''The Greatest Pharaohs'' is a 1997 American educational documentary film about Ancient Egypt distributed by A&E and narrated by Frank Langella with commentary by experts in the field.
Marmot Library Network, video listings, accessed 01-18-2009
University of Vermont, CAMPUS USE INSTRUCTIONAL: ''The Greatest Pharaohs'', accessed 01-18-2009 It is 200 minutes long and split into four parts, with each part explaining the lives of four Egyptian pharaohs.

In education

The film uses interviews of

historians A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

, re-creations through CGI, location footage, and

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

and scientific evidence to tell the story of these Egyptian monarchs. It has been made available for instructional use by A&E, and is now being used in anthropology and archaeology courses at colleges and universities, such as the University of Vermont, San Francisco State University, Oriental Institute of Chicago, University of Pennsylvania, and University of California, Berkeley, as well as smaller colleges such as Blue Ridge Community College. It is available in public libraries across the United States, and in archives such as La Bibliographie nationale française.

4-part series

The documentary series ''The Greatest Pharaohs'' chronicles the lives of the men and women who built and maintained the Egyptian dynasties and the resources and power of ancient Egypt. Footage is included of the recently opened pyramid complex of the Pharaoh Sneferu and the rarely seen ancient burial ground of

Abydos Abydos may refer to: *Abydos, a progressive metal side project of German singer Andy Kuntz * Abydos (Hellespont), an ancient city in Mysia, Asia Minor * Abydos (''Stargate''), name of a fictional planet in the '' Stargate'' science fiction universe ...

. ;Part 1 Follows the birth of

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

civilization and the origins of the pharaohs and their legacy of the pyramids. It begins with the story of how the first pharaoh, the warrior

Narmer Narmer ( egy, Wiktionary:nꜥr-mr, nꜥr-mr, meaning "painful catfish," "stinging catfish," "harsh catfish," or "fierce catfish;" ) was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the Early Dynastic Period (Egypt), Early Dynastic Period. He was the successor ...

, united Upper and Lower Egypt and began the first dynasty. Covers

Hor-Aha Hor-Aha (or Aha or Horus Aha) is considered the second pharaoh of the First Dynasty of Egypt by some Egyptologists, while others consider him the first one and corresponding to Menes. He lived around the 31st century BC and is thought to have h ...

, Djoser, Sneferu, and

Khafre Khafre (also read as Khafra and gr, Χεφρήν Khephren or Chephren) was an ancient Egyptian King (pharaoh) of the 4th Dynasty during the Old Kingdom. He was the son of Khufu and the successor of Djedefre. According to the ancient historia ...

. ;Part 2 By 2180 BCE, almost 1,000 years after the first pharaoh, the Egyptians had made advances in science, art, and technology and had built what was arguably the most advanced culture at that time in civilized history. However, the Old Kingdom started to decay when a child became Pharaoh. There were centuries of chaos before Egypt was reborn under a series of militarily inclined pharaohs who established the

New Kingdom New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

. Covers Menkaura,

Pepi II Pepi II Neferkare (2284 BC – after 2247 BC, probably either 2216 or 2184 BC) was a pharaoh of the Sixth Dynasty in Egypt's Old Kingdom who reigned from 2278 BC. His second name, Neferkare (''Nefer-ka-Re''), means "Beautiful is ...

, Mentuhotep II, and Ahmose I. ;Part 3 By 1353 BCE, Egypt was again stable, with much of the prosperity of the Old Kingdom. However, the ascension of Akhenaten brought a new crisis. Akhenaten was branded a heretic by history because of his attempts to transform Egypt's religion, but he was also considered remarkable by the way he shared power with Nefertiti. Covers Amenhotep IV ( Akhenaten), Tutankhamun, Ay, and Seti I. ;Part 4 Considered by historians to be the greatest era of the

began in 1279 BCE, when Ramses II assumed the throne. Ramses II is remembered by history as

Ramses the Great Ramesses II ( egy, wikt:rꜥ-ms-sw, rꜥ-ms-sw ''Rīʿa-məsī-sū'', , meaning "Ra is the one who bore him"; ), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Along with Thutmose III he is oft ...

. ''The Great Pharaohs of Egypt'' series concludes with an in-depth look at his 67-year reign. He led foreign conquests and embarked on what is considered the most ambitious building program since the Great Pyramids, restoring old monuments and erecting countless new ones. The program concludes with the life and death of Cleopatra as the last pharaoh. Covers Ramses II, Ramses III, and

Cleopatra VII Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...

Video release

It was released by A&E Home Video and distributed in the U.S. by New Video Group (

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

Additional sources

The Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to: Magazines * ''The Advocate'' (LGBT magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States *''The Harvard Advocate'', a literary magazin ...

(July 6, 1997), "Tidbits in A&E's "Pharaohs" worth the effort"

(July 6, 1997), "Tidbits in A&E's "Pharaohs" worth the effort

References

External links

''The Greatest Pharaohs''
at Internet Movie Database {{DEFAULTSORT:Greatest Pharaohs, The 1997 documentary films American documentary television films Egyptology Works about ancient Egypt Documentary films about historical events A&E (TV network) original programming Narmer Hor-Aha Sneferu Khufu Khafre Menkaure Pepi II Neferkare Mentuhotep II Ahmose I Nefertiti Akhenaten Tutankhamun Ay Seti I Ramesses II Ramesses III Works about Cleopatra Pharaohs 1990s English-language films 1990s American films English-language documentary films