0 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,000 This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to anyone, living or dead, is coincidental and unintentional. 1 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:35,000 When we name Egypt, three images come to mind. 2 00:00:35,000 --> 00:00:42,000 The pyramids, the desert, and that long and imposing river called the Nile. 3 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:44,000 Do you know it? 4 00:00:44,000 --> 00:00:49,000 But let's start by talking about that immense sea of sand known as the Sahara Desert. 5 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:54,000 This place in the north of Africa didn't invite anyone to settle there. 6 00:00:54,000 --> 00:01:00,000 However, thousands of years ago, a climate change brought abundant rains to the heart of Africa. 7 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:05,000 Little by little, a water flow began to grow and grow. 8 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:10,000 These waters formed the longest river in the world, the Nile. 9 00:01:10,000 --> 00:01:15,000 From then on, many populations wanted to settle near this river. 10 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:21,000 And it is that in times of rain, the Nile grows so much that everything around it is covered with sand. 11 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:27,000 But when these waters are removed, they leave an ideal land for agriculture, because it is full of lime. 12 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:32,000 And lime is one of the best fertilizers that exist. 13 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:39,000 For the next thousands of years, many nomadic populations began to build their homes around the Nile. 14 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:42,000 This is how Ancient Egypt was born. 15 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:47,000 A land inhabited by men and women who quickly learned how to sow, 16 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:52,000 and collect food in abundance, without the need to move from one place to another. 17 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:56,000 They also learned to domesticate many animals. 18 00:01:56,000 --> 00:01:58,000 Mommy, do we have to go back? 19 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:00,000 No, dear, it won't be necessary anymore. 20 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:06,000 The Egyptians needed a lot of ingenuity to take advantage of the growth of the Nile for their own benefit. 21 00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:11,000 For that, they invented a irrigation system in which the whole community had to participate. 22 00:02:11,000 --> 00:02:14,000 This is how trades like that of the agrimensor emerged. 23 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:17,000 Something similar to modern engineers. 24 00:02:17,000 --> 00:02:23,000 The agrimensors measured the land and planned how to make the irrigation channels, and many other things. 25 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:30,000 They were the first to apply arithmetic and geometry calculations to build large works. 26 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:34,000 The Nile brought the Egyptians another impressive benefit. 27 00:02:34,000 --> 00:02:36,000 Trade. 28 00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:38,000 In its waters, it was very easy to navigate. 29 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:43,000 So anyone who had a ship on hand could go from top to bottom. 30 00:02:43,000 --> 00:02:50,000 The river became a great highway through which the people who were on its banks traded with each other. 31 00:02:50,000 --> 00:02:53,000 This brought great wealth to the Egyptians. 32 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:57,000 And this is how this great civilization began to develop. 33 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:00,000 All thanks to this great river. 34 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:04,000 Three thousand years of history. 35 00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:09,000 Thousands of years ago, thanks to the development of trade and agriculture, 36 00:03:09,000 --> 00:03:14,000 some villages that were on the banks of the Nile became very rich and powerful. 37 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:18,000 This is how important cities began to emerge along the river. 38 00:03:18,000 --> 00:03:21,000 Almost three thousand years before Christ, 39 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:24,000 the Nile was the largest river in the world. 40 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:27,000 This is how important cities began to emerge along the river. 41 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:30,000 Almost three thousand years before Christ, 42 00:03:30,000 --> 00:03:34,000 King Menes unified the kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt 43 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:37,000 and founded his capital in Memphis. 44 00:03:37,000 --> 00:03:40,000 The symbol of Upper Egypt was a white crown, 45 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:44,000 and the symbol of Lower Egypt was a red crown. 46 00:03:44,000 --> 00:03:47,000 This is how the double crown of the Pharaohs was born. 47 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:54,000 This was the beginning of a great empire that would last for thousands of years. 48 00:03:59,000 --> 00:04:02,000 The Egyptians had a privileged location. 49 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:08,000 On the one hand, the huge desert embraced them and united them under the same culture. 50 00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:14,000 And on the other hand, the Nile River communicated with other peoples and civilizations of the time. 51 00:04:14,000 --> 00:04:19,000 The difficult thing for the Egyptian rulers was to maintain the unity of this empire, 52 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:23,000 since there were many enemy peoples who wanted to invade them and plunder their wealth. 53 00:04:23,000 --> 00:04:27,000 The Pharaohs ruled Egypt for more than three thousand years. 54 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:32,000 Just imagine everything that has happened since the birth of Christ to our days, 55 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:35,000 and add a thousand more years. 56 00:04:35,000 --> 00:04:38,000 That's a lot of time. 57 00:04:39,000 --> 00:04:42,000 The Social Pyramid 58 00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:46,000 The Egyptians organized their social life like a great pyramid. 59 00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:50,000 Let's imagine the different social groups in order of importance. 60 00:04:50,000 --> 00:04:56,000 Well, at the top of the social pyramid was the Pharaoh. 61 00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:59,000 He was the highest ruler of Egypt. 62 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:04,000 All the wealth belonged to him, and the people worshiped him like a god. 63 00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:07,000 But the life of the Pharaoh was not simple. 64 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:11,000 It was also his obligation to control the order and economy of the empire, 65 00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:16,000 the laws of nature, the seasons, the crescidas of the Nile, the movements of the planets. 66 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:21,000 Phew! It was not a little work for a single person. 67 00:05:21,000 --> 00:05:24,000 The priests were the second most important caste, 68 00:05:24,000 --> 00:05:28,000 and they were located in our pyramid just below the Pharaoh. 69 00:05:28,000 --> 00:05:32,000 The main activity of the priests was to serve the gods in each of the temples, 70 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:36,000 and they performed a daily service of offerings and rituals. 71 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:39,000 Below the priests were the scribes, 72 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:43,000 whose great skill was to know how to write. 73 00:05:43,000 --> 00:05:46,000 Although now we all learn to write from a very young age, 74 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:53,000 in ancient Egypt only a few privileged people could have access to the learning of writing. 75 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:58,000 In Egypt they wrote with some sacred signs called hieroglyphs. 76 00:05:58,000 --> 00:06:01,000 The hieroglyphs were drawings. 77 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:03,000 Each one had a meaning. 78 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:06,000 Phew! That seems difficult. 79 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:09,000 Although the symbols were more than 700, 80 00:06:09,000 --> 00:06:13,000 their writing was governed by clear and simple principles. 81 00:06:13,000 --> 00:06:18,000 The fourth place in our pyramid is occupied by the army. 82 00:06:18,000 --> 00:06:21,000 We are in charge of protecting and securing the unity of the empire. 83 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:22,000 Go ahead, boy. 84 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:23,000 Thank you. 85 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:26,000 Some neighboring peoples tried to invade Egypt, 86 00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:30,000 which made the army perfect to stop these advances. 87 00:06:30,000 --> 00:06:34,000 But as the Egyptian government became stronger, 88 00:06:34,000 --> 00:06:36,000 an idea arose. 89 00:06:36,000 --> 00:06:40,000 Hey, hey, why not extend the territory? 90 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:41,000 It's a very good idea. 91 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:45,000 This is how the army, under the command of different pharaohs, 92 00:06:45,000 --> 00:06:48,000 began military campaigns to invade territories, 93 00:06:48,000 --> 00:06:52,000 especially in Palestine, Syria and Nubia. 94 00:06:52,000 --> 00:06:55,000 One might think that with so much work, in times of peace, 95 00:06:55,000 --> 00:06:58,000 the army would rest. 96 00:06:58,000 --> 00:07:02,000 But in ancient Egypt, there was always something to do. 97 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:05,000 In the case of the military, when there were no enemies to face, 98 00:07:05,000 --> 00:07:09,000 they dedicated themselves to tasks such as the excavation of irrigation canals 99 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:14,000 or the transport of large blocks of stone to the site of the works. 100 00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:19,000 And finally, at the base of the pyramid, 101 00:07:19,000 --> 00:07:22,000 there were merchants and artisans, 102 00:07:22,000 --> 00:07:24,000 then the peasants, 103 00:07:24,000 --> 00:07:27,000 and in the lower part, the slaves, 104 00:07:27,000 --> 00:07:31,000 who were in charge of carrying out the heaviest tasks. 105 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:39,000 It's time to talk about the pyramids, 106 00:07:39,000 --> 00:07:42,000 the main symbol of ancient Egypt. 107 00:07:42,000 --> 00:07:45,000 The pyramids also hide great mysteries and questions 108 00:07:45,000 --> 00:07:47,000 that we still cannot answer. 109 00:07:47,000 --> 00:07:52,000 Engineers today can hardly imagine how they were built. 110 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:55,000 Despite these unanswered questions, 111 00:07:55,000 --> 00:07:57,000 there are things that we do know. 112 00:07:57,000 --> 00:08:01,000 The pharaohs had to dedicate themselves to cultivating their eternity, 113 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:05,000 so many of them built colossal monuments, 114 00:08:05,000 --> 00:08:07,000 according to their size, 115 00:08:07,000 --> 00:08:09,000 such as the Temple of Karnak, 116 00:08:09,000 --> 00:08:11,000 whose enclosure includes three shrines 117 00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:15,000 and is one of the largest and oldest religious complexes in the world. 118 00:08:15,000 --> 00:08:17,000 Or like the Pyramid of Cheops, 119 00:08:17,000 --> 00:08:19,000 one of the most important, 120 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:24,000 which was built over 23 years of constant work. 121 00:08:24,000 --> 00:08:26,000 In ancient Egypt, 122 00:08:26,000 --> 00:08:30,000 the journey of the dead to their final destination could be long, 123 00:08:30,000 --> 00:08:32,000 but there, at the end of the road, 124 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:35,000 was the god Osiris. 125 00:08:35,000 --> 00:08:38,000 So many dead were well prepared 126 00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:41,000 and accompanied by a large amount of goods. 127 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:44,000 The more food the dead had, 128 00:08:44,000 --> 00:08:47,000 the more chances they had of reaching their destination without... 129 00:08:47,000 --> 00:08:50,000 well, without starving to death. 130 00:08:51,000 --> 00:08:53,000 Art 131 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:57,000 The paintings of ancient Egypt are so particular 132 00:08:57,000 --> 00:08:59,000 that we can all recognize them. 133 00:08:59,000 --> 00:09:03,000 Why do the Egyptians in the drawings always look to the sides? 134 00:09:03,000 --> 00:09:07,000 The Egyptian artists had a particular way of representing life. 135 00:09:07,000 --> 00:09:09,000 They didn't care about beauty, 136 00:09:09,000 --> 00:09:12,000 but perfection. 137 00:09:12,000 --> 00:09:15,000 Create your own Egyptian! 138 00:09:15,000 --> 00:09:17,000 That's why they drew by heart, 139 00:09:17,000 --> 00:09:20,000 but always following very strict rules 140 00:09:20,000 --> 00:09:23,000 that ensured the perfect clarity of all the elements. 141 00:09:23,000 --> 00:09:25,000 For example, 142 00:09:25,000 --> 00:09:27,000 since the head of the human being is seen 143 00:09:27,000 --> 00:09:30,000 and is more easily reproduced by profile, 144 00:09:30,000 --> 00:09:33,000 they didn't hesitate to always draw it from the side. 145 00:09:33,000 --> 00:09:37,000 Instead, the eyes were always painted as seen from the front. 146 00:09:37,000 --> 00:09:39,000 Let's say the result was 147 00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:41,000 eyes that looked from the front 148 00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:44,000 in a face that looked to the side. 149 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:46,000 Here's another example. 150 00:09:46,000 --> 00:09:49,000 The chest and shoulders were reproduced much better from the front, 151 00:09:49,000 --> 00:09:51,000 but the arms and feet in motion 152 00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:54,000 were represented with greater clarity from the side. 153 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:57,000 For this reason, in those representations, 154 00:09:57,000 --> 00:09:59,000 the human figures appear flat 155 00:09:59,000 --> 00:10:01,000 and at the same time contorted, 156 00:10:01,000 --> 00:10:04,000 almost as if a car had rolled them. 157 00:10:04,000 --> 00:10:07,000 Although, of course, there were no cars at that time. 158 00:10:07,000 --> 00:10:11,000 Have you ever wondered why the artists always represented the pharaoh 159 00:10:11,000 --> 00:10:13,000 in a larger size? 160 00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:15,000 Well, it was simple. 161 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:18,000 The greater the hierarchy, the greater the size. 162 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:22,000 SCIENCE 163 00:10:23,000 --> 00:10:27,000 The ancient Egyptians were great mathematicians and scientists. 164 00:10:27,000 --> 00:10:31,000 In fact, they are due the calendar of 365 days 165 00:10:31,000 --> 00:10:35,000 with each day divided into 24 hours. 166 00:10:35,000 --> 00:10:37,000 It is the same calendar that we use today 167 00:10:37,000 --> 00:10:39,000 to know what day of the week we are 168 00:10:39,000 --> 00:10:42,000 or when the holidays begin. 169 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:44,000 Among all the scientists of the empire, 170 00:10:44,000 --> 00:10:46,000 there was one who stood out for all eternity. 171 00:10:46,000 --> 00:10:49,000 It was Imhotep, the wise man. 172 00:10:49,000 --> 00:10:52,000 Imhotep was the founder of Egyptian medicine. 173 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:56,000 He acted as a high priest and vizier of the pharaoh Soser, 174 00:10:56,000 --> 00:10:59,000 to whom he designed the first stepped pyramid, 175 00:10:59,000 --> 00:11:01,000 with which he also became 176 00:11:01,000 --> 00:11:04,000 the first known architect in history. 177 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:08,000 Doctors were very loved and respected. 178 00:11:08,000 --> 00:11:10,000 In Egypt, many medical papyri were written 179 00:11:10,000 --> 00:11:13,000 that went from generation to generation, 180 00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:16,000 expanding knowledge about diseases. 181 00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:18,000 Thanks to these papyri, 182 00:11:18,000 --> 00:11:21,000 we know that they already had, like us now, 183 00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:24,000 specialists doctors to treat the different diseases 184 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:29,000 of the skin, bones, teeth and heart, among others. 185 00:11:29,000 --> 00:11:31,000 We also know that they knew the parts of the body, 186 00:11:31,000 --> 00:11:34,000 the veins and the most important arteries, 187 00:11:34,000 --> 00:11:36,000 and that they used hundreds of formulas 188 00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:40,000 to make the necessary medicines to cure diseases, 189 00:11:40,000 --> 00:11:42,000 and that they had many instruments 190 00:11:42,000 --> 00:11:44,000 that they used in operations. 191 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:46,000 Of course, doctors took care of life, 192 00:11:46,000 --> 00:11:49,000 but also of death, 193 00:11:49,000 --> 00:11:51,000 inventing the great mummifications 194 00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:53,000 that made them famous. 195 00:11:53,000 --> 00:11:57,000 So, you see, mummies were great patients, 196 00:11:57,000 --> 00:11:59,000 and above all, extremely obedient 197 00:11:59,000 --> 00:12:01,000 when it came to staying still. 198 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:05,000 EGYPTOLOGY 199 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:10,000 Centuries of history are watching you. 200 00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:13,000 This is what Napoleon said to his troops 201 00:12:13,000 --> 00:12:15,000 at the foot of the pyramids. 202 00:12:15,000 --> 00:12:17,000 It is that when this great military man 203 00:12:17,000 --> 00:12:19,000 landed in Egypt in 1798, 204 00:12:19,000 --> 00:12:23,000 he was not only interested in the strategic location of the place, 205 00:12:23,000 --> 00:12:27,000 but also in the great treasures that were hidden there. 206 00:12:27,000 --> 00:12:30,000 Therefore, in addition to soldiers and weapons, 207 00:12:30,000 --> 00:12:32,000 Napoleon traveled from France 208 00:12:32,000 --> 00:12:34,000 with a group of scientists who invented 209 00:12:34,000 --> 00:12:37,000 a name for the study of ancient Egypt. 210 00:12:37,000 --> 00:12:39,000 EGYPTOLOGY 211 00:12:39,000 --> 00:12:42,000 This young scientist took his first important step 212 00:12:42,000 --> 00:12:45,000 when a French officer named Bouchard 213 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:49,000 found by chance, like anyone who finds a snail on the beach, 214 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:52,000 a black, smooth, but irregularly shaped stone 215 00:12:52,000 --> 00:12:56,000 that had the same text written in three types of writing. 216 00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:59,000 Greek, demotic and hieroglyphic. 217 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:03,000 Without knowing it, Bouchard had found in that stone 218 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:10,000 the key to the knowledge of one of the most exciting civilizations in our history. 219 00:13:10,000 --> 00:13:14,000 A very studious young man named Jean-François Jampollion 220 00:13:14,000 --> 00:13:18,000 became obsessed with deciphering the hieroglyphics of this mysterious stone. 221 00:13:18,000 --> 00:13:22,000 Many years later, when he was no longer so young, 222 00:13:23,000 --> 00:13:26,000 he warned that each sign corresponded to a sound. 223 00:13:26,000 --> 00:13:29,000 Eureka! I have deciphered the stone! 224 00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:35,000 This is how the Egyptian hieroglyphics could be translated for the first time. 225 00:13:35,000 --> 00:13:43,000 This discovery later served to decipher the tomb of Tutankhamun. 226 00:13:43,000 --> 00:13:48,000 Everyone will have heard of this young pharaoh who died at the age of 18 227 00:13:48,000 --> 00:13:53,000 and who became very famous when in 1922 Howard Carter 228 00:13:53,000 --> 00:13:57,000 unearthed his tomb, which was more than 3,000 years old. 229 00:13:57,000 --> 00:14:03,000 However, they could never explain the mysterious events that occurred later. 230 00:14:03,000 --> 00:14:09,000 At the same time of the discovery, there was a general blackout in Cairo. 231 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:16,000 Shortly after, many people who had participated in Carter's expedition died. 232 00:14:16,000 --> 00:14:19,000 This is how it was said that there was a curse 233 00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:25,000 and that anyone who visited the tomb of Tutankhamun would be a victim of it. 234 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:32,000 Nowadays, however, we know that this curse was just a product of popular imagination. 235 00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:35,000 Or not? 236 00:14:37,000 --> 00:14:40,000 The end of the Egyptian empire 237 00:14:40,000 --> 00:14:45,000 Just as union makes strength, division produces weakness. 238 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:49,000 Over the centuries, the power of the Egyptian pharaohs 239 00:14:49,000 --> 00:14:52,000 was dissolved due to innumerable internal fights 240 00:14:52,000 --> 00:14:57,000 until they were finally dominated by powerful neighboring empires. 241 00:14:57,000 --> 00:14:59,000 First, the Persians. 242 00:14:59,000 --> 00:15:01,000 Then, the Macedonians. 243 00:15:01,000 --> 00:15:04,000 And finally, the Romans. 244 00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:08,000 Cleopatra was the last pharaoh of ancient Egypt. 245 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:15,000 It is said that her extraordinary beauty made more than one man sigh at the time. 246 00:15:15,000 --> 00:15:20,000 Marco Antonio was a powerful Roman general who fell prey to his love. 247 00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:24,000 She dreamed that this love would return the splendor to Egypt. 248 00:15:24,000 --> 00:15:30,000 Unfortunately, Marco Antonio lost in a great battle against his rival, Octavio. 249 00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:34,000 Marco Antonio and Cleopatra committed suicide, 250 00:15:34,000 --> 00:15:40,000 leaving in the hands of Octavio and the Roman Empire what little was left of Egypt. 251 00:15:40,000 --> 00:15:43,000 Despite the thousands of years that have passed, 252 00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:47,000 the influence of Egyptian civilization still persists among us 253 00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:53,000 and its colossal monuments remind us of its greatness and majesty. 254 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:09,000 Transcription by ESO. Translation by —