Ancient Egypt and Early ChinaThe first comparative study of these two early empires Although they existed more than a millennium apart, the great civilizations of New Kingdom Egypt (ca. 15481086 BCE) and Han dynasty China (206 BCE220 CE) shared intriguing similarities. Both were centered around major, flood prone riversthe Nile and the Yellow Riverand established complex hydraulic systems to manage their power. Both spread their territories across vast empires that were