How do we know about Ancient Egypt?
We know about Ancient Egypt from tombs and statues such as the pyramids, the Great Sphinx and mummies.
Studying these items is called Egyptology and the people who study them are called Egyptologists. An Egyptologist is an archaeologist who specialises in Ancient Egypt.
Watch: What remains of Ancient Egypt?
Child: The ancient Egyptian civilisation and language died out nearly 1,500 years ago. So, how do we know so much about them?
Teacher: The answer is right in front of you!
Child: What do you mean?
Teacher: This is the Rosetta Stone!
The writing on it says the same thing in three languages! Ancient Greek, Demotic, and Egyptian Hieroglyphs.
Before it was discovered, archaeologists couldn’t read Hieroglyphs or Demotic, but they could read ancient Greek!
By comparing the three texts, they could work out how hieroglyphic writing worked!
This means people have been able to read hieroglyphs and discover what life what like at the time.
Of course, we’ve learned a lot from the buildings and monuments of Ancient Egypt that are still standing. Like the pyramids! Or the Temples of Karnak!
People can still walk amongst the ruins of the ancient city of Luxor or visit the mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut!
And we mustn’t forget the Sphinx! These places have lasted thousands of years, and survived war, theft, and extreme weather.
But you don’t have to go to Egypt to find ancient Egyptian artefacts. Museums across the UK hold a vast range of items!
Some of my favourites are the ones that tell us about everyday life back then. Like combs, jewellery and bottles of make-up.
Some of these things are over 5,000 years old, but it often feels like they could have been used yesterday!
Take a tour around some ancient Egyptian ruins
Image caption, The largest Egyptian pyramid ever built was Pharaoh Khufu’s Great Pyramid of Giza. It is the tallest pyramid that you can see in this picture. It is made from over two million stone blocks.
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The Rosetta Stone
Image source, The Trustees of the British MuseumThe Rosetta Stone is over three feet high and more than 2000 years old. It was discovered by the French army in 1799 and captured by the British Army and brought back to London where it has been on display at the British Museum since 1802.
The Stone helped scholars to translate the Egyptian hieroglyphs for the first time. They looked at the inscriptions (writing) on the stone which are in Ancient Greek, already a known language.
Artefacts in the UK
In the UK we have some of the biggest collections of ancient Egyptian artefacts in the world.
The British Museum in London has the largest collection of Egyptian objects outside Egypt. This is because British explorers and soldiers took them during the time of the British Empire in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Activities
Activity 1: Where can you see Ancient Egyptian artefacts today?
Click on the map to find an exhibition near you.
Activity 2: Quiz – Remains of Ancient Egypt
Activity 3: History Explorer game
Play this game to test your knowledge and learn even more facts about Ancient Egypt.
History Explorer: Secrets through time
History Explorer: Secrets through time: KS2 History
Bitesize Primary games. game
Play fun and educational primary games in science, maths, English, history, geography, art, computing and modern languages.
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