![]() ![]() The benefits of papyrus are that it is readily available, inexpensive, and needs little technical skill to work with. Even after the introduction of wooden vessels, reed rafts up to ten meters or longer were still used for hunting, fishing, and navigation. Indeed, this is not surprising given that reed boats were some of the earliest boats in many cultures throughout the world. While the earliest use of papyrus reed boats in Egypt is unknown, they likely began being used sometime around the 4th millennium BCE (Angelucci & Cucari, 1975, p. It is thought that the earliest boats on the Nile river were made of bundles of papyrus and pictorial record traces their building from pre-dynastic times. In any case, the development of more reliable boats and methods of propulsion along the Nile allowed for better transportation and movement of goods and people throughout the region. ![]() It is further speculated that the development of the sail allowed the more technologically advanced Upper Egypt to bring Lower Egypt under its control (Paine, 2013, p. Gerzean vase with the first depiction of a sail.Īccording to legend, in 3100 BCE, King Menes united Upper and Lower Egypt to form the First Dynasty with the capital at Memphis (O’Brien, 2010, p. The Gerzean vase depicting the first known use of the sail shows a single square sail on a mast that is positioned well-forward on the vessel (Paine, 2013, p. Although the first use of a sail on Nile river boats is unknown, the oldest known depiction of a sail in the world appears on a vase discovered in Gerzeh, Egypt, and dates to around 3300-3100 BCE. However, the wind blows from the Mediterranean making sailing up the Nile a more viable option than paddling. Going the opposite way, however, could prove challenging due to the gradient of 1 meter per every 13 kilometers between the First Cataract and the sea, particularly during the annual flood season between June and September. Paddling north with the Nile’s current toward the Mediterranean was relatively easy. Most commerce going in or out of Egypt went through Memphis since it served not only the Nile but also many of the overland routes (Paine, 2013, p. In Lower Egypt, the city of Memphis lies not far from modern-day Cairo and straddled the boundary between the Nile delta and cities to the south. The most strategically important settlements were located where these wadis reached the Nile. Seasonal streams, known as wadis, cut through the mountains and form narrow valleys allowing access to the Red Sea. To the east of the Nile are mountains that are rich in quartzite, alabaster, and gold. The area to the west of the Nile is largely desert with only remote oases that are used by caravan routes. While the names may seem counter-intuitive, remember that they correspond to the direction of the flow of the Nile, not their true geographic orientation. Lower Egypt was defined by the Nile River Delta (Paine, 2013, p. Upper Egypt consisted of the southern area roughly south of the First Cataract, deriving its name from the highlands where the Nile flowed from. Map of ancient Egypt (Cairo and Jerusalem are shown as reference points).Īncient Egyptian civilization was dominated by the Nile and geographically divided into two regions called Upper and Lower Egypt. North of Aswan, the Nile valley widens but is bordered by the Sahara on either side before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. In ancient times, the First Cataract was a natural barrier between Egypt and northern Sudan to the south. North of Khartoum, the river is broken by six cataracts (sets of rapids) with the northernmost First Cataract at Aswan. ![]() Flowing north from the mountains in east-central Africa, the Nile is over 4,000 miles long. The Nile River served as the lifeline of Egyptian civilization. View from space of the Nile, Nile River Delta (note they are the only green areas and surrounded by desert), and the Sinai Peninsula. While it is probable that boat-building did occur earlier in Mesopotamia on the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, in this post, we are going to examine the role of the Nile River, the boats that plied it, and the role of trade in ancient Egypt. Part of the Fertile Crescent, ancient Egypt is famous for its Pharaohs, pyramids, and mummies. Moving further along into history, we jump from the Pacific Ocean to the Nile River in Egypt. In short, I’m no expert and I intend to focus on broad ideas. These posts cover various eras in history, many of which I have very little knowledge or expertise in, but I do my best to provide accurate information. Caveat: I am NOT a naval/marine engineer or an archaeologist. ![]()
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