Egyptian Technology > Early Dynastic Period Agriculture
Early Dynastic Period Agriculture
Background
Irrigation technology in Egypt was pretty rudimentary and early rulers were unable to organize elaborate forms of irrigation. This may have also been because irrigation technology was not as required because of the Nile flooding. However, despite this even what was created displayed considerable organization and management. The king of Egypt was believed to have been a divine ruler like discussed and he was responsible for a successful harvest.
So periods of famine could also result in the overthrow of a ruler as it was seen he was not well liked by the gods and they needed to get back in their favor. Some of the periods of political instability in Egypt coincide with poor flood years and weak and ineffective dynasties. This is precisely what happened following the brief first period of unification, as a widespread famine caused by flooding occurred between 3000 and 2800 BCE. The Narmer dynasty would quickly collapse within a hundred years and Egypt would experienced around 200 years of chaos. This would eventually pave the way for the iconic Dynastic Egypt that forms the common conception of Egypt we have today.
The dynastic period of Egypt is the iconic era of Egyptian history. This is when many of the great monuments and structures are built as well as most of the great and famous cities. The Dynastic period of Egypt is further broken down into three smaller periods simply due to the almost two thousand years of successive rule. The first period is known as the Archaic Period and lasts from 2,900 BCE to 2,600 BCE. The second period is called the Old Kingdom and lasts from 2,500 to 2,100 BCE. The final period is known as the New Kingdom and lasts from 1,500 to 1,000 BCE. Each of these periods can be further categorized by the type of monuments and structures they built.
