Third Intermediate Period (1069-664 BCE) - Ancient History: Egypt

Throughout ancient Egyptian history, Egyptian people wore amulets that were dedicated to various Gods so that those Gods might offer them protection and good fortune. The Egyptians believed that these amulets were important both on Earth and in the afterlife, and so tended to bury rulers with amulets designed to ensure the favor of the Gods and to ward off evil spirits.

Egypt was once called Kemet (The Black Land). The black referred to the dark, rich soil of the region. It was also called Deshret (Red Land) referring to it's miles of deserts. Finally, the Hwt-ka-Ptah (the House of the Ka of Ptah), Ptah was one of Egypt's first gods.

The Feast of Opet was an annual festival held in Upper Egypt during the New Kingdom period and later. It celebrated the voyage of the God Amun from the temple of Karnak to the temple of Luxor. The celebration was a procession of ceremonial boats that were carried between the two temples. Boats were an important component of Egyptian ceremony and religious worship because the Egyptians believed that the Sun and Moon sailed across the sky in boats.

The ancient Egyptians were concerned with realism in art, but not overly so. Indeed, many Egyptian works of art depict humans in an idealized form, rather than a natural form. The Egyptians did, however, believe that the primary function of art was to manifest life. For example, they believed that a depiction of a God was an incarnation of the God itself.

The Ptolemaic Kingdom ruled Egypt from 305 BCE until 30 BCE, during the rule of Hellenistic culture in Egypt. The Ptolemaic Kingdom was founded by one of Alexander the Great’s most successful generals, Ptolemy I Soter. The Ptolemaic Kingdom assimilated well into Egyptian society, but still had to contend with several rebellions.

The 31st Dynasty was established by the Persian Emperor Artaxerxes III in 343 BCE. It began when Artaxerxes III led the Persian reconquest of Egypt and declared himself Pharaoh. It came to an end less than two decades later with the conquests of Alexander the Great.

Cleopatra was the last ruler of the Ptolemaic (Greek) Kingdom in Egypt. She ruled Egypt in the first century BCE, and was defeated by the Roman Empire. Her defeat brought to an end the rule of the Pharaohs in Egypt and began the prolonged period of Roman occupation.

A wadi is a dry river-bed. They can be found in countless locations, alongside major rivers, in the Middle East. They were particularly important in ancient times because they often contained lucrative mineral deposits.

The Nile is the world's longest river, measuring over 4,250 feet long. Surprisingly, it is extremely shallow relative to rivers of similar size. Many areas, including the central area of the river are not even 10 feet deep.

In ancient Egyptian cosmology and iconography, the scarab was routinely associated with the rising sun. The Egyptians worshipped the Sun in many different forms, and a scarab was used in Egyptian hieroglyphics to refer to the Sun at dawn.

Throughout ancient Egyptian history, Egyptian people wore amulets that were dedicated to various Gods so that those Gods might offer them protection and good fortune. The Egyptians believed that these amulets were important both on Earth and in the afterlife, and so tended to bury rulers with amulets designed to ensure the favor of the Gods and to ward off evil spirits.

Egypt was once called Kemet (The Black Land). The black referred to the dark, rich soil of the region. It was also called Deshret (Red Land) referring to it's miles of deserts. Finally, the Hwt-ka-Ptah (the House of the Ka of Ptah), Ptah was one of Egypt's first gods.

The Feast of Opet was an annual festival held in Upper Egypt during the New Kingdom period and later. It celebrated the voyage of the God Amun from the temple of Karnak to the temple of Luxor. The celebration was a procession of ceremonial boats that were carried between the two temples. Boats were an important component of Egyptian ceremony and religious worship because the Egyptians believed that the Sun and Moon sailed across the sky in boats.

The ancient Egyptians were concerned with realism in art, but not overly so. Indeed, many Egyptian works of art depict humans in an idealized form, rather than a natural form. The Egyptians did, however, believe that the primary function of art was to manifest life. For example, they believed that a depiction of a God was an incarnation of the God itself.

The Battle of Djahy was a defensive battle fought by the Egyptians against a nomadic confederation of raiders known as the Sea People, who invaded Egypt consistently over many years during the Third Intermediate Period.

The Twenty-Fifth Dynasty of Egypt was the last ruling dynasty of the Third Intermediate Period. The dynasty had the misfortune of coexisting with the rising power of Assyria and was dealt a devastating blow when Assyrian forces sacked the cities of Thebes and Memphis in the seventh century BCE.

During the seventh century BCE, the power of the Egyptian empire had waned substantially. The territory had been ruled by foreign invaders (from Libya and Nubia) for several generations and the state was greatly weakened by internal conflict and decentralization of power. The rising Assyrian Empire, which emerged in the Middle East, took advantage of this situation and conquered most of Egypt in the seventh century.

King Kashta of Kush invaded Egypt during the 8th Century BCE, conquering the country. The emperors of Kush then ruled as pharaohs of Egypt for the 25th dynasty, until they were removed by the Assyrians.

The Sack of Jerusalem took place during the tenth century BCE. It is generally believed that the Egyptian forces were led by one of the Libyan rulers of Egypt, most likely Shoshenq I. Although, there is a considerate amount of disagreement among historians and Egyptologists owing to the paucity of reliable historical evidence from this time period.