Upper and Lower Egypt also referred to as The Two Lands is a name used for Ancient Egypt. The concept appears in titles of Egyptian Kings and Queens and appears in scenes in temples and tombs. The concept also refers to an innate sense of duality in the Ancient Egyptian culture.

The Egyptian expression sema-tawy is usually translated as "The Uniter of the Two Lands" and was depicted as a human trachea entwined with the papyrus and lily plant. The trachea stood for unification, while the papyrus and lily plant represent Upper and Lower Egypt.

Standard titles of a King of Egypt was King of Upper and Lower Egypt (written as nsw-bi.tj) and Lord of the Two Lands (written as nb-t3wy). Similarly a Queen might use titles such as Lady of The Two Lands (nbt-t3wy), Mistress of the Entire Two Lands (hnwt-t3wy-tm), and Mistress of the Two Lands (hnwt-t3wy).

Unification

Ancient Egypt was divided into two regions, namely Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. To the north was Lower Egypt, where the Nile stretched out with its several branches to form the Nile Delta. To the south was Upper Egypt, stretching to Syene. The terminology "Upper" and "Lower" derives from the flow of the Nile from the highlands of East Africa northwards to the Mediterranean Sea, the opposite of a north-to-south flowing river like the Mississippi, so Upper Egypt lies to the south of Lower Egypt. Lower Egypt mostly consists of the Nile Delta.

Lower Egypt (Egyptian Arabic:Maṣr El-sofla) is the northernmost region of Egypt: the fertile Nile Delta, between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea — from El-Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Zawyet Dahshur.

Geography

In ancient times, Pliny the Elder (N.H. 5.11) said that upon reaching the delta the Nile split into seven branches (from east to west): the Pelusiac, the Tanitic, the Mendesian, the Phatnitic, the Sebennytic, the Bolbitine, and the Canopic. Today there are two principal channels that the Nile takes through the river's delta: one in the west at Rashid and one in the east at Damietta.

The delta region is well watered, crisscrossed by channels and canals.

The climate in Lower Egypt is milder than that of Upper Egypt owing primarily to its proximity to the Mediterranean Sea. Temperatures are less extreme and rainfall is more abundant.

History

Lower Egypt was known as Ta-Mehu which means "land of papyrus." It was divided into twenty districts called nomes, the first of which was at el-Lisht. Because Lower Egypt was mostly undeveloped scrubland, undeveloped for human life and filled with all types of plant life such as grasses and herbs, the organization of the nomes underwent several changes.

The spotted flycatcher (Muscicapa striata) is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family. It breeds in most of Europe and western Asia, and is migratory, wintering in Africa and south western Asia. It is declining in parts of its range.

This is an undistinguished looking bird with long wings and tail. The adults have grey-brown upperparts and whitish underparts, with a streaked crown and breast, giving rise to the bird's common name. The legs are short and black, and the bill is black and has the broad but pointed shape typical of aerial insectivores. Juveniles are browner than adults and have spots on the upperparts.

Behaviour and ecology

Spotted flycatchers hunt from conspicuous perches, making sallies after passing flying insects, and often returning to the same perch. Their upright posture is characteristic.

Spotted flycatchers exhibit an atypical molt strategy, that is they molt their primaries and some of their secondaries in the reverse order from what is seen in most passerines.

There is/has been more than one band called Egypt over the years. This can cause confusion with albums & tracks from different 'Egypts' often listed together as if they were one band. This Egypt (1987 to the present) is best known for its close connections to 1960s/70s band The Groundhogs and, just to add to the confusion, had a very different style and line-up in the early days, making many people believe they were two different bands.

The early years

Egypt's original line-up first got together in a squat in Shepherds Bush, London in late 1987, but the story really begins a few weeks before when ex-Groundhogs bass player Alan Fish and ex-Jethro Tull drummer Clive Bunker were asked to record the very first album release (literally serial number 001) for the then fledgling record label HTD Records (HTD are now Talking Elephant Records and deal with Wishbone Ash, Fairport Convention, Ritchie Blackmore, Steven Stills, etc.). Also included was guitarist Don Greer (ex-Bachman Turner Overdrive and others).

Egypt is a BBC television docudrama serial portraying events in the history of Egyptology from the 18th through early 20th centuries. It originally aired on Sunday nights at 9 pm on BBC1 in 2005. The first two episodes explored the work of Howard Carter and his archaeological quest in Egypt in the early part of the twentieth century. The next two episodes focused on the eccentric explorer "The Great Belzoni". played here by ]Matthew Kelly. The final two episodes dramatise the discovery and deciphering of the Rosetta Stone by Jean-François Champollion (Elliot Cowan).

The music was recorded by the Warsaw Radio Orchestra and is featured on the CD Timeless Histories by Chappell music, produced by Clare Isaacs.

Production

The series was a major new docudrama series produced by the BBC for the Autumn 2005 schedule.

In order to create a sense of "seeing the treasures of Ancient Egypt for the first time", Dolling and Bradshaw felt it essential to film at the actual archaeological sites referenced in the series.