder of the ancient world still standing out of the 7.
The Great Pyramid was tallest man-made structure until the
19th century.


Limestone statue of Djoser
from his Serdab
Statue of Khufu in the
Cairo Museum
Greywacke statue of
Menkaure
King Khafre: Successor to King Djedefre and succeeded by
King Menkaure.
The 4th king of the 4th Dynasty, King Khafre is the builder of the
second Pyramid at Giza and is thought to be the builder of the
Sphinx as well as it being his portrait. His reign brought
prosperity to the country.
King Menkaure: Successor to King Khafra and succeeded by
King Shepseskaf.
The 5th king of the 4th Dynasty, he built the 3rd pyramid of Giza,
and is said to have been a kinder pharaoh than his
predecessors. Herodotus recorded a legend about him
appeasing the Gods to lift a curse on the land.
King Ahmose I: Successor to King Kamose and succeeded by
King Amenhotep I.
The first ancient Egyptian Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty (approx.
15501525 BC), King Ahmose was the Pharaoh who finally
expelled the Hyksos after his both father and older brother had
waged war on them and died in battle.
Queen Hatshepsut: Successor to King Thutmosis II and
succeeded by Thutmosis III.
Co-regent with her half-brother, she ruled during the 18th
Dynasty for 20 years until her death. She blocked the rule of her
brother and appointed herself as Pharaoh; she also built one of
Egypt's most famous mortuary temples.
King Thutmosis III: Successor to King Thutmosis II and
succeeded by Amenhotep II.
The 5th ancient Egyptian Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty (approx.
1504-1450), he was known as the Egyptian Napoleon for his
ambitious empire-building. He ruled after Hatshepsut, who had
usurped his position as heir, died (or was killed).







Diorite statue of Khafre
Statue of Queen Hatshepsut
Statue of King Thutmosis III
Statue of King Akhenaten in
the early Amarna style.
King Akhenaten: Successor to King Amenhotep III and
succeeded by King Smenkhkare & King Tutankhamun.
He revolutionized Egypt with new artistic styles and religious
beliefs. He built one of the earliest forms of monotheism and
made the sun the only God. His wife is the mysterious Nefertiti.
Queen Nefertiti: Great Royal Wife of King Akhenaten,
successor to King Amenhotep III.
Although she was not the ruler herself, her fame and power are
notable enough to give her a spot on the list of famous ancient
Egyptian Pharaohs. She was an enigma and a beauty, whose
origin as well as death are a mystery.

King Tutankhamun: Successor to King Akhenaten and
succeeded by King Ay.
The boy king who took over the throne at the age of 9. He is the
center of much speculation regarding the cause of his death at
age 19. One of the most famous ancient Egyptian pharaohs due
to the discovery of his tomb still intact.

King Ramesses II: Successor to King Set I and succeeded
by King Merneptah.
The most enduring icon of ancient Egyptian power, King
Ramesses is the 2nd pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty. He ruled
Egypt for 67 years and had over 100 children. Famous for his
monument-building and the peace-treaties.










The bust of Queen Nefertiti from
the Agyptisches Museum.
Mask of King Tutankhamun's mummy,
the popular icon for ancient Egypt
FAMOUS LANDMARKS
Great Pyramids of Giza
The pyramids in Giza were built over the
span of three generations by Khufu, his
second reigning son Khafre, and
Menkaure. The Great Pyramid of Khufu is
the oldest and sole remnant of the Seven
Wonders of the Ancient World. Over 2
million blocks of stone were used to
construct the pyramid, during a 20 year
period concluding around 2560 BC. The
pyramid is an awe-inspiring 139 meters (455 feet) high making it the largest pyramid in Egypt.
Karnak
Karnak is the largest ancient religious site
in the world, and represents the combined
achievement of many generations of
Egyptian builders. Most of the work on
Karnak was done by the pharaohs of the
New Kingdom (1570-1100 BC). The
Temple of Karnak actually consists of
three main temples, smaller enclosed
temples, and several outer temples
located about 2.5 kilometers north of
Luxor. One of most famous structures of Karnak is the Hypostyle Hall, a hall area of 5,000 m2
(50,000 sq ft) with 134 massive columns arranged in 16 rows.
Abu Simbel Temples
Abu Simbel Temples are two massive
rock temples in southern Egypt on the
western bank of Lake Nasser. The twin
temples were originally carved out of the
mountainside during the reign of Pharaoh
Ramesses The Great in the 13th century
BC, as a lasting monument to himself and
his queen Nefertari. The complex was
relocated in its entirety in the 1960s to
avoid their being submerged during the
creation of Lake Nasser, the massive artificial water reservoir formed after the building of the
Aswan High Dam on the Nile River.
Valley of the Kings
The Valley of the Kings is a valley in
Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500
years from the 16th to 11th century BC,
tombs were constructed for the kings and
privileged nobles of the New Kingdom.
The valley contains 63 tombs and
chambers, ranging in size from a simple
pit to a complex tomb with over 120
chambers. The royal tombs are decorated
with scenes from Egyptian mythology and
give clues to the beliefs and funerary rituals of the period. All of the tombs seem to have been
opened and robbed in antiquity. Only the famous tomb of Tutankhamun was spared from the
worst of the tomb depredations.
Red Pyramid
The Red Pyramid, also called the North
Pyramid, is the largest of the three major
pyramids located at the Dahshur
necropolis. Named for the rusty reddish
hue of its granite stones, it is also the third
largest Egyptian pyramid, after those of
Khufu and Khafra at Giza. At the time of
its completion, it was the tallest man-
made structure in the world. It is also
believed to be the world's first successful attempt at constructing a "true" smooth-sided pyramid.
This pyramid forms the third largest granite building in the whole world to the present.
Great Sphinx of Giza
The Great Sphinx of Giza, commonly
referred to as the Sphinx, is a limestone
statue of a reclining or couchant sphinx (a
mythical creature with a lion's body and a
human head) that stands on the Giza
Plateau on the west bank of the Nile in
Giza, Egypt. The face of the Sphinx is
generally believed to represent the face of
the Pharaoh Khafra. It is the largest
monolith statue in the world, standing
73.5 metres (241 ft) long, 19.3 metres (63 ft) wide, and 20.22 m (66.34 ft) high. It is the oldest
known monumental sculpture, and is commonly believed to have been built by ancient
Egyptians of the Old Kingdom during the reign of the Pharaoh Khafra (c. 25582532 BC)
Tomb of Rameses IX - KV6 - Valley of the Kings
Luxor Temple
The Luxor Temple is located on the east
bank of the River Nile in the ancient city
of Thebes and was founded in 1400 BC
during the New Kingdom. The temple
was dedicated to the three Egyptian gods
Amun, Mut, and Chons. The ancient
temple was the center of the festival of
Opet, Thebes most important festival.
During the annual festival the statues of
the three Gods were escorted to the
temple of Luxor along the avenue of sphinxes that connect the 2 temples.
Step Pyramid of Djoser
The Step Pyramid of Djoser at the
Saqqara necropolis was the very first
pyramid built by the ancient Egyptians. It
was constructed during the 27th century
BC for the burial of Pharaoh Djoser by his
Vizier Imhotep. The ancient monument
began as a traditional, flat-roofed
mastaba but by the end of Djosers reign
it had risen to a six stepped layer Pyramid and stood 204 feet (62 meters) high. As in earlier
mastaba tombs, the burial chambers of the Step Pyramid are underground, hidden in a maze of
tunnels.
Bent Pyramid
The Bent Pyramid located at Dahshur
was the second pyramid built by pharaoh
Sneferu. Mysteriously, the pyramid rises
from the desert at an angle of 55 degrees
and then suddenly changes to a more
gradual angle of 43 degrees. One theory
holds that due to the steepness of the
original angle the weight to be added
above the inner chambers and
passageways became too large, forcing
the builders to adopt a shallower angle. It is the only pyramid in Egypt of which the outer casing
of polished limestone is still largely intact.


Entrance of Luxor Temple
Temple of Hatshepsut
The Mortuary temple of Hatshepsut, who
ruled Egypt from around 1479 BC until
her death in 1458 BC, is situated beneath
the cliffs at Deir el Bahari on the west
bank of the Nile. It is a colonnaded
structure, which was designed and
implemented by Senemut, the royal
architect of Hatshepsut, to serve for her
posthumous worship and to honor the
glory of Amun. The temple is built into a
cliff face that rises sharply above it and consists of three layered terraces reaching 30 meters
(97 ft) in height. These terraces are connected by long ramps which were once surrounded by
gardens.





INVENTIONS AND TECHNOLOGIES
Hieroglyphics - Egyptian hieroglyphs, a phonetic writing system, served as the basis for the
Phoenician alphabet from which later alphabets were derived. With this ability, writing and
record keeping, the Egyptians developed one of the if not the first decimal system.
Paper - Not only did the ancient Egyptians invent a system of writing, but they also invented the
paper on which to place it. The word paper comes from the Greek term for the ancient Egyptian
writing material called papyrus, which was formed from beaten strips of papyrus plants. Papyrus
was produced as early as 3000 BC in Egypt.
Eye Makeup - Since they first invented eye makeup as far back as 4000 B.C., it's never gone
out of style. Even more impressive, some cosmetically-minded cultures still create makeup
using the same techniques pioneered by the Egyptians thousands of years ago. They combined
soot with a mineral called galena to create a black ointment known as kohl, which is still popular
today. They could also create green eye makeup by combining a mineral called malachite with
galena to tint the ointment.
Sun Clock - In order to tell the time, Egyptians invented
two types of clocks one of them is the sun clock which
was an obelisk that allowed Egyptians part the day into
morning and afternoon. This was made with the
shadow of the obelisk that moved around the surface of
the obelisk throughout the day. With its help Egyptians
managed to identify the longest and shortest days of
the year - they simply registered the time when the
shadow of the obelisk was the longest and shortest at
the noon.
Solar Calendar - A solar calendar is a type of calendar that is meant to show the position of the
earth on its revolution around our sun. Egyptians are also responsible for the appearance of the
solar calendar. To make it, they took the yearly sunrise recurrence of Sirius (the Dog Star) in the
eastern sky as a fixed point. Interestingly enough, this period coincided with the yearly flooding
of the Nile River. Ancient Egyptians developed a calendar that featured 365 days and 12
months (30 days in each month and additional 5 days at the end of the year). Due to the fact
that Egyptians didn't manage to account the additional fraction of a day, their calendar steadily
went into showing the wrong data. However, Ptolemy III Euergetes of Egypt, decided to add one
day to the 365 days every 4 years.
Sails - Egyptian inventions also include sails. Living in such close proximity to the Nile River, it
would have been imperative for the Egyptians to devise efficient methods of water
transportation. With an extensive knowledge on aerodynamics, the earliest Egyptian sails were
simply placed to catch the wind and push a vessel. Later Egyptian sails dating to 2400 BCE
were built with the recognition that ships could sail against the wind using the side
wind. Queen Hatshepsut oversaw the preparations and funding of an expedition of five ships,
each measuring seventy feet long, and with several sails.
The Plow - While historians aren't
entirely certain of where the plow
originated, evidence suggests that the
Egyptians and Sumerians were among
the first societies to employ its use
around 4000 B.C. In 2000 B.C., the
Egyptians first hooked their plows to
oxen. Early designs were connected to
the horns of cattle but proved to interfere with the animal's ability to breathe. Later versions
incorporated a system of straps and were much more effective. The plow revolutionized farming
in ancient Egypt and, combined with the steady rhythm of the Nile River, made farming easier
for the Egyptians than perhaps any other society of the time.
Toothpaste - The Egyptians contributed an innovation to dental hygiene in the form of
toothpaste. Early ingredients included the powder of ox hooves, ashes, burnt eggshells and
pumice, which probably made for a less-than-refreshing morning tooth-care ritual.
Archaeologists recently found what appears to be a more advanced toothpaste recipe and how-
to-brush guide written on papyrus that dates back to the Roman occupation in the 4
th
century
A.D. The unknown author explains how to mix precise amounts of rock salt, mint, dried iris
flower and grains of pepper, to form a "powder for white and perfect teeth".
Irrigation System First Egyptians who settled along the Nile River are farmers. Unable to
predict when the Nile floods will come, farmers decided to take matters into their own hands. As
early as 5000 BC, ancient Egyptians created the worlds first irrigation system. They began by
digging canals that would direct the Niles waters to distant fields and highlands.
Worlds first reservoir - Later, around 2400 BC, they constructed reservoirs so they could save
water for use during dry periods. The world's first reservoir was built at Fayum, Egypt, a desert
region. Flooding turned Fayum into a lake. More than thirty-two kilometers of dikes were built
leading from Fayum to the surrounding countryside. This included a canal to the Nile. When the
dikes' gates were opened, water flowed through the canals and into dry fields. Closing the gates
trapped the water in the fields where it would evaporate. The moist, fertilized soil left behind
would then be perfect for planting.
Glassworking - The earliest known glass beads from Egypt were made during the New
Kingdom around 1500 BC and were produced in a variety of colors. They were made by winding
molten glass around a metal bar and were highly prized as a trading commodity, especially blue
beads, which were believed to have magical powers. The Egyptians made small jars and bottles
using the core-formed method. Glass threads were wound around a bag of sand tied to a rod.
The glass was continually reheated to fuse the threads together. The glass-covered sand bag
was kept in motion until the required shape and thickness was achieved. The rod was allowed
to cool, then finally the bag was punctured and the rod removed. The Egyptians also created the
first colored glass rods which they used to create colorful beads and decorations. They also
worked with cast glass, which was produced by pouring molten glass into a mold, much
like iron and the more modern crucible steel.
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