Egyptian Timelines and Maps
Read and construct historical timelines — place Ancient Egyptian periods, pharaohs, and key events on a timeline relative to each other and to the present day; interpret maps showing the Nile delta, trade routes, and the location of key sites
What a learner can do afterwards
- Place the Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms on a timeline and calculate the number of years between them
- Read a map of ancient Egypt and identify the Nile, Memphis, Thebes, and the Valley of the Kings
- Compare the age of Ancient Egypt on a timeline against other civilisations studied (e.g. Ancient Greece, Roman Britain)
The lesson
When you read a timeline of Ancient Egypt, look for three main kingdoms in this order: the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, and the New Kingdom. The Old Kingdom came first, around 2700 to 2200 BC. BC years count backward, so a bigger BC number is further in the past. The Middle Kingdom followed, around 2000 to 1700 BC, and the New Kingdom came last, around 1550 to 1070 BC.
Now look at a map of Egypt. The River Nile flows north and spreads into a wide delta before reaching the Mediterranean Sea. Memphis, an early capital, sat near that delta in the north. Thebes, a later capital, lay far to the south. Across the river from Thebes is the Valley of the Kings, where New Kingdom pharaohs like Tutankhamun were buried.
Zara wants to know how much time passed between the end of the Old Kingdom and the start of the Middle Kingdom. The Old Kingdom ended around 2200 BC, and the Middle Kingdom began around 2000 BC. She subtracts: 2200 minus 2000 equals 200. About 200 years passed between them.
When you compare timelines, remember Ancient Egypt's Old Kingdom is far older than Ancient Greece or Roman Britain. The pyramids had already stood for over 2000 years before Roman Britain began.
Egypt's story runs Old, then Middle, then New Kingdom, and it reaches back further in time than any other civilisation you have studied.
Watch it
Where it sits
This opens up
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.