Answer the following questions below:
1. The last pharaoh of the Old Kingdom was Pepi II. What weaknesses does Pepi II’s reign reveal about a system of government which centers on an absolute monarch?
2. Hatshepsut served as a pharaoh in her own right and was also co-ruler with her son Thutmose III. It was not a secret that she was a woman. Research (and cite!) the significance of the fact that she is depicted as having a beard (there is an image of her in the Topic 04 Part 2 Egypt slides). Hint: consider that in the palette of Narmer that Narmer was shown as being tremendously taller than anyone else. How are these depictions related?
3. Akhenaten started a monotheistic religion and denied the existence of any other gods. Research (and cite!) the scholarly discussion over his motivation for this radical change: was it political (describe the political reason(s) in detail) or personal (research and cite!) or both?
4. Research the origins of the Hyksos, who ended Egypt’s Middle Kingdom. There is a brief article from Smithsonian magazine. Do additional research and explore the events that ended the Middle Kingdom of Egypt.
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