Unification of Upper and Lower Egypt

The Nile made a state possible before it made an empire likely. Annual flood, predictable harvest, and a single navigable corridor allowed a narrow strip of river valley to be governed as one thing.

The Narmer Palette — a ceremonial slate found at Hierakonpolis — shows a king wearing the white crown of Upper Egypt on one face and the red crown of Lower Egypt on the other. Whether or not one man unified the kingdom, the image announces a political idea that outlasted every dynasty that used it.