For instance, wall paintings illustrate four men pulling a plow through a field together - not a great way to spend a day in the scorching Egyptian sun. What's more, the plows ran on nothing more than elbow grease. Likely built from modified hand tools, the plows were so light and ineffective that they are now referred to as "scratch plows" for their inability to dig deep into the ground. Those plows certainly had room for improvement. While historians aren't entirely certain of where the plow originated, evidence suggests that the Egyptians and Sumerians were among the first societies to employ its use around 4000 B.C.E. The plow revolutionized farming in ancient Egypt. Hassan Ragab found a way to make papyrus sheets in 1965. Because the process was never documented, it was ultimately lost until Dr. After the sheets were made, they were often combined into scrolls, which were then filled with everything from religious texts to literature and even music.Īncient Egyptians kept the time-consuming process of manufacturing papyrus a closely guarded secret, allowing them to trade papyrus sheets throughout the region. Its tough, fibrous interior proved ideal for making durable sheets of writing material, along with sails, sandals, mats and other necessities of ancient Egyptian life. This stiff, reedlike plant grew (and continues to grow) in the marshy areas lining the Nile, among other places. No one will deny that the Chinese changed the world forever with the invention of paper around 140 B.C.E., but what many people don't know is that the Egyptians had developed an admirable substitute thousands of years earlier from the papyrus plant. They also believed that applying a thick coating of the stuff could cure various eye diseases and even keep them from falling victim to the evil eye.Ī woman lays out soaked thin strips of papyrus to form a sheet, before compression and drying them at a workshop in the village of al-Qaramous, in Egypt's northern fertile Nile Delta region, July 28, 2021. Fashion was only part of the reason for the Egyptians' notoriously heavy hand when applying eyeliner. Status and appearance went hand in hand, and as far as the upper class was concerned, the more makeup the better. They could also create green eye makeup by combining a mineral called malachite with galena to tint the ointment.įor the Egyptians, makeup was not limited to women. They combined soot with a mineral called galena to create a black ointment known as kohl, which is still popular today. Even more impressive, some cosmetically minded cultures still create makeup using the same techniques pioneered by the Egyptians thousands of years ago. Since they first invented eye makeup as far back as 4000 B.C.E., it's never gone out of style. Sure, eye makeup might not rank alongside fire or the wheel as one of the most important discoveries in human history, but it gives the Egyptians a run for longevity. They also thrived as inventors, and, as you'll see in this list of 10 amazing Egyptian inventions, their creations changed everything from fashion to agriculture so drastically that we still see their influence today. For instance, Egyptian women donned ornate jewelry and wigs, the men boxed, fenced and wrestled for sport and the children played with board games, dolls and other toys. Over the thousands of years ancient Egyptians thrived, they ushered in perhaps the most advanced civilization the world had ever known, and many of the fixtures of their society are still commonplace. Of course, the pyramids are only part of ancient Egypt's legacy. Originally standing 481 feet (147 meters) tall, the Great Pyramid towers over monuments like the Statue of Liberty and Big Ben. There may be no greater tribute to a society's ingenuity and vision than Egypt's Great Pyramid of Giza. Sure, the Great Pyramid is magnificent, but ancient Egyptians can take credit for a whole lot more than that.
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