7 ELEMENTS OF ANCIENT EGYPTIAN CULTURE

I. DISCUSSION

Egypt is on the banks of the Nile River. For Egypt the Nile River is an infinite Gift,
because without the Nile, Egypt is a dry land and will become a desert.

I.1 Community System

The social system in ancient Egypt was a single ruler called the Pharaoh or Pharaoh.
Everything Pharaoh said is an indisputable word. Every little incident that happened
to Pharaoh has meaning. For example at the time of Pharaoh illness , can be
interpreted as bad luck for the whole kingdom ( Putranti , 2007: 13). The following is
the social system in Ancient Egypt:

1. Pharaoh / Pharaoh
2. Vizier (elite soldier)
3. Religious leader priest
4. Scribes or scribes
5. Soldier
6. Craftsmen
7. Farmer
8. Slave
I.2 Living Equipment System

The ancient Egyptian society's living equipment system was the making of the
pyramids, spinx and obelisks . The pyramids were built for the burial places of the
Pharaohs. which was erected in the desert to the west where the sun sets ( Soeroto ,
1954: 11). The famous architect of the pyramids is Imhotep. These buildings usually
have underground rooms, courtyards and small shrines on the outside. The columns
and walls are decorated with beautiful ornaments. On the inside there are passages,
vents and the king's morgue. In front of the Pyramid there is a spinx which is a statue
of a lion with a human head. The function of the spinx is the keeper of the pyramids.
Obelisk as a center of worship. The function of the Philae Obelisk is a kind of
announcement place. In order to be known by visitors to the temple, an obelisk was
erected with an inscription containing the information.

The largest pyramid is the tomb of king Cheops, which is 137 meters high at Gheza /
Giza. Giza is a complex of pyramid buildings located in the Necropolis. The
Pyramids of Giza are also one of the wonders of the world. Apart from Cheops, in
Gheza there are also Chefren and Menkaure pyramids . The Pyramids of Giza are also
known as the Great Pyramids of Giza. Where there are three large pyramids in the
complex used as tombs for the Pharaohs ( Pharaoh ). Based on excavations in the El
Badari area, a burial was found called Hockerbestattung ( Hocker means squatting
and bestattung means burial) because the dead people were put in a sitting position
squatting (Student of History Education Class of 2015 Sanata Dharma University ,
2018: 50).

Burials in ancient Egypt were divided into three types, namely:

1. Cliff Tomb, used for ordinary people.

2. Mastaba tomb , used for nobles with flat roof, sloping walls, medium size, north-
south orientation. The mastaba consisted of a shrine, a mummy case and a false
door (for the spirits to enter and exit).
3. The pyramids were used for the Pharaohs and his family built during the reign of
the Pharaoh . The shape is in the form of a building complex, in the construction
process thousands of workers are needed, and the material is neatly cut stone.
I.3 Art

One of the other important contributions of the Egyptians in civilization is the

advancement in the field of writing, especially the introduction of the alphabet. The
oldest literature is contained in pyramidal texts which are called the oldest texts on
human thought. Texts relating to religion can be found on the walls of the tombs of
the 5th and 6th kings which contain magical spells, myths and religious songs
( Umar, 2009: 2011-213). Works of art rooted in religious symbols, inscriptions on
tomb decorations with religious nuances. In the field of decorative art, there are many
gravestones and palaces painted in symbolic colors ( Wallbank , 1949: 68-69).

I.4 Religion and Beliefs

The ancient Egyptians had polytheistic beliefs , believing in many gods and
worshiping more than one god. This made Egypt a rich place for temple buildings as
places of worship for their gods. The reason Egypt has polytheism is because:

1. Migration of tribes also had an impact on the spiritual field. Mixing between
tribes occurred since pre-dynastic times. As a result, beliefs that were originally
simple in form become more complex and complicated. At first he only knew the
guardian deity of his tribe, now he knows the millions of stars in the sky which he
considers to be gods.
2. New tribes that glorify humanity. This belief has a background in awe and respect
for the tribal chief.
3. Unity in politics results in theological unity . The rise and fall of the position of
each god is closely related to the rise and fall of the role of a place or dynasty that
rules over Egypt ( Riyadi , 2016: 20).

The gods that the ancient Egyptians believed in included the following ( Riyadi ,
2016: 20):

1. God Ptah , the first god in the dynasty era who was considered the supreme god in
the kingdom. He not only created humans, gods, objects but everything in the
temple especially the statues worshiped by humans.
2. God Ra, is the sun god. God Ra is one of the true gods. For his devotees he is first
in nature.
3. God Amon , is the god of the air.
4. The god Osiris, was the god of life and agriculture.
5. Dewi Hartor , is the guardian goddess of children and women,
6. God Anubis, is the god of death.
I.5 Egyptian

The Rosetta Stone is the first inscription found which contains writings in two
languages, namely Ancient Greek with Ancient Greek letters and Ancient Egyptian
with hieroglyphs and demotic letters . The inscription of the Ancient Greek letters on
the inscription has an extraordinary significance, because it is an aid to solving it
other letters , especially hieroglyphs . The contents of the Rosetta stone are a decree
made by priests in a public assembly in the big city of Memphis, namely ( Riyadi ,
2016: 6-7):

1. Presents money and grain to the temple.

2. Presents bountiful offerings to the temple.
3. Eliminate as much tax as possible.
4. Deferring tax payments to the government by half.
5. Removing the people's debt to the government.
I.6 Livelihood System

Initially the Ancient Egyptians did not have a permanent residence and lived from
hunting, fishing, gathering forest products using simple tools made of stone, bone or
ivory. The simple way of life is gradually changing from a food-gethering economy
to a food-producing economy . They have started living sedentary, farming and
raising livestock. The method of processing was originally using a hoe , namely a hoe
with branches in the shape of the letter V. Then, a new form, namely a plow-like tool
pulled by an ox, is called Hoe Culture and Plow Culture . Evidence of progress can
be seen from the remains made of stone, bone, ivory, clay in the form of tools for
daily use. The shape that was originally rough became smoother and was decorated in
the form of artistic geometric strokes ( Riyadi , 2016: 10-13).

I.7 Science
The calendar system is well known. This calendar is based on the rising of the star
Sirius (first of Taut = July 19) and gives a cycle of years, over 32,000 years.
Determination of the number of thirty days in one month and the number of twelve
months in one year at the end of each year is added by five days. In the field of
science, the Egyptians were first in applied mathematics, but they made little progress
in the field of astronomy (physics and astronomy). From the remains of buildings that
can still be witnessed today, it shows that the Egyptians already had outstanding
abilities in the fields of mathematics, geometry and architecture (Umar, 2009: 213).

REFERENCE

Soeroto . 1954. Indonesia in the Middle of the World from Century to Century .
Jakarta: Bridge .

History Education Student Class of 2015 Sanata Dharma University. 2015. African
Mosaics of Kapita Selekta Africa in History . Central Java: CV Trail.

Riyadi . 2016. African History from Ancient to Modern Times . Surabaya: UNESA
Press.

Putranto , Erwin Adi. 2007. Ancient Egypt. Central Java: ALPRIN.

Wallbank , T. Walter and Tylor Alastair. 1949 . Civilization Past and Present . New
York: Scolt , Foresman and Company.

Omar, Mustofa . Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt: Early World Civilizations. el-
Harakah , Vol. 11, no. 3, 2009.