Timeline of Ancient Egypt - Dynasties and Kingdoms in Ancient Egypt

Predynastic, Old, and Middle Kingdom Dynasties of Ancient Egypt | Pharaohs of the New Kingdom and the Dynasties Beyond | Dynasties Introduction

On this ancient Egyptian Timeline you'll find an introduction and explanation of Egyptian kingdoms and dynasties, and the dates and names of the basic periods of ancient Egyptian history.

Egypt begins with Pharaoh Narmer who, at the end of the 4th millennium, in about 3100 B.C., unified Egypt. At the time, Egypt meant the area from the 1st cataract, near Aswan, to the Nile delta. [See Map.] In some periods it extended further south.

Introduction to the Timeline of Egyptian Pharaohs

Some 2700 years later, in the 3rd century B.C., an Egyptian priest named Manetho listed 30 royal dynastic houses of ancient Egypt. Manetho's work has not survived, but an epitome (summary) of it has. The epitome was taken from versions of Manetho's chronology that were copied in the 3rd-8th centuries A.D. Unfortunately, there are gaps in the chronology and the lengths of many of the pharaohs' reigns are unknown, but it's not entirely hopeless. For the pharaohs of the 2nd millennium B.C. forward, other techniques and artifacts help date the pharaohs. The techniques are more limited for the earlier pharaohs, so their dates are more speculative.

Dates are approximate and the references below use different approximate dates.

Sources

• _{"Radiocarbon Chronology of Archaic Egypt," by Fekri A. Hassan. Journal of Near Eastern Studies, Vol. 39, No. 3. (Jul., 1980), pp. 203-207.}
• _{"The Chronology of Ancient Egypt," by K.A. Kitchen. Archaeology, Vol. 23, No. 2. (Oct., 1991), pp. 201-208.}
• _{[URL= www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/egyptians/timeline.shtml] BBC History Online.}
• _{Egyptian Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Goddesses, and Traditions of Ancient Egypt, by Geraldine Pinch; 2004: Oxford University Press}

Major Divisions of Ancient Egyptian History

• Predynastic Period c. 5500-3200
  Protodynastic Period 3200-3100
  

  Dynasty 0

• Early Dynastic (Dynasties 1 and 2)

  3100-2686
  1st hieroglyphs
  Step pyramid built at Saqqara

• Old Kingdom 2686-2181 (3rd-6th Dynasties)

  • Great Pyramid at Giza
  • Great Sphinx
  • Step Pyramid
  • Saqqara
  • Imhotep
  • Abu Ghurab
  • Dahshur
  • Pyramid Texts of Saqqara
  • Ras Burdran
  • Step Pyramid of Djoser
  • Pyramids of Giza

• First Intermediate Period (7th-11th Dynasties)

  2181-2055
  Memphis rules Egypt in the north and Thebes in the south

• Middle Kingdom (11th-13th Dynasties)

  2055-1650
  Egypt reunited and conquers Lower Nubia.

  • Abydos
  • Karnak
  • Thebes
  • Serabit el-Khadem
  • Tell el Dab'a

• Second Intermediate Period (14th-17th Dynasties)

  1650-1550
  The Hyksos

• New Kingdom (18th-20th Dynasties)

  1550-1069
  Empire in the Near East, Hatshepsut, Akhenaten, Tutankhamen and Ramessid Period

  • Abu Simbel
  • Amarna
  • King Tut
  • Mysteries of the Amarna Pharaohs
  • Nefertiti
  • Tombos
  • Piramesses
  • Deir el Bahri
  • Kush Kingdom
  • Deir el Medina
  • Tutankhamun's Tomb

• Third Intermediate Period (21st-24th Dynasties)

  1059-747
  Nubians conquer Egypt

• Late Period (25th-30th Dynasties plus 3 Persian kings)

  747-332
  Assyrians, Persians conquer Egypt

• Greco-Roman Period 332 B.C.-A.D.395
  • Ptolemaic

    332-30
    Greeks conquer Egypt, Rosetta Stone, Cleopatra

  • Roman

    30 B.C.- A.D. 395

Next Page: 2 - Predynastic, Old, and Middle Kingdoms | 3 - New Kingdom and Beyond

Previous

• 1
• 2
• 3

Next