Mummification was first commonly practiced in Egypt during the rule of the fourth dynasty, at the height of the power of the Old Kingdom. The practice of mummification evolved over time, but the fundamental procedures originated with the powerful rulers of the fourth dynasty.

The Battle of Carchemish was fought in 605 BCE between the combined forces of Egypt and Assyria against the combined forces of Babylon, Persia, and the Medes. The Egyptian forces were led by Necho II, an Assyrian puppet ruler. The Egyptian forces were completely destroyed and the Assyrian Empire was obliterated.

Most of the tombs in the Valley of the Kings were plundered by unknown raiders and treasure hunters during antiquity. As a result, there is a limit to what modern archaeologists can glean from these great monuments.

The Coffin Texts first appeared during the First Intermediate Period and became popular during the Middle Kingdom. Like the name suggests, the Coffin Texts were a series of funerary spells that were inscribed on the walls of coffins. They were inspired by the earlier Pyramid Texts, but unlike the Pyramid Texts — which were reserved for the Pharaoh and other rulers — the Coffin Texts extended access to funerary spells, and an understanding of the afterlife, to the common people.

Pyramids built during the Middle Kingdom are distinct from pyramids built during the Old Kingdom in that they included traps and secret passageways, designed to prevent tomb raiding. This demonstrates that the ancient Egyptian rulers had learned from the past and highlights how grave robbing must have been relatively common in Egyptian society, in spite of the many social customs designed to discourage it.

The Pyramid Texts emerged first, during the Old Kingdom, as a way for Pharaohs to protect themselves and ensure safe passage to the afterlife after their death. The Coffin Texts emerged later, first appearing during the First Intermediate Period and flourishing during the Middle Kingdom. The Coffin Texts were based on the Pyramid Texts, but unlike the Pyramid Texts, the Coffin Texts were available to the whole Egyptian population (so long as one could afford to be buried in a coffin). Both texts were primarily comprised of funerary spells that were inscribed on the walls of the tomb or coffin.

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.

Modern historians and scientists have been able to date the Rosetta Stone to 196 BCE, in the midst of the Third Intermediate Period. As near as can be figured, the Stone acted as a sort of public information board; in three different scripts (Hieroglyphics, Demotic, and Greek) the Stone informs Egyptian citizens of the ascension of the Pharaoh Ptolemy V. Prior to its discovery in 1799, no living individual was able to read hieroglyphic script, despite numerous decoding attempts over the ages. Because the Stone reproduced essentially the same text three times over, the Frenchman Jean-Francois Champollion was able to use his knowledge of Greek to translate both the Demotic and Hieroglyphics on the artifact. Champollion’s translation opened up an entire world of understanding, as historians and archeologists were able to read hieroglyphic inscriptions on temple walls, monuments, and scrolls for the very first time.

Ancient Egyptian art tended to conform to the notions of ancient Egyptian worldview. As such, order and harmony were constant themes. The inundation of the Nile, a precarious and uncertain time in Egyptian life, was never depicted. Instead, the Nile was always depicted as if it were orderly and constant.

Many historians consider Imhotep to be the “father” of Ancient Egyptian medicine. Imhotep possessed a wide array of talents; he excelled at dozens of complex subjects and skills, including architecture, medical care, poetry, astronomy, writing, and religious knowledge. He first rose to prominence during the Old Kingdom, in the midst of the reign of the Pharaoh Djoser, who employed him as both his court’s Chief Physician and Chief Architect. He is credited with designing two pyramids: the Step Pyramid Complex at Saqqara and the Pyramid of Sekhemkhet. His medical talents were so widely renowned through Egypt that dozens of temples and monuments scattered around the nation bear inscriptions praising his treatments and acts of healing. Although definite proof no longer exists, many historians believe that Imhotep also founded the famous Memphis medical school and/or authored the Edwin Smith Papyrus, a medical scroll detailing how to diagnose and treat many ailments.