Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of ancient Egyptian civilization was its inception from the ground up, as the ancient Egyptians had no prior civilization which they could use as a template. In fact, ancient Egypt itself became a template for the civilizations that followed. One of the primary reasons why modern scholars know so much about Egyptian history is due to many monuments found up and down the Nile. Although some of the tombs built on the west bank of the Nile River have suffered a fair amount of wind damage and all of the great monuments have endured the ravages of time, they are amazingly well-preserved, thanks both to Egypt's arid climate and good workmanship. The Egyptian monument builders were truly a class above their contemporaries in terms of their trade, which was helped by the fact that they worked with the more permanent materials of sandstone and limestone, unlike Mesopotamian builders who were forced to primarily work with mud and brick. In ancient Egypt, cities held political and religious significance, which meant that if the political or religious tides changed, so too could the fortunes of particular cities. Memphis is perhaps the best known of ancient Egypt's cities because it was fortunate enough to be the political capital of the Egyptian state for most of its history. Hundreds of miles to Memphis' south, Thebes became an important city during the Middle Kingdom and its stature grew during the New Kingdom when many of the pharaohs came from there and the national god, Amun, had its cult center in the city. Other cities, such as Tanis and Sais, were important for much shorter periods in Egyptian history. The city of Abju, which was known as Abydus to the Greeks, and later became known simply as "Abydos" had a history that was as long as Memphis', and although its influence on pharaonic culture may not have been as apparent, it was no less profound.
