From very early times Ra was a sun god. He took on many of the attributes and even the names of other gods as Egyptian myths evolved. A good example of this is the god Ra and Amun merging to become Amun-Ra or Ra and Horus combining to become Ra-Harakhte.
Since Ra was a god of great antiquity, there are far to many stories connected with him to relate them all. I will relate some that I find interesting, including the legend of Ra and Hathor. . . . . .

One legend states that each day, Ra was born and began a journey across the sky. Ra was believed to travel in the Manjet-boat. or the 'Barque of Millions of Years'. He was joined on this daily journey by a crew of many gods . The Manjet-boat would sail through the twelve provinces, representing the twelve hours of daylight.

At the end of each day Ra was thought to die and embarked on his night voyage. For this journey he was called Auf, which means 'corpse'. Ra sailed in a boat called the Mesektet-boat or night-barque on his journey through the twelve ours of darkness.


.It was not always smooth sailing on these ships. During the day Ra had to defeat his chief enemy, a serpent or snake named Apep. A great battle was faught between Ra and Apep, and Ra was usually victorious, however on stormy days or during an eclipse the Egyptians believed that Apep had been victorious and swallowed the sun.
 . . . . .
Because no wind blows in the Underworld, Auf (Ra) had to rely on various unfriendly spirits and demons to help tow his barque along the river in the underworld. Auf's main job in the Underworld was to bring light to the souls of the dead as he passed through their realm. After his departure these souls fell back into a lonely darkness. The Underworld of these early solar myths was a very different place then the fields of peace that we find in the Osiris cults of the later periods.

The ancient Egyptians have numerous Gods in there culture and they feel that the Gods walk among them, invisibly on Earth. Ra is the most central God of the Egyptian Pantheon and doesn't dwell on earth, but watches his children and kingdom from the sky.

At sunrise, Ra is a young boy called Khepri, mid-day he becomes the falcon-headed man and at sunset he becomes an elder called Atum. He travels in a sun boat and had to be defended against Apep, a giant serpent that tries to eat the sun boat every night.

Ra changed greatly over the course of ancient Egyptian history. In dynastic times he was merged with Horus and became Re-Horakhty. He then ruled over sky, earth and underworld and was the creator of the world.

Ra developed through the second and fifth dynasty. In the fourth dynasty, pharaohs were known as "sons of Ra". Ra was upheld the most in the fifth dynasty, where he became more associated with the king then the pharaoh. Kings erected pyramids that were considered solar temples and aligned them with the rising and setting sun in his honor.

During the Middle Kingdom, Ra was more and more combined with other deities like Osiris and Amun.
In the New Kingdom, Ra became more and more popular, which resulted in a kind of monotheism.
The worship of Ra as a religious and cultural figure has significantly deteriorated over years due to the rise of christianity. 

The Eye Of Ra
The name has changed over generations but the meaning is still the same. The Eye of Ra was once known as the Eye of Horus or Wedjat. It is an ancient Egyptian symbol of protection and the divine royal power. It is a powerful force that is linked with the fierce heat of the sun and was passed on to each Pharaoh. The Eye is considered the all-seeing eye and protects the king and thwart off evil.

This Egyptian symbol appears on the Great Seal of the United States, and on every United States dollar bill. The eye within the pyramid represents Ra awaiting rebirth. Even though he is enclosed in the pyramid his soul remained alive and watchful, as indicated by the open eye.

The ancient pyramid texts state: Perfect is the Eye of Horus. I have delivered the Eye of Horus, the shining one, the ornament of the Eye of Ra, the Father of the Gods."

• Representation: He is often pictured as a hawk or as a hawk headed man with a solar disk encircled by a uraeus on his head. He is often pictured wearing the double crown of upper and lower Egypt.

• Relations: Father of the first divine couple, Shu and Tefnut. Grandfather of Geb and Nut, whose children were Osiris and Isis, Seth and Nephthys.

The site of Pompeii is located in western Italy in a region called Campania, near the Bay of Naples. With the coast to the west and the Apennine Mountains to the east, Campania is a fertile plain, traversed by two major rivers and blessed with soil rich in phosphorus and potash. In ancient times, the region's crop yield was six times higher than the average of the rest of the peninsula. Campania was so fertile that some areas had up to three grain crops per year. The region also hosted some of Italy's chief olive groves, and the mountains nourished thousands of sheep.

fresco.gif (206900 bytes)Though little is known about Campania's first settlers, the first people to settle in this region were probably prehistoric hunters, gatherers and fishers. By at least the eighth century B.C., a group of Italic people known as the Oscans occupied the region; they most likely established Pompeii, though the exact date of its origin is unknown. Ionians also settled in Campania during the eighth century B.C.

Their Greek settlements began as a series of small trading posts, but soon grew into successful merchant cities that eventually dominated the area. For a few centuries the inhabitants of Campania remained under Hellenic control, with Pompeii and the nearby city Herculaneum the center of Greek occupation. During the fifth century B.C. a group of warriors from Samnium, a region north of Campania, invaded the latter region and seized control of Pompeii. Rome, vying with the Samnites over control of the Italic peninsula, drove the Samnites out in the fourth century B.C. and took Pompeii as its own ally about 290 B.C.

Rome's control over Pompeii was distant - the city was allowed to retain its own language and culture, but was required to admit itself subject to Rome without benefiting from the status of Roman citizenship. Pompeii reluctantly accepted this situation for centuries; finally, when the Social War began in 90 B.C., they saw a chance at freedom and joined forces with other Roman "allies" against the city that oppressed them. The rebels and Rome fought for two years but one of Rome's most brilliant generals, Sulla, eventually defeated the Campanians. He took Pompeii and Herculaneum in 89 B.C.

Though the allies were defeated, they were awarded the status of Roman citizenship. In order to quell any further uprisings, however, their former liberties were taken away, and Rome established colonies of army veterans to help keep the order. Eventually, Sulla established the Cornelia Veneria colony in Campania, which began the "romanization" of the region.

Campania adapted to the Romans as easily as it had to the Greeks. Because of the area's natural resources, trade flourished and the standard of living was raised. Pompeii developed its luxury services, trade with foreign countries and agricultural produce. As Rome itself became more prosperous, its wealthy citizens looked to Pompeii and the Gulf of Naples as a relaxing vacation area. The shoreline of the Gulf became host to the splendid country houses of the most powerful people in the world, including emperors, court personages, and Roman aristocracy. It appeared that Pompeii and the surrounding villas had finally found the peace they had longed for.

Though Mt. Vesuvius had once been a very active volcano, it had remained dormant for as long as humans could remember. Since no legacy of destruction had been passed down from their ancestors, the people living near the mountain didn't realize there was any potential for danger. The first warning sign came on February 5th, A.D. 62. About midday, a "long, muffled roar" shook the town; nobody could tell what it was, or where it had come from. Soon the earth began to tremble, and buildings collapsed all around. People rushed out of the town and away from the falling buildings, only to fall prey to deep chasms that ripped open the countryside without warning. The town's nearby reservoir also broke, adding floods to the chaotic scene. Though it was destructive, the first earthquake lasted for only a moment; an hour later, however, the area was seized by another tremor. The quakes continued to occur at unpredictable intervals, inflicting alternate moods of hysteria and hope, until nightfall. body.gif (250413 bytes)

For the next seventeen years Pompeii concentrated on repairing the damages the earthquake had caused, determined to make their town even more splendid than before. Campania was peaceful and prosperous once more, and their maritime trading industry continued to be successful. Signs of the upcoming eruption began at the beginning of August in A.D. 79. Small tremors shook the ground, but the quakes were so insignificant and caused so little damage that few paid any attention to them. Springs and wells also dried up, which in ancient times was often interpreted as a sign of the gods' displeasure.

On August 20th, the earth began to rumble and crack, and the usually calm sea gave way to giant waves. Horses, cattle and birds became uneasy and restless, as if they could foresee the disaster that awaited the town. Finally, on the morning of August 24th, 79 A. D. the volcano burst open with an earsplitting crack. Smoke, mud, flames and burning stones spewed from the summit of the mountain, sending a rain of ash and rock through the surrounding countryside. The mud seeped down the sides of Vesuvius, swallowing nearby farms, orchards and villas. Adding to the destruction were the mephitic vapors that accompanied the falling debris; the fumes first caused deliriousness in their victims, then suffocated them.

Some people of Pompeii grabbed their beasts of burden and attempted to flee the area; others perhaps chose to wait until the streets were clear of the panicked masses; still others sealed themselves up in rooms, supposing that the ashes and poisonous gasses would not harm them there. The unfortunate people who could not escape in time to avoid disaster were killed by falling buildings, overcome by the mephitic gas, or simply buried by the rapidly falling ash. Their bodies were quickly covered by the volcano's mineral deposits, which covered Pompeii in a layer more than 30 feet thick.

pompeii.jpg (5103 bytes)Over the years, the memory of Pompeii and the surrounding cities faded into a vague legend about the lost treasure of la Citta ("the City"). Interest in recovery of the ancient sites did not return until the fourteenth century, when the Renaissance brought a renewed fascination with all things antique. Ancient writers such as Pliny the Younger, Perotto, Sannazzaro, and Dion Cassius mentioned Pompeii and the disaster that had befallen it; tantalizing hints as to what lay beneath the Campanian soil were also unearthed.

Based on artifacts discovered by people who lived on the land, scholar humanists hypothesized that the ancient objects they found came from the famous la Citta . Excavations did not occur, however, until the eighteenth century, when Herculaneum was rediscovered by a peasant digging a well. Pompeii itself was found during an excavation that began on March 23, 1748. From that date on, excavations at Pompeii have continued sporadically. Portions of the site remain uncovered, and excavation and research teams are still attempting to reveal this mysterious city's secrets.

At this point, it almost seems to be repetitive to remind readers that Tutankhamun (King Tut) was not a major player in Egypt Pharaonic history, or at least, in comparison with other pharaohs.  In fact, prior to Howard Carter's discovery of his tomb, almost nothing was known of him and interestingly, the one disappointment in Carter's discover was that there was little in the way of documentation found within his tomb. Therefore, we still know relatively little about Tutankhamun. For example, even who is father was remains a topic of some debate. That has not prevented writers from producing volumes of material on the Pharaoh.
We believe Tutankhamun ruled Egypt between 1334 and 1325 BC.  He was probably the 12th ruler of Egypt's 18th Dynasty.
Tutankamun was not given this name at birth, but rather Tutankhaten (meaning "Living Image of the Aten), squarely placing him in the line of pharaohs following Akhenaten, the heretic pharaoh, who was most likely his father.  His mother was probably Kiya, though this too is in question.  He changed his name in year two of his rule to Tutankhamun (or heqa-iunu-shema, which means "Living Image of Amun, Ruler of Upper Egyptian Heliopolis", which is actually a reference to Karnak) as re reverted to the old religion prior to Akhenaten's upheaval.  Even so,  this did not prevent his name from being omitted from the classic kings lists of Abydos and Karnak. We may also find his named spelled Tutankhamen or Tutankhamon, among other variations.  His throne name was Neb-Kheperu-re, which means "Lord of Manifestations is Re.
Left: Tutankhamun from the back of his gold throne.
We do know that he spent his early years in Amarna, and probably in the North Palace. He evidently even started a tomb at Amarna. At age nine he was married to Ankhesenpaaten, his half sister, and later Ankhesenamun.  We believe Ankhesenpaaten was older then Tutankhamun because she was probably of child bearing age, seemingly already having had a child by her father, Akhenaten. It is possible also that Ankhesenamun had been married to Tutankhamun's predecessor.  It seems he did not succeed Akhenaten directly as ruler of Egypt, but either an older brother or his uncle, Smenkhkare (keeping in mind that there is much controversy surrounding this king). We believe Tutankhamun probably had two daughters later, but no sons.
At the end of Akhenaten's reign, Ay and Horemheb, both senior members of that kings court, probably came to the realization that the heresy of their king could not continue. Upon the death of Akhenaten and Smenkhkare, they had the young king who was nine years old  crowned in the old secular capital of Memphis.  And since the young pharaoh had no living female relatives old enough, he was probably under the care of Ay or Horemheb or both, who would have actually been the factual ruler of Egypt.
Right: Kiya, a lesser wife of Akhenaten who was probably Tutankhamun's mother..
We know of a number of other officials during the reign of Tutankhamun, two of which include Nakhtmin, who was a military officer under Horemheb and a relative of Ay (perhaps his son) and Maya, who was Tutankhamun's Treasurer and Overseer of the Place of Eternity (the royal necropolis). Others included Usermontju and Pentu, his to viziers of upper and lower Egypt, as well as Huy, the Viceroy of Nubia.
Immediately after becoming king, and probably under the direction of Ay and Horemheb, a move was made to return to Egypt's traditional ancient religion. By year two of his reign, he changed his, as well as Ankhesenpaaten's name, removing the "aten" replacing it with "amun". Again, he may have had nothing to do with this decision, though after two years perhaps Ay's and Horemheb's influence had effected the boy-king's impressionable young mind.
One reason why Tutankhamun was not listed on the classical king lists is probably because Horemheb, the last ruler of the 18th Dynasty, usurped most of the boy-king's work, including a restoration stele that records the reinstallation of the old religion of Amun and the reopening and rebuilding of the temples.  The ownership inscriptions of other reliefs and statues were  likewise  changed to that of Horemheb, though the image of the young king himself remains obvious.  Even Tutankhamun's extensive building carried out at the temples of Karnak and Luxor were claimed by Horemheb.  Of course, we must also remember that little of the statues, reliefs and building projects were actually ordered by Tutankhamun himself, but rather his caretakers, Ay and Horemheb.
Left: Kiya, a lesser wife of Akhenaten who was probably Tutankhamun's mother.
His building work at Karnak and Luxor included the continuation of the entrance colonnades of the Amenhotep III temple at Luxor, including associated statues, and his embellishment of the Karnak temple with images of Amun, Amunet and Khonsu. There were also a whole range of statues and sphinxes depicting Tutankhamun himself, as well as a small temple in the king's name.  We also know, mostly from fragments, that he built at Memphis.  At Kawa, in the far south, he built a temple.  A pair of granite lions from that temple today flank the entrance to the Egyptian Sculpture Gallery at the British Museum.
Militarily, little happened during the reign of Tutankhamun, a surprising fact considering that Horemheb was a well known general.  Apparently there were campaigns in Nubia and Palestine/Syria, but this is only known from a brightly painted gesso box found in Tutankhamun's tomb. It portrays scenes of the king hunting lions in the desert and gazelles, while in the fourth scene he is smiting Nubians and then Syrians. There are paintings in the tomb of Horemheb and as well as the tomb of Huy that seem to confirm these campaigns, though it is unlikely that the young Tutankhamun actually took part in the military actions directly. The campaigns in Palestine/Syria met with little success, but those in Nubia appear to have gone much better.
Though we know that Tutankhamun died young, we are not certain about how he died until very recently.  Both forensic analysis of his mummy and clay seals dated with his regnal year support his demise at the age of 17 or no later then 18.  As to how he died, a small sliver of bone within the upper cranial cavity of his mummy was discovered from X-ray analysis, suggesting that his death was not due to illness.  It has been suggested that he was possibly murdered, but it is also just as likely the result of an accident. In fact, a recent medical examination now seems to indicate that he may very well have died from infection brought about by a broken leg.
Yet it is clear that others certainly had eyes on the throne.  
After Tutankhamun's death, Ankhesenamun was a young woman surrounded by powerful men, and it is altogether obvious that she had little interest or love for any of them.  She wrote to the King of the Hittites, Suppiluliumas I, explaining her problems and asking for one of his sons as a husband.  Suspicious of this good fortune, Suppiluliumas I first sent a messanger to make inquiries on the truth of the young queen's story.  After reporting her plight back to Suppilulumas I, he sent his son, Zannanza, accepting her offer.  However, he got no further than the border before he was murdered, probably at the orders of Horemheb or Ay, who,  both had both the opportunity and the motive. So instead, Ankhesenamun married Ay, probably under force, and shortly afterwards, disappeared from recorded history.  It should be remembered that both Ay and Horemheb were military men, but Ay was much older then Horemheb, and was probably the brother of Tiy who was the wife of Amenhotep III.  Amenhotep III was most likely Tutankhamun's grandfather.  He was also probably the father of Nefertiti, the wife of Akhenaten.  Therefore, he got to go first, as king, followed a short time later by Horemheb.
Right: Tut's famous gold funeral mask.
Tutankhamun's famous tomb is located in the Valley of the Kings on the West bank across from modern Luxor (ancient Thebes). It is certainly less magnificent then other pharaohs of Egypt, yet, because of it, Tutankhamun has remained in our memory for many years, and will probably continue to do so for many years to come.  Regardless of all the myths surrounding his tomb's discovery, including the "curse of the mummy" and other media hype, it is all a blessing to the boy-king.  The ancient pharaohs believed that if their name was remembered, their soul would live on, so not even the powerful Rameses the Great's soul can be as healthy as King Tut's.

Long periods of the history of the Middle East in antiquity cannot be dated by an absolute chronology or according to a modern system of reckoning. The 'Sumerian King List' gives a succession of rulers to the end of the dynasty of Isin, about 1790 BC, but it is quite unreliable for dates prior to the dynasty of Akkad, about 2340 BC. A relative chronology is well established for the era from the beginning of the dynasty of Akkad to the end of the 1st Dynasty of Babylon, about 1595 BC. This period, however, is followed by an obscure period of more than 700 years, during which dates are only approximate. Scholars follow at least three chronological systems for the ancient Middle East: high, middle, or low, depending upon whether the date assigned to the first year of the reign of Hammurabi of Babylon is 1848, 1792, or 1728 BC. The dates in this article and in that on Sumer follow the so-called middle chronology and date the first year of Hammurabi's reign to 1792 BC.
The Babylonian civilization, which endured from the 18th until the 6th century BC, was, like the Sumerian that preceded it, urban in character, although based on agriculture rather than industry. The country consisted of a dozen or so cities, surrounded by villages and hamlets. At the head of the political structure was the king, a more or less absolute monarch who exercised legislative and judicial as well as executive powers. Under him was a group of appointed governors and administrators. Mayors and councils of city elders were in charge of local administration.
The Babylonians modified and transformed their Sumerian heritage in accordance with their own culture and ethos. The resulting way of life proved to be so effective that it underwent relatively little change for some 1200 years. It exerted influence on all the neighboring countries, especially the kingdom of Assyria, which adopted Babylonian culture almost in its entirety. Fortunately, many written documents from this period have been excavated and made available to scholars. One of the most important is the remarkable collection of laws often designated as the 'Code of Hammurabi', which, together with other documents and letters belonging to different periods, provides a comprehensive picture of Babylonian social structure and economic organization.
During the reigns of Hammurabi and his son Samsu-iluna (r. about 1750-1712 BC), who succeeded him, Babylonian civilization reached the zenith of its cultural development and political power. Some of the more important cities of Babylonia began to seek independence, however, and in the reign of Samsu-iluna, the Kassites first invaded the country. Although Samsu-iluna succeeded in beating them off, the Kassites continued to infiltrate Babylonia in the centuries that followed. Samsu-iluna suffered another serious setback when a rebel leader, Iluma-ilum, founded a dynasty in the southern Babylonian district, bordering on the Persian Gulf, commonly known as the Sea-land.
Under Samsu-iluna's successors Babylonia suffered a serious decline in power and territory. When, about 1595 BC, a Hittite army penetrated as far south as Babylon and carried off Babylonian prisoners and wealth to far-off Anatolia, the kingdom became badly disorganized. Babylonia later fell under the rule of the dynasty of the Sealand, at least for a brief period. Finally, toward the middle of the 16th century BC, a Kassite ruler named Agum (r. about 1570 BC) became master of Babylonia and extended its territory from the Euphrates River to the Zagros Mountains.
Under Kassite rule, Babylonia once again became a power of considerable importance. At the beginning of the 15th century BC, for example, it was one of the four major powers of the Orient, the other three being the Egyptian, Mitanni, and Hittite empires.
After Assyria freed itself of Mitanni domination early in the 14th century BC, its rulers began to interfere in the affairs of Babylonia and sought to control it politically. They were eventually successful, and a weakened Babylonia fell prey to the Elamites, who invaded it from the east, deposed its Kassite king, and practically reduced it to a state of vassalage.
A revolt then broke out in southern and central Babylonia, and a new dynasty, known usually as the 2d Dynasty of Isin, was founded. Toward the end of the 12th century BC, Nebuchadnezzar I (r. about 1125-1103 BC), one of the Isin kings, defeated the Elamites and even attacked Assyria. Soon after, Aramaean nomads began swarming into Babylonia. For about two centuries thereafter the country was in a state of political chaos.

Babylonian society consisted of three classes represented by the awilu, a free person of the upper class; the wardu, or slave; and the mushkenu, a free person of low estate, who ranked legally between the awilu and the wardu. Most slaves were prisoners of war, but some were recruited from the Babylonian citizenry as well. For example, free persons might be reduced to slavery as punishment for certain offenses; parents could sell their children as slaves in time of need; or a man might even turn over his entire family to creditors in payment of a debt, but for no longer than three years.

Seti I was the father of perhaps Ancient Egypt's greatest rulers, Ramesses II, and was in his own right also a great leader.  His birth name is Seti Mery-en-ptah, meaning "He of the god Seth, beloved of Ptah.  To the Greeks,he was Sethos I, and his throne name was Men-maat-re, meaning "Eternal is the Justice of Re".  He ruled Egypt for 13 years (though some Egyptologists differ on this matter, giving him a reign of between 15 and 20 years) from 1291 through 1278 BC. In order to rectify the instability under the Amarna kings, he early on set a policy of major building at home and a committed foreign policy.  Seti was the son of Ramesses I and his queen, Sitre. He probably ruled as co-regent, evidenced by an inscription on a statue from Medamud. Seti married into his own military caste. His first wife was Tuya, who was the daughter of a lieutenant of charioteers. His first son died young, but his second son was Ramesses II.  There was also a daughter, Tia, and a second daughter named Henutmire, who would become a minor queen of Ramesses II.
This was truly a great period in Egypt, and perhaps the greatest in regards to art and culture. In the building projects that Seti I undertook, the quality of the reliefs and other designs were probably never surpassed by later rulers.  He is responsible for beginning the great Hypostyle Hall in the Temple of Amun at Karnak, which his son Ramesses II later finished.  Seti's reliefs are on the north side and their fine style is evident when compared to later additions.
However, at Abydos, he built perhaps the most remarkable temple ever constructed in Egypt.  It has seven sanctuaries, dedicated to himself, Ptah, Re-Harakhte, Amun-Re, Osiris, Isis and Horus.  Interestingly, in this temple a part called the Hall of Records or sometimes the Gallery of Lists, Seti is shown with his son before a long official list of the pharaohs beginning with the earliest times.  However, the names of the Amarna pharaohs are omitted, as if they never existed, and the list jumps from Amenhotep III directly to Horemheb.
Behind the temple at Abydos Seti build another remarkable structure known as the Osireion.  Completely underground, originally a long tunnel decorated with painted scenes from the  Book of Gates led to a huge hall.  This whole structure with a central mound surrounded by canal water was symbolic of the origins of life from the primeval waters.  It was here that Seti rested after his death and before being taken to his tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
Other building projects included a small temple at Abydos dedicated to Seti's father, Ramesses I, his own mortuary temple at Thebes, and his best building project of all, his tomb in the Valley of the Kings.  This tomb, one of the few actually completed, was without doubt the finest in the Valley of the Kings, as well as the longest and deepest.
Militarily, Seti let an expedition to Syria as early as his first year as king.  This was probably understandable, as he had also led campaigns to Palestine during the last months of his father, Ramesses I's rule. This, and other campaign during his first six years of rule are documented on the outer north and east wall of the great temple of Amun at Karnak. There is also a stele from Beth-Shan, for some time a major Egyptian center in Palestine, that records his early  campaign.  The attack was up the coast of Gaza, where he secured wells along the main trade route, and then taking the town, before pressing on further north.  He took the area up to Tyre before returning to the fortress of Tjel in the north east Delta.
There was a latter attack on Syria and Lebanon where he (and the Egyptians) fought the Hittites for the first time.  One scene at Karnak shows the capture of Kadesh, which would  also be attacked later by Ramesses II.  He also fought campaigns against the Libyans of the western desert. We further learn that in year eight of Seti's reign, he had to crush a rebellion in Nubia in the region of Irem, where he carried off over six hundred prisoners.  However, apparently this was a minor problem as the campaign only lasted for seven days.
Seti's mummy is said to be the finest of all surviving royal mummies, though it was not found in his tomb.  Rather, it was found in the Deir el-Bahari cache in 1881.  Dockets on the mummy show that it had been restored during the reign of the High Priest of Amun, Heribor (1080-1074 BC) and again in year 15 of Smendes (about 1054 BC).


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