Worksheet

A King of Kush Tells His Story: Sourcing Piye's Victory Stela

Grade 6 history: source an adapted excerpt of Piye's Victory Stela to learn how a king of Kush took control of Egypt and what Kushite rulers believed.

Grade 6Social StudiesInteractive · Printable

Aligned toHIS.6.3

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1 C3 Framework standard
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10 questions
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Format: Interactive · Printable
Grade: Grade 6
Subject: Social Studies
Question types: Multiple choice, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

Students describe how the Kushite king Piye took control of a divided Egypt.
Students explain the beliefs about Amun that Kushite and Egyptian rulers shared.
Students source and corroborate a royal inscription and judge its point of view.

How to use

Read the background together, then read the source note aloud before students tackle the stela. Ask students to mark words that show the writer's point of view as they read.

Curriculum

C3 Framework standard covered

HIS.6.3

Describe the rulers, beliefs, achievements and daily life of ancient Egypt and its neighbor Kush along the Nile.

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A King of Kush Tells His Story: Sourcing Piye's Victory Stela

Source an adapted royal inscription to learn about the rulers, beliefs and lands of Kush and Egypt.

Background: two kingdoms on one river

Read the background. Then answer the questions.

Kush, Egypt and King Piye

1The Nile flows north from the heart of Africa to the Mediterranean Sea. Ancient Egypt lay along its lower course. Upstream, to the south, past rocky rapids called cataracts, lay the kingdom of Kush, in what is now Sudan. In both lands most people lived close to the river. Farmers grew grain in the soil the river watered, and in Kush many families also herded cattle. Kush was rich in gold, ebony and ivory, which it traded north.

2By about 750 BCE, Egypt was no longer united. Rival rulers held different cities and parts of the Nile Delta, and they often fought one another. In Kush, kings ruled from Napata, near a flat-topped mountain called Gebel Barkal. Kushites had worshiped the Egyptian god Amun for centuries at a great temple at the foot of the mountain, first built by Egyptian kings and later enlarged by Kushite kings. Kushite kings believed that Amun gave them the right to rule.

3About 728 BCE, the Kushite king Piye led his army north. He took the Egyptian cities along the river one after another, and the rulers of the north knelt before him. Then he sailed home to Napata and left Egypt's local rulers in place under his authority. Later Kushite kings ruled Egypt directly as pharaohs for decades.

4Piye was buried at el-Kurru, near Napata, in a tomb topped by a pyramid, as Egyptian kings had been buried many centuries before. Near the tombs of Piye and later Kushite kings, archaeologists found the graves of horses, decorated with beads and metal ornaments.

Based on paragraph 2, why was Egypt open to an attack from Kush about 728 BCE?

A. Its gold mines had been taken over by Kush.
B. Its people had stopped worshiping the god Amun.
C. It was split among rivals who fought each other.
D. Its farmers had left the river to herd cattle.

Circle the sentence from paragraph 2 that best explains why a Kushite king might say he fought with a god's support.

In Kush, kings ruled from Napata, near a flat-topped mountain called Gebel Barkal.Rival rulers held different cities and parts of the Nile Delta, and they often fought one another.Kushite kings believed that Amun gave them the right to rule.

The source: Piye's Victory Stela

Read the source note and the four parts of the stela. Then answer the questions.

Source note: The Victory Stela of Piye is a large granite slab covered with about 160 lines of Egyptian hieroglyphs. Piye had it carved and set up in the temple of Amun at Gebel Barkal, in Kush, in the 21st year of his reign, soon after the war. It tells the story of the war from Piye's side. No account written by his enemies survives. The parts below are short, adapted selections from a translation.

Adapted from a translation of the Victory Stela of Piye

Part 1. Word was brought to His Majesty: "Tefnakht, ruler of the western Delta, has seized the whole west and is sailing south with a great army. The rulers of the towns have opened their gates to him. They are like dogs at his feet."

Part 2. His Majesty commanded his army: "When you reach Thebes, before the temple of Amun, go into the water. Wash in the river and dress in clean linen. Unstring the bow and put down the weapons. Do not boast of your strength before the Lord of Thebes, for no one has strength without him."

Part 3. The ruler of Hermopolis opened his city and came out to kneel before His Majesty. Then His Majesty went to the stables and saw that the horses had been left to go hungry. He said, "I swear, as the sun god loves me, it hurts my heart more that these horses were made to starve than any other wrong you have done."

Part 4. The city of Memphis shut its gates. His Majesty's ships sailed into the harbor, and his army climbed the walls and took the city. The next day His Majesty went to the temple of Ptah, the god of Memphis, and made offerings. At the end, the rulers of the north came and kissed the ground before him. Then the ships were loaded with silver, gold, copper and clothing, and His Majesty sailed south, his heart glad.

Use the source note. Who was the stela most likely meant to impress?

A. People at Amun's temple in Kush, and the god himself
B. Rulers of the north before they knelt to Piye
C. Tefnakht's soldiers as they fought in the Delta
D. Farmers in Memphis, who passed it each day

In Part 2, why does Piye order his soldiers to wash and dress in clean linen before Amun's temple at Thebes?

A. He wanted his soldiers to look like Egyptians to fool Tefnakht.
B. He believed Amun gave victory and must be approached clean.
C. He feared his soldiers would catch a sickness from the river.
D. The rulers of Thebes made it the price for letting him pass.

Underline the sentence from Part 1 in which the writer's words show scorn for Piye's enemies.

Word was brought to His Majesty.Tefnakht, ruler of the western Delta, has seized the whole west and is sailing south with a great army.The rulers of the towns have opened their gates to him.They are like dogs at his feet.

The stela shows Piye as a devoted, caring and victorious king. Why should a historian be careful with this picture?

A. It was made for Piye and tells only his side.
B. It is in a script scholars have not yet decoded.
C. It was carved by Tefnakht after Piye had died.
D. It was carved about 1,000 years after the war.

Which detail from the background best corroborates Part 3's picture of Piye as a king who cared deeply about horses?

A. Kush traded gold, ebony and ivory to the north.
B. Piye's tomb at el-Kurru was topped by a pyramid.
C. Many families in Kush herded cattle by the river.
D. Decorated horse graves lie near Piye's tomb.

Sort each detail from the stela. Does it tell historians mostly about religious beliefs, or about war and rule?

Soldiers wash in the river before Amun's temple.Tefnakht sails south with a great army.No one has strength without the Lord of Thebes.The army climbs the walls of Memphis.Piye makes offerings at the temple of Ptah.The rulers of the north kiss the ground before Piye.

Religious beliefs	War and rule

Suppose a scribe who worked for Tefnakht had written his own account of the same war. How would it most likely differ from the stela?

A. It would say the war was fought far south, in Kush.
B. It would show Tefnakht's side and call Piye an invader.
C. It would tell the war much as the stela does.
D. It would praise Piye for his care of the starving horses.

Make a claim

Use the background, the source note and the stela.

10.

Claim: Even though it tells only one side, Piye's stela is useful evidence about what the kings of Kush believed. Do you agree or disagree? Use at least two pieces of evidence from the stela, the source note or the background, and explain your reasoning.