Compare And Contrast Ancient Egypt And Ancient China

Egypt and China have long interesting histories both of which center around agriculture. China, the older of the two civilizations, started out as decentralized settlements along the banks of the Yellow River. The ancient Chinese learned iron working from nomads and created iron casting then incorporated it into art, agriculture, and weaponry. With the advantage of iron weapons and agricultural tools the ancient Chinese civilization grew and expanded their territory south to the Yangtze River. The ancient Egyptians began as nomads that adapted to the evolution of the land after the last ice age. They herded animals and cultivated the land along the Nile River. The Egyptians also used metal working to advance agriculture and warfare although they only used bronze and not iron. Religion plays a significant role in a civilization’s culture.

The ancient Chinese were polytheistic although not much is said about their gods in the text book. The first Chinese language was used to communicate with the gods and was called oracle bone. Priests would heat bones and shells of animals until cracks appeared and the cracks were used as symbols or divine messages from the gods. Also there was a

The Egyptians built monuments and temples to the gods and the burial practices were heavily influenced by religious ideology about the afterlife. The wealthy in particular were mummified and burried in tombs with thier belongings to carry into the afterlife. Ancient Egyptians loved to build grand works of art in the form of monuments to pharaohs and gods alike. Many of these works still stand today and scientists marvel and speculate at how these ancient people built such grand structures with the technology of the era. Pyramids are some of the most interesting and mysterious pieces of architecture still