Egypt Afterlife Research Paper

Life in ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt revolved around deities and more often than not, the architecture served purposes for deities and the afterlife. Massive temples, palaces and ziggurats were erected in ancient Mesopotamia. In Egypt, pharaohs were considered the link to the Gods and Goddesses, which establishes the presence of deities in the people’s lives. They constructed mastabas and mortuary temples for the dead as well as pyramids and elaborate tombs. In ancient Egyptian culture, the afterlife is extremely important in addition to their rulers and pharaohs. The tombs built for rulers and pharoahs not only show the importance of the afterlife but also how much the people honored the deities who lived through the kings. The White Temple

Ancient Egyptians heavily believed in the afterlife and mastabas were built for the afterlife and the “Ka”, or the soul of Egyptians. Trapdoors were built into mastabas so the “Ka” could escape. Furthermore, because the people in ancient Egypt believed that the king was associated with the Gods, massive tombs were constructed for them. For example, King Djoser was a high priest for the sun God Re, and his architect Imhotep was the son of God Ptah, and this further establishes the role of deities and the afterlife in ancient Egypt. Perhaps the most famous architectural piece in Egypt would be the fourth dynasty pyramids of Gizeh. These pyramids were formed specifically for kings related to deities and were made to help the “Ka”. Also, the shape of the pyramids are directly linked to the emblem of the sun God Re. Ancient Egypt constructed an immense amount of tombs and temples from 3500 to nearly 30 BCE and the presence of deities and the desire for an eternal afterlife fueled the ancient Egyptians to build structures dedicated to their Gods. Ancient Mesopotamia experienced the same wave of worship for deities and it was expressed through the architecture beautifully and shockingly in both