Introduction

Egypt, Gift of Nile celebrates the abundance of the lives and artistry of the ancient Egyptians. Nourished annually by the life-giving floods of the Nile, the ancient Egyptians developed a civilization based on the principle of ma’at—order, justice, and balance. A continual cycle of offerings to the gods and one’s ancestors maintained a harmonious balance between the celestial and earthly realms. Egypt, Gift of the Nile explores the richness of this worldview through the eyes of the people who lived it. Moving from the settings of a noble’s house through a ruler’s palace to a temple and tomb, students will explore portraits of a barber, a scribe, and a lion-headed goddess beside gifts to the gods and stories in stone. The final passage from this abundant world to the next is marked by a massive limestone spirit door and twenty feet of subtle relief carvings from the tomb chapel of the New Kingdom nobleman, Kaipura. Hieroglyphic prayers and rows of gift-laden servants prepare the way for Kaipura into everlasting ease in the afterlife.

After exploring the "gifts of the Nile" in the galleries, students will have an opportunity to enter the Gifts of the Nile Workshop, a hands-on learning gallery where they will discover traditional Egyptian offerings and create one of their own. The giving of gifts—to the living and the dead, to humans and gods—was one of the many ways the ancient Egyptians maintained both social and cosmic harmony, or ma’at.

Egypt is a complex and rich subject to teach. In order to focus on the most significant aspects of the exhibition and the ones most applicable to your teaching, we have organized the lessons into four themes, with two lessons in each theme. The theme of Communicators recognizes the contributions Egypt has made in developing a pictorial language. It also highlights the importance of communication between individuals as well as between the earthly and heavenly realms. Daily Life focuses on the elements of everyday life and the different societal roles in Egypt. Gods, Goddesses, and Creatures connects the natural world of the Nile—all the animals in Egypt—to its representation of Egyptian gods and goddesses. Finally Measurers of Life emphasizes the principles of ma’at that are found throughout Egyptian art, leadership, and spiritual beliefs.iii

How to use this Curriculum Resource Unit

This CRU contains several sections, which can be used individually or as a whole. Each section has been designed with teachers’ needs and requirements in mind.

The eight lessons in this unit are developed for specific grade ranges—mainly, third through fifth and sixth through eighth—but they are flexible enough to be adjusted to meet your classes’ needs. The lesson plans outline what you need to know in order to conduct a 45- to 50-minute lesson. We have also included extension ideas in case you would like to take the lesson beyond one class period.

Four overhead transparency sheets with two images on each provide you with visual aids for your lesson and a way to prepare your students for the works of art they will see at the Museum.

The lesson plans in this unit are interdisciplinary. They often apply not only to teaching visual arts and social studies, but also to the curricular areas of communication, reading, geography, and mathematics. At the end of the unit we include a chart to help you align the lessons with the Washington State Essential Academic Learning Requirements for each subject. In this way, we hope these lessons will integrate well with your teaching requirements.

If you have ever taught about Egypt before you know there are multitudes of resources available. At the end of the unit, we include a list of the ones we found most valuable. Several of these resources are available for loan, free of charge, from the Seattle Art Museum’s Teacher Resource Center; please call (206) 654-3186 for more information.