Name
Class
Date
Biography
Ancient Egypt and Kush
Khufu
c. 2600 BC
WHY HE MADE HISTORY Khufu was a
great king of Ancient Egypt. He is best known
for his tomb, the Great Pyramid at Giza.
As you read the biography below, think about
how important Khufu must have been to the
Egyptian people to have such a tomb built.
Khufu, called Cheops by the Greeks, was the son
of King Snefru and Queen Hetepheres. Little is
known about Khufu’s life. The contents of his tomb,
which would have told more about his history, were
stolen during ancient times. Instead, only a few
clues remain about his life. The one major clue that
tells us how important Khufu must have been is the
Great Pyramid at Giza, near Cairo, Egypt.
Khufu’s father Snefru is credited for building at
least three pyramids in Egypt. Khufu is credited
with the construction of the Great Pyramid at Giza
sometime around 2600 BC. The Great Pyramid is
one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It
is the only wonder still standing today.
The pyramid of Khufu is the oldest and largest
of the three pyramids at Giza. The pyramid covers
about 13 acres at its base and was originally about
480 feet tall. It was made with more than 2 million
solid limestone blocks, each weighing about 5,000
pounds. The stone was excavated in Eastern Egypt,
and then floated down the Nile River. The Pyramid
of Khufu originally had a surface casing of white,
pearly limestone, but very little of this covering
exists today.
© Historical Picture Archive/CORBIS
VOCABULARY
process of
preserving the body after
death
mummification
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10
Ancient Egypt and Kush
Name
Class
Khufu, continued
Date
Biography
Egyptian pharaohs were usually placed in a
tomb with clothing, food, tools, and weapons. The
Egyptians believed that the dead would need these
items in the afterlife. The Egyptians also believed
that the body had to be preserved to make life after
death possible. They developed a process called
mummification, in which the organs were removed
from the body, which was then treated with
chemicals. Unfortunately, all of the items in Khufu’s
tomb, and even his mummy, were stolen long ago.
Khufu earned a reputation as a cruel and ruthless
pharaoh. He reigned from around 2589 to 2566 BC,
and was the founder of the fourth dynasty in Egypt.
After his death, his successor was his son Djedefre.
The tombs of Khufu’s family members are located
near his pyramid in Egypt.
WHAT DID YOU LEARN?
1. Why is there very little known about King Khufu?
2. Contrast Compare the Great Pyramid at Giza with a traditional tomb, like those
in graveyards in the United States. How are they alike? How are they different?
ACTIVITY
3. Using construction paper and markers, construct your own great pyramid. Use
a ruler to create lines horizontally across the pyramid, representing the blocks of
limestone.
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
11
Ancient Egypt and Kush
Answer Key
Biography Khufu
Literature The Egyptian
Cinderella
WHAT DID YOU LEARN?
1. Because his tomb was robbed during
CALL OUT BOX
ancient times, which would have
contained many clues about his life.
2. The Great Pyramid is very different from
a tomb in America. American graveyards
are generally small, and with many people
buried in them. The Pyramid is very large,
and was just built for Khufu and his
family.
1. The servant girls did not tell the Pharaoh
that the shoe belonged to Rhodopis.
ANALYZING LITERATURE
1. He believes that the god Horus sent him
a message and that he needs to find the
owner of the shoe to marry her and make
her his queen.
2. Similarities: both lose slippers; both
marry and become queen; both are poor;
Differences: Rhodopis’s slippers are
rose-red, Cinderella’s slippers are glass;
Rhodopis marries a Pharaoh, Cinderella
marries a prince.
ACTIVITY
3. Answers will vary.
Biography Queen
Amanirenas
WHAT DID YOU LEARN?
Literature The Fall of
Meroe
1. Possible Response: Since the most
important religious icon was Isis, a
female, it probably made the Kushites
view women rulers as very powerful
and capable.
2. Possible Response: She did not give up.
She also attacked first.
CALL OUT BOXES
1. Answers may vary. Students may under-
line the following sections: they boasted;
When they did violence to the peoples
Mangurto and Hasa and Barya; the Blacks
Waged war on the Red Peoples; broke
their oath; slew their neighbors and plundered our envoys and our messengers;
they did not hear me, and reviled me
2. Answers may vary. Students may circle the
following sections: I burnt their towns;
and (there were) many who perished in
the water; a multitude of people / Men
and women were drowned
ACTIVITY
3. Answers will vary.
Biography King Taharqa
WHAT DID YOU LEARN?
1. Taharqa built many buildings, rebuilt
temples, and tried to defend Egypt from
invasion by the Assyrians.
2. Shebaka was the first King of the
Twenty-fifth Dynasty, who was succeeded
by his nephew Shebitku. Shebitku and
Taharqa were brothers: Shebitku was the
Second King of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty,
and Taharqa was the Third.
ANALYZING LITERATURE
1. They taunted the king saying that he
would never invade Meroe, they broke
their promise, they killed their neighbors,
they attacked messengers from Aksum,
and they verbally attacked the king.
2. The people were violent during and after
battles, killing even women, burning villages, and taking all the possessions of
those they conquered.
ACTIVITY
3. Answers will vary.
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
49
Ancient Kush and Egypt