Ancient Egyptian technology

Short description: Devices, and technologies invented or used in Ancient Egypt

Template:Ancient technology Ancient Egyptian technology describes devices and technologies invented or used in ancient Egypt. The Egyptians invented and used many simple machines, such as the ramp and the lever, to aid construction processes. They used rope trusses to stiffen the beam of ships. Egyptian paper, made from papyrus, and pottery were mass-produced and exported throughout the Mediterranean Basin. The wheel was used for a number of purposes, but chariots only came into use after the Second Intermediate Period. The Egyptians also played an important role in developing Mediterranean maritime technology including ships and lighthouses.

Ancient Egyptian depiction of women engaged in mechanical rope making, the first graphic evidence of the craft, shown in the two lower rows of the illustration

## Contents

* 1 Technology in Dynastic Egypt
* 1.1 Paper, writing and libraries
* 1.2 Structures and construction
* 1.2.1 Materials and tools
* 1.2.2 Buildings
* 1.2.2.1 Temples
* 1.2.2.2 Vaults
* 1.2.2.3 Lighthouse
* 1.2.2.4 Monuments
* 1.2.2.5 Obelisks and pillars
* 1.3 Ship building
* 1.4 Navigation
* 1.5 Irrigation and agriculture
* 1.6 Glassworking
* 1.7 Astronomy
* 1.8 Medicine
* 1.9 Turning devices
* 1.9.1 The wheel
* 1.10 Other developments
* 2 Later technology in Egypt
* 2.1 Greco-Roman Egypt
* 2.2 Arabic-Islamic Egypt
* 3 See also
* 4 Notes
* 5 References
* 6 Further reading

## Technology in Dynastic Egypt

Significant advances in ancient Egypt during the dynastic period include astronomy, mathematics, and medicine. Their geometry was a necessary outgrowth of surveying to preserve the layout and ownership of fertile farmland, which was flooded annually by the Nile River.[1] The 3,4,5 right triangle and other rules of thumb served to represent rectilinear structures, and the post and lintel architecture of Egypt. Egypt also was a center of alchemy research for much of the western world.

### Paper, writing and libraries

A section of the Egyptian Book of the Dead, which is written and drawn on papyrus

The word paper comes from the Greek term for the ancient Egyptian writing material called papyrus, which was formed from beaten strips of papyrus plants. Papyrus was produced in Egypt as early as 3000 BC and was sold to ancient Greece and Rome. Egyptians were the first to use reed pens and Ink which they used to write on papyrus.[2][3] The first mention of writing on Parchment also comes from the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt.[4] The establishment of the Library of Alexandria limited the supply of papyrus for others. According to the Roman historian Pliny the Elder (Natural History records, xiii.21), as a result of this, parchment was invented under the patronage of Eumenes II of Pergamon to build his rival library at Pergamon. However, this is a myth; parchment had been in use in Anatolia and elsewhere long before the rise of Pergamon.

Egyptian hieroglyphs, a phonetic writing system, served as the basis for the Phoenician alphabet from which later alphabets, such as Hebrew, Greek, and Latin were derived. With this ability, writing and record-keeping, the Egyptians developed one of the – if not the – first decimal system.[5][6][7] Egyptian writing is also considered the oldest in the world along with Sumerian writing.[8][9][10]

The city of Alexandria retained preeminence for its records and scrolls with its library. This ancient library was damaged by fire when it fell under Roman rule,[11] and was destroyed completely by 642 CE.[12][13] With it, a vast supply of antique literature, history, and knowledge was lost.

### Structures and construction

#### Materials and tools

Some of the older materials used in the construction of Egyptian housing included reeds and clay. According to Lucas and Harris, "reeds were plastered with clay in order to keep out of heat and cold more effectually".[14] Windcatchers were also used in Egyptian houses for cooling and ventilation.[15] Tools that were used included "limestone, chiseled stones, wooden mallets, and stone hammers", but also some more sophisticated hand tools.[16] Wide range of lithic tools was used in Predynastic and Dynastic Egypt throughout the whole Egyptian Bronze Age.[17]

Ancient Egyptian metal tool kit is well described and it consisted of metal blades of chisels, adzes, axes, saws and drills, used for the work on various types of wood and stones.[18] Also, the ancient Egyptians were apparently using core drills in stonework at least as long ago as the Fourth Dynasty, probably made of copper or arsenical copper and used in conjunction with a harder abrasive substance.

The earliest alloy used for the production of tools was arsenical bronze/copper, of which e.g. the tools used at Old Kingdom Giza were manufactured.[19] This alloy is harder than the "pure copper", presumed to be used by ancient Egyptians in earlier, now outdated works.[20] In the New Kingdom, the predominant practical alloy was tin bronze.[21]

There has been some dispute among archaeologists over whether the abrasive was quartz sand or a harder mineral such as corundum, emery or diamond, and whether it was loose or embedded in the metal.[22][23][24] Lime mortar was used to plaster the Giza pyramids in addition to various limes incorporated into temples and homes.[25]

#### Buildings

##### Temples

Many Egyptian temples are not standing today. Some are in ruin from wear and tear, while others have been lost entirely. The Egyptian structures are among the largest constructions ever conceived and built by humans. They constitute one of the most potent and enduring symbols of ancient Egyptian civilization. Temples and tombs built by a pharaoh famous for her projects, Hatshepsut, were massive and included many colossal statues of her. Pharaoh Tutankamun's rock-cut tomb in the Valley of the Kings was full of jewelry and antiques. In some late myths, Ptah was identified as the primordial mound and had called creation into being, he was considered the deity of craftsmen, and in particular, of stone-based crafts. Imhotep, who was included in the Egyptian pantheon, was the first documented engineer.[26]

Ramesseum, Luxor, C13 BC, warehouse with parabolic barrel vaults of adobe

##### Vaults

Adobe vaults were a type of structures spanning from the end of the first dynasty tomb of Qa'a, about 2900 BC, to Coptic times. The first such vaults were built underground, in the construction of tombs, but most of them were built overground, instead of roofs for lack of timber. Some adobe vaults were supported on columns and architraves, such as in the throne hall of Ramesses's III palace from 1200 BC at Madinet Habu. The barrel vaults of the store rooms of the Ramesseum in Luxor have parabolic cross sections, demonstrating an understanding of statics.[27]

##### Lighthouse

In Hellenistic Egypt, lighthouse technology was developed, the most famous example being the Lighthouse of Alexandria. Alexandria was a port for the ships that traded the goods manufactured in Egypt or imported into Egypt. A giant cantilevered hoist lifted cargo to and from ships. The lighthouse itself was designed by Sostratus of Cnidus and built in the 3rd century BC (between 285 and 247 BC) on the island of Pharos in Alexandria, Egypt, which has since become a peninsula. This lighthouse was renowned in its time and knowledge of it was never lost.

##### Monuments

The Nile valley has been the site of one of the most influential civilizations in the world with its architectural monuments, which include the Giza pyramid complex and the Great Sphinx.

Giza Plateau, Cairo. Khafre's pyramid in the background

The most famous pyramids are the Egyptian pyramids—huge structures built of brick or stone, some of which are among the largest constructions by humans. Pyramids functioned as tombs for pharaohs. In ancient Egypt, a pyramid was referred to as mer, literally "place of ascendance." The Great Pyramid of Giza is the largest in Egypt and one of the largest in the world. The base is over 13 acres (53,000 m2) in area. It is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and the only one of the seven to survive into modern times. The ancient Egyptians capped the peaks of their pyramids with gold plated pyramidions and covered their faces with polished white limestone, although many of the stones used for the finishing purpose have fallen or been removed for use on other structures over the millennia.

The Red Pyramid (c.26th century BC), named for the light crimson hue of its exposed granite surfaces, is the third largest of Egyptian pyramids. Menkaure's Pyramid, likely dating to the same era, was constructed of limestone and granite blocks. The Great Pyramid of Giza (c. 2580 BC) contains a sarcophagus fashioned of red Aswan granite. The mostly ruined Black Pyramid dating from the reign of Amenemhat III once had a polished granite pyramidion or capstone, now on display in the main hall of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Other uses in ancient Egypt[28] include columns, door lintels, sills, jambs, and wall and floor veneer.

The ancient Egyptians had some of the first monumental stone buildings (such as in Saqqara), which are largely built of local limestones. How the Egyptians worked the solid granite is still a matter of debate. Tool marks described by the Egyptologist Anna Serotta indicate the use of flint tools on finer work with harder stones, e.g. when producing the hieroglyphic inscriptions.[29] Archaeologist Patrick Hunt[30] has postulated that the Egyptians used emery shown to have higher hardness on the Mohs scale. Regarding construction, of the various methods possibly used by builders, the lever moved and uplifted obelisks weighing more than 100 tons.

##### Obelisks and pillars

See also: Obelisk ship

The Unfinished obelisk in Aswan

Obelisks were a prominent part of the ancient Egyptian architecture, placed in pairs at the entrances of various monuments and important buildings such as temples. Earliest known obelisk fragment is that of King Teti (died c. 2333 BC) from the Old Kingdom, found at Heliopolis.[31] In 1902, Encyclopædia Britannica wrote: "The earliest temple obelisk still in position is that of Senusret I of the XIIth Dynasty at Heliopolis (68 feet high)". The word obelisk is of Greek rather than Egyptian origin because Herodotus, the great traveler, was the first writer to describe the objects. Twenty-nine ancient Egyptian obelisks are known to have survived, plus the Unfinished obelisk being built by Hatshepsut to celebrate her sixteenth year as pharaoh. It broke while being carved out of the quarry and was abandoned when another one was begun to replace it. The broken one was found at Aswan and provides some of the only insight into the methods of how they were hewn.

The obelisk symbolized the sky deity Ra and during the brief religious reformation of Akhenaten was said to be a petrified ray of the Aten, the sun disk. It is hypothesized by New York University Egyptologist Patricia Blackwell Gary and Astronomy senior editor Richard Talcott that the shapes of the ancient Egyptian pyramid and obelisk were derived from natural phenomena associated with the sun (the sun-god Ra being the Egyptians' greatest deity).[32] It was also thought that the deity existed within the structure. The Egyptians also used pillars extensively.

Ramps have been reported as being widely used in Ancient Egypt. A ramp is an inclined plane, or a plane surface set at an angle (other than a right angle) against a horizontal surface. The inclined plane permits one to overcome a large resistance by applying a relatively small force through a longer distance than the load is to be raised. In civil engineering the slope (ratio of rise/run) is often referred to as a grade or gradient. An inclined plane is one of the commonly-recognized simple machines.

### Ship building

Template:Merge portions from

* Predynastic Egypt
* Error creating thumbnail:

Naqada II clay model of a wooden boat

* Naqada II clay model of a boat

* Reed boat on a Naqada II jar

The ancient Egyptians had experience with building a variety of ships. The first Egyptian watercrafts were rafts and boats of papyrus. But already from the predynastic Gerzeh culture there are depictions on pottery that rather suggest reed boats[33] as well as clay models that suggest hulls made of planks.[34] Papyrus boats were used from the very beginning until about 1000 CE, when papyrus began to run short. That means there was a co-existence of reed-made and of wooden watercrafts lasting more than 4000 years. Papyrus boats were mainly small and were most used in calm shallow waters. The first import of cedar wood from the Lebanon for shipbuilding was reported in the Dynasty IV (2600 BC).[35][36] Egyptians were the first to build proper ship Hulls by assembling wooden planks.[37] as well as the first Harbor built in Wadi al-Jarf along the red sea coast.[38][39][40]

The ancient Egyptians had knowledge to some extent of sail construction. This is governed by the science of aerodynamics.[41] The earliest Egyptian sails were simply placed to catch the wind and push a vessel.[42] Later Egyptian sails dating to 2400 BC were built with the recognition that ships could sail against the wind using the lift of the sails.[42][43] Queen Hatshepsut oversaw the preparations and funding of an expedition of five ships, each measuring seventy feet long, and with several sails. Various others exist, also.

* Pharaonic Egypt and Roman NE Africa
* Egyptian ship with a loose-footed sail, similar to a longship. From the 5th dynasty, c. 2700 BC

* Model ship from the Old Kingdom, c. 2686 – c. 2181 BC

* Model of a fishing boat of papyrus, Meketre's tomb, Middle Kingdom, c. 1990 BC

* Egyptian vessels being loaded with produce from Punt, possibly rule of Hatshepsut, c. 1479 – c. 1458 BC

* Stern-mounted steering oar of an Egyptian riverboat depicted in the Tomb of Menna, c. 1422 – c. 1411 BC

* Nebamun standing on a small boat, hunting in the marches, Tomb of Nebamun, c. 1350 BC

* Egyptian ship on the Red Sea, showing a board truss being used to stiffen the beam of this ship, c. 1250 BC

* Fishermen in a reed boat, mosaic from Zliten, Libya

A few pharaonic ships have survived to this day, such as Khufu ship.[44] Relics of some ships from the First Dynasty were found nearAbydos,[45][46][47] and remnants of other ships were found near the pyramids.[46][48][49]

Although quarter rudders were the norm in Nile navigation, the Egyptians were the first to use also stern-mounted rudders (not of the modern type but center mounted steering oars).

The first warships of ancient Egypt were constructed during the early Middle Kingdom and perhaps at the end of the Old Kingdom, but the first mention and a detailed description of a large enough and heavily armed ship dates from 16th century BC.

> And I ordered to build twelve warships with rams, dedicated to Amun or Sobek, or Maat and Sekhmet, whose image was crowned best bronze noses. Carport and equipped outside rook over the waters, for many paddlers, having covered rowers deck not only from the side, but and top. and they were on board eighteen oars in two rows on the top and sat on two rowers, and the lower – one, a hundred and eight rowers were. And twelve rowers aft worked on three steering oars. And blocked Our Majesty ship inside three partitions (bulkheads) so as not to drown it by ramming the wicked, and the sailors had time to repair the hole. And Our Majesty arranged four towers for archers – two behind, and two on the nose and one above the other small – on the mast with narrow loopholes. they are covered with bronze in the fifth finger (3.2mm), as well as a canopy roof and its rowers. and they have (carried) on the nose three assault heavy crossbow arrows so they lit resin or oil with a salt of Seth (probably nitrate) tore a special blend and punched (?) lead ball with a lot of holes (?), and one of the same at the stern. and long ship seventy five cubits (41m), and the breadth sixteen, and in battle can go three-quarters of iteru per hour (about 6.5 knots)...

— The text of the tomb of Amenhotep I (KV39).

When Thutmose III achieved warships displacement up to 360 tons and carried up to ten new heavy and light to seventeen catapults based bronze springs, called "siege crossbow" – more precisely, siege bows. There also appeared giant catamarans, heavy warships, by the time of Ramesses III used until the Ptolemaic dynasty.[50]

### Navigation

The world according to Herodotus, 440 BC

According to the Greek historian Herodotus, Necho II sent out an expedition of Phoenicians, which reputedly, at some point between 610 and before 594 BC, sailed in three years from the Red Sea around Africa to the mouth of the Nile. Some Egyptologists dispute that an Egyptian pharaoh would authorize such an expedition,[51] except for the reason of trade in the ancient maritime routes.

The belief in Herodotus' account, handed down to him by oral tradition,[52] is primarily because he stated with disbelief that the Phoenicians "as they sailed on a westerly course round the southern end of Libya (Africa), they had the sun on their right – to northward of them" (The Histories 4.42) – in Herodotus' time it was not generally known that Africa was surrounded by an ocean (with the southern part of Africa being thought connected to Asia[53]). So fantastic an assertion is this of a typical example of some seafarers' story and Herodotus therefore may never have mentioned it at all, had it not been based on facts and made with the according insistence.[54]

This early description of Necho's expedition as a whole is contentious, though; it is recommended that one keep an open mind on the subject,[55] but Strabo, Polybius, and Ptolemy doubted the description. Egyptologist A. B. Lloyd suggests that the Greeks at this time understood that anyone going south far enough and then turning west would have the Sun on their right but found it unbelievable that Africa reached so far south. He suggests that "It is extremely unlikely that an Egyptian king would, or could, have acted as Necho is depicted as doing" and that the story might have been triggered by the failure of Sataspes' attempt to circumnavigate Africa under Xerxes the Great.[56] Regardless, it was believed by Herodotus and Pliny.[57]

### Irrigation and agriculture

Irrigation as the artificial application of water to the soil was used to some extent in ancient Egypt, a hydraulic civilization (which entails hydraulic engineering).[58] In crop production it is mainly used to replace missing rainfall in periods of drought, as opposed to reliance on direct rainfall (referred to as dryland farming or as rainfed farming). Before technology advanced, the people of Egypt relied on the natural flow of the Nile River to tend to the crops. Although the Nile provided sufficient watering for the survival of domesticated animals, crops, and the people of Egypt, there were times where the Nile would flood the area wreaking havoc across the land.[59] There is evidence of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Amenemhet III in the Twelfth Dynasty (about 1800 BC) using the natural lake of the Fayûm as a reservoir to store surpluses of water for use during the dry seasons, as the lake swelled annually with the flooding of the Nile.[60] Construction of drainage canals reduced the problems of major flooding from entering homes and areas of crops; but because it was a hydraulic civilization, much of the water management was controlled in a systematic way.[61] Egyptians also developed the Nilometer to measure the nile's water level and clarity of each year's flood and help forecast the flood's effect on the fields.[62][63]

### Glassworking

Ancient Egyptian glassware in the Metropolitan Museum of Art

The earliest known glass beads from Egypt were made during the New Kingdom around 1500 BC and were produced in a variety of colors. They were made by winding molten glass around a metal bar and were highly prized as a trading commodity, especially blue beads, which were believed to have magical powers. The Egyptians made small jars and bottles using the core-formed method. Glass threads were wound around a bag of sand tied to a rod. The glass was continually reheated to fuse the threads together. The glass-covered sand bag was kept in motion until the required shape and thickness was achieved. The rod was allowed to cool, then finally the bag was punctured and the sand poured out and reused. The Egyptians also created the first colored glass rods which they used to create colorful beads and decorations. They also worked with cast glass, which was produced by pouring molten glass into a mold, much like iron and the more modern crucible steel.[64] Recent evidence indicates that glassmaking started in Egypt and was later copied by Mesopotamians.[65]

### Astronomy

Main article: Astronomy:Egyptian astronomy

The Egyptians were a practical people and this is reflected in their astronomy[66] in contrast to Babylonia where the first astronomical texts were written in astrological terms.[67] Even before Upper and Lower Egypt were unified in 3000 BC, observations of the night sky had influenced the development of a religion in which many of its principal deities were heavenly bodies. In Lower Egypt, priests built circular mudbrick walls with which to make a false horizon where they could mark the position of the sun as it rose at dawn, and then with a plumb-bob note the northern or southern turning points (solstices). This allowed them to discover that the sun disc, personified as Ra, took 365 days to travel from his birthplace at the winter solstice and back to it. Meanwhile, in Upper Egypt, a lunar calendar was being developed based on the behavior of the moon and the reappearance of Sirius in its heliacal rising after its annual absence of about 70 days.[68]

After unification, problems with trying to work with two calendars (both depending upon constant observation) led to a merged, simplified civil calendar with twelve 30-day months, three seasons of four months each, plus an extra five days, giving a 365-year day but with no way of accounting for the extra quarter day each year. Day and night were split into 24 units, each personified by a deity. A sundial found on Seti I's cenotaph with instructions for its use shows us that the daylight hours were at one time split into 10 units, with 12 hours for the night and an hour for the morning and evening twilights.[69] However, by Seti I's time day and night were normally divided into 12 hours each, the length of which would vary according to the time of year.

Key to much of this was the motion of the sun god Ra and his annual movement along the horizon at sunrise. Out of Egyptian myths such as those around Ra and the sky goddess Nut came the development of the Egyptian calendar, time keeping, and even concepts of royalty. An astronomical ceiling in the burial chamber of Ramesses VI shows the sun being born from Nut in the morning, traveling along her body during the day and being swallowed at night.

The Dendera Zodiac was on the ceiling of the Greco-Roman temple of Hathor at Dendera

Claims have been made that precession of the equinoxes was known in ancient Egypt prior to the time of Hipparchus.[70] This has been disputed however on the grounds that pre-Hipparchus texts do not mention precession and that "it is only by cunning interpretation of ancient myths and images, which are ostensibly about something else, that precession can be discerned in them, aided by some pretty esoteric numerological speculation involving the 72 years that mark one degree of shift in the zodiacal system and any number of permutations by multiplication, division, and addition."[71]

Note however that the Egyptian observation of a slowly changing stellar alignment over a multi-year period does not necessarily mean that they understood or even cared what was going on. For instance, from the Middle Kingdom onwards they used a table with entries for each month to tell the time of night from the passing of constellations. These went in error after a few centuries because of their calendar and precession, but were copied (with scribal errors) long after they lost their practical usefulness or the possibility of understanding and use of them in the current years, rather than the years in which they were originally used.

### Medicine

Main articles: Medicine:Ancient Egyptian medicine and Egyptian medical papyri

Plates vi & vii of the Edwin Smith Papyrus (around the 17th century BC), among the earliest medical texts

The Edwin Smith Papyrus is one of the first medical documents still extant, and perhaps the earliest document which attempts to describe and analyze the brain: given this, it might be seen as the very beginnings of neuroscience. The rational and practical nature of the papyrus is illustrated in 48 case histories, which are listed according to each organ. The papyrus begins by addressing injuries to the body along with treatments (including Rhinoplasty[72]), detailing injuries in descending anatomical order like a modern anatomical exposition, as well as diagnosing diseases like cancer.[73] The objective examination process[74] included visual and olfactory clues, palpation and taking of the pulse. Following the examination are the diagnosis and prognosis. Among the treatments are closing wounds with sutures,[75] bandaging, splints, poultices, Immobilization is advised for head and spinal cord injuries, as well as other lower body fractures. The papyrus also describes realistic anatomical, physiological and pathological observations.[74] It contains the first known descriptions of the cranial structures, the meninges, the external surface of the brain, the cerebrospinal fluid, and the intracranial pulsations. The procedures of this papyrus demonstrate an Egyptian level of knowledge of medicines that surpassed that of Hippocrates, who lived 1000 years later, and the documented rationale for diagnosis and treatment of spinal injuries can still be regarded as the state-of-the-art reasoning for modern clinical practice.[76] The influence of brain injuries on parts of the body is recognized, such as paralysis. The relationship between the location of a cranial injury and the side of the body affected is also recorded, while crushing injuries of vertebrae were noted to impair motor and sensory functions.[74] Due to its nature, it is believed the papyrus served as a textbook for the trauma from military battles. The papyrus contained the first known study of Anatomy. It described the heart, its vessels, liver, spleen, kidneys, hypothalamus, uterus and bladder, and showed the blood vessels diverging from the heart.[77]

Ebers Papyrus contains The earliest known writings on the Circulatory system. it acknowledges the connection of the heart to the arteries. The Egyptians thought air came in through the mouth and into the lungs and heart. From the heart, the air travelled to every member through the arteries. Although this concept of the circulatory system is only partially correct, it represents one of the earliest accounts of scientific thought.[78]

The earliest known depiction of cataract surgery is on a statue from the Fifth Dynasty of Egypt (2467–2457 BCE). According to Francisco J Ascaso et al, a "relief painting from tomb number TT 217 in a worker settlement in Deir el-Medina" shows "the man buried in the tomb, Ipuy ... one of the builders of royal tombs in the renowned Valley of the Kings, circa 1279–1213 BC" as he underwent cataract surgery. Although direct evidence for cataract surgery in ancient Egypt is lacking, the indirect evidence, including surgical instruments that could have been used for the procedure, show that it was possible. It is assumed that the couching technique was used.

Prosthetic toe from ancient Egypt

The Egyptians were also pioneers of prosthetics, as shown by the wooden toe found on a body from the New Kingdom circa 1000 BC.[79]

However, medical historians believe that ancient Egyptian pharmacology was largely ineffective.[80] According to a paper published by Michael D. Parkins, 72% of 260 medical prescriptions in the Hearst papyrus had no curative elements.[81] According to Michael D. Parkins, sewage pharmacology first began in ancient Egypt and was continued through the Middle Ages,[80] and while the use of animal dung can have curative properties,[82] it is not without its risk. Practices such as applying cow dung to wounds, ear piercing, tattooing, and chronic ear infections were important factors in developing tetanus.[83] Frank J. Snoek wrote that Egyptian medicine used fly specks, lizard blood, swine teeth, and other such remedies which he believes could have been harmful.[84]

Mummification of the dead was not always practiced in Egypt. Once the practice began, an individual was placed at a final resting place through a set of rituals and protocol.

### Turning devices

The earliest evidence for the potter's wheels comes from Canaanite potters living in the Nile Delta, c. 3500 – c. 3300 BC. Egyptians made wheel thrown pottery as early as the 4th Dynasty (c. 2613 – c. 2494 BC).[85] Lathes are known from at least 1300 BC,[86] but Flinders Petrie claimed that they had been used as early as the 4th Dynasty, based on tool marks found on stone bowls from that period.[87]

#### The wheel

The wheel existed in Egypt since at least the Fifth Dynasty.[88]

Chariots, however, are only believed to have been introduced by the invasion of the Hyksos in the Second Intermediate Period (c.1650 BC to c.1550 BC);[89] during the New Kingdom era (c.1550 BC to c.1077 BC), chariotry became central to Egypt's military.

### Other developments

The Egyptians developed a variety of furniture. There in the lands of ancient Egypt is the first evidence for stools, beds, and tables (such as from the tombs similar to Tutankhamun's). Recovered ancient Egyptian furniture includes a third millennium BC bed discovered in the Tarkhan Tomb, a c. 2550 BC gilded set from the tomb of Queen Hetepheres I, and a c. 1550 BC stool from Thebes.

Some have suggested that the Egyptians had some form of understanding electric phenomena from observing lightning and interacting with electric fish (such as Malapterurus electricus) or other animals (such as electric eels).[90] The comment about lightning appears to come from a misunderstanding of a text referring to "high poles covered with copper plates" to argue this[91] but Dr. Bolko Stern has written in detail explaining why the copper covered tops of poles (which were lower than the associated pylons) do not relate to electricity or lightning, pointing out that no evidence of anything used to manipulate electricity had been found in Egypt and that this was a magical and not a technical installation.[92]

## Later technology in Egypt

### Greco-Roman Egypt

See also: Engineering:Ancient Greek technology and Roman technology

Under Hellenistic rule, Egypt was one of the most prosperous regions of the Hellenistic civilization. The ancient Egyptian city of Rhakotis was renovated as Alexandria, which became the largest city around the Mediterranean Basin. Under Roman rule, Egypt was one of the most prosperous regions of the Roman Empire, with Alexandria being second only to ancient Rome in size.

Recent scholarship suggests that the water wheel originates from Ptolemaic Egypt, where it appeared by the 3rd century BC.[93][94] This is seen as an evolution of the paddle-driven water-lifting wheels that had been known in Egypt a century earlier.[93] According to John Peter Oleson, both the compartmented wheel and the hydraulic noria may have been invented in Egypt by the 4th century BC, with the Sakia being invented there a century later. This is supported by archeological finds at Faiyum, Egypt, where the oldest archeological evidence of a water-wheel has been found, in the form of a Sakia dating back to the 3rd century BC. A papyrus dating to the 2nd century BC also found in Faiyum mentions a water wheel used for irrigation, a 2nd-century BC fresco found at Alexandria depicts a compartmented Sakia, and the writings of Callixenus of Rhodes mention the use of a Sakia in Ptolemaic Egypt during the reign of Ptolemy IV in the late 3rd century BC.[94]

Ancient Greek technology was often inspired by the need to improve weapons and tactics in war. Ancient Roman technology is a set of artifacts and customs which supported Roman civilization and made the expansion of Roman commerce and Roman military possible over nearly a thousand years.

### Arabic-Islamic Egypt

Under Arab rule, Egypt once again became one of the most prosperous regions around the Mediterranean. The Egyptian city of Cairo was founded by the Fatimid Caliphate and served as its capital city. At the time, Cairo was second only to Baghdad, capital of the rival Abbasid Caliphate. After the fall of Baghdad, however, Cairo overtook it as the largest city in the Mediterranean region until the early modern period.

Inventions in medieval Islam covers the inventions developed in the medieval Islamic world, a region that extended from Al-Andalus and Africa in the west to the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia in the east. The timeline of Islamic science and engineering covers the general development of science and technology in the Islamic world.

## See also

* List of Egyptian inventions and discoveries
* Ancient Egyptian units of measurement
* Egyptian chronology
* History of science in early cultures
* Astrology and astronomy
* History of technology

## Notes

1. ↑ Erlikh, Ḥagai; Erlikh, Hạggai; Gershoni, I. (2000) (in en). The Nile: Histories, Cultures, Myths. Lynne Rienner Publishers. pp. 80–81. ISBN 978-1-55587-672-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=LcsJosc239YC&q=egyptian geometry Nile&pg=PA80. Retrieved 9 January 2020. "The Nile occupied an important position in Egyptian culture; it influenced the development of mathematics, geography, and the calendar; Egyptian geometry advanced due to the practice of land measurement “because the overflow of the Nile caused the boundary of each person’s land to disappear.”"
2. ↑ Tallet, Pierre (2012). "Ayn Sukhna and Wadi el-Jarf: Two newly discovered pharaonic harbours on the Suez Gulf". British Museum Studies in Ancient Egypt and Sudan 18: 147–68. ISSN 2049-5021. https://www.britishmuseum.org/PDF/Tallet.pdf. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
3. ↑ "THE HISTORY OF PENS". 16 March 2023. https://www.executivepensdirect.com/blogs/help-advice/the-history-of-pens#:~:text=The Reed Pen,clay similar to the Sumerians..
4. ↑ David Diringer, The Book before Printing: Ancient, Medieval and Oriental, Dover Publications, New York 1982, p. 172.
5. ↑ Georges Ifrah, The Universal History of Numbers. Page 162 (cf., "As we have seen, Sumer used a sexagesimal base; whereas the system of Ancient Egypt was strictly decimal.")
6. ↑ Robert E Krebs, Groundbreaking scientific experiments, inventions, and discoveries of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Page 127. ISBN 0-313-32433-6
7. ↑ Thomas Little Heath, Manual of Greek Mathematics. Page 11.
8. ↑ "The world's earliest known writing systems emerged at more or less the same time, around 3300 bc, in Egypt and Mesopotamia (today's Iraq)."Teeter, Emily (2011). Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization. Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. p. 99.
9. ↑ "Although it was once thought that the idea of writing came to Egypt from Mesopotamia, recent discoveries indicate that writing arose first in Egypt."Allen, James P. (2010). Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs. Cambridge University Press. p. 2. ISBN 9781139486354. https://books.google.com/books?id=lF78Max-h8MC&q=recent+discoveries+indicate+writing.
10. ↑ "and examples of writing in Egypt have been found that very well may pre-date the earliest writing from Mesopotamia."Boudreau, Vincent (2004) (in en). The First Writing: Script Invention as History and Process. Cambridge University Press. p. 71. ISBN 9780521838610. https://books.google.com/books?id=jsWL_XJt-dMC&pg=PA71.
11. ↑ Plutarch, Life of Caesar 49.3.
12. ↑ Abd-el-latif (1203): "the library which 'Amr ibn al-'As burnt with the permission of 'Umar."
13. ↑ Europe: A History, p 139. Oxford: Oxford University Press 1996. ISBN 0-19-820171-0
14. ↑ A. Lucas and J. Harris, "Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries" (New York: Courier Corporation, 2012), 48.
15. ↑ "Air-conditioning avoidance". http://www.inive.org/members_area/medias/pdf/Inive\palenc\2005\Roaf.pdf.
16. ↑ A. Lucas and J. Harris, "Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries" (New York: Courier Corporation, 2012), 64.
17. ↑ Kobusiewicz, Michał (2015). The production, use and importance of flint tools in the Archaic Period and the Old Kingdom of Egypt. Archaeopress Egyptology. Oxford: Archaeopress. ISBN 978-1-78491-249-9.
18. ↑ Odler, Martin (2016). Old Kingdom copper tools and model tools. Archaeopress Egyptology. Oxford: Archaeopress Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78491-442-4.
19. ↑ Odler, Martin; Kmošek, Jiří; Fikrle, Marek; Erban Kochergina, Yulia V. (2021). "Arsenical copper tools of Old Kingdom Giza craftsmen: First data" (in en). Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 36. doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2021.102868. Bibcode: 2021JArSR..36j2868O. https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S2352409X21000808.
20. ↑ Dunham, Dows (1943). "Notes on Copper-Bronze in the Middle Kingdom" (in en). The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 29 (1): 60–62. doi:10.1177/030751334302900106. ISSN 0307-5133. http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/030751334302900106.
21. ↑ Davies, W. Vivian, ed (1987). Catalogue of Egyptian antiquities in the British Museum. 7: Tools and weapons; 1: Axes / by W. V. Davies. London: British Museum. ISBN 978-0-7141-0934-3.
22. ↑ A. Lucas and J. Harris, "Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries" (New York: Courier Corporation, 2012).
23. ↑ Serotta, Anna; Carò, Federico (22 May 2015). "Hidden Secrets of Ancient Egyptian Technology". https://www.metmuseum.org/blogs/now-at-the-met/2015/ancient-egyptian-technology.
24. ↑ Gorelick, Leonard; Gwinnett, A. John (1983). "Ancient Egyptian Stone-Drilling - An experimental perspective on a scholarly disagreement". Expedition Magazine 25 (3). https://www.penn.museum/sites/expedition/ancient-egyptian-stone-drilling/. Retrieved 21 March 2023.
25. ↑ "Study on the performance enhancement of lime mortar used in ancient temples and monuments in India". CiteSeerX 10.1.1.843.619.
26. ↑ "What is Civil Engineering: Imhotep". http://whatiscivilengineering.csce.ca/history_engineering.htm.
27. ↑ Abdou A. O. D. El-Derby, Ahmed Elyamani, Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry (MAA), 2023-07-28, The Adobe Barrel Vaulted Structure in Ancient Egypt: A study of two case studies for conservation purposes (abstract and PDF)
28. ↑ eeescience utoledo.edu : Cairo Rocks
29. ↑ Serotta, Anna (2023-12-19). "Reading Tool Marks on Egyptian Stone Sculpture". Rivista del Museo Egizio 7. doi:10.29353/rime.2023.5098. ISSN 2611-3295. https://rivista.museoegizio.it/article/reading-tool-marks-on-egyptian-stone-sculpture/.
30. ↑ Arce/Nc Archives
31. ↑ "Heliopolis Obelisk". http://www.obelisks.org/en/heliopolis.htm.
32. ↑ Patricia Blackwell Gary; Richard Talcott (June 2006). "Stargazing in Ancient Egypt". Astronomy 34 (6): 62–7. Bibcode: 2006Ast....34f..62G.
33. ↑ World Journal of Engineering Research and Technology, Bats Industry during Predynastic to Middle Kingdom, Fig.6.
34. ↑ Metropolitan Museum of Art, No. 566525, Model boat
35. ↑ Gordon Longworth, The development and construction of watercraft (in Egypt), overview in The Past
36. ↑ Ships and boats in Egypt
37. ↑ Ward, Cheryl. "World's Oldest Planked Boats," in Archaeology (Volume 54, Number 3, May/June 2001). Archaeological Institute of America. Archaeology.org
38. ↑ Boyle, Alan (15 April 2013). "4,500-year-old harbor structures and papyrus texts unearthed in Egypt". NBC. https://www.nbcnews.com/science/cosmic-log/4-500-year-old-harbor-structures-papyrus-texts-unearthed-egypt-flna1c9356840.
39. ↑ Marouard, Gregory; Tallet, Pierre (2012). "Wadi al-Jarf – An early pharaonic harbour on the Red Sea coast". Egyptian Archaeology 40: 40–43. https://www.academia.edu/1819574. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
40. ↑ Shipbuilding in Ancient Egypt
41. ↑ A primary feature of a properly designed sail is an amount of "draft", caused by curvature of the surface of the sail. When the sail is oriented into the wind, this curvature induces lift, much like the wing of an airplane.
42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 Encyclopedia Of International Sports Studies. Page 31
43. ↑ Technological Choices: Transformation in Material Cultures. Page 410.
44. ↑ Solar ships
45. ↑ The Abydos Ship
46. ↑ 46.0 46.1 Sakkara and Abydous Ship Graves
47. ↑ "Abydos Boat". http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Alley/4482/Abydosboat.html.
48. ↑ Ancient Egypt Ships
49. ↑ Ship Minimatures at Egyptian museum
50. ↑ Nelson Harold Hayden, Allen Thomas George and Dr Raymond O. Faulkner. «Tuthmosis III. First Emperor in the History of Mankind. His Regal companions and a Great assistants» Oxford UNV Publishing, 1921 p.127.
51. ↑ For instance, the Egyptologist Alan Lloyd wrote "Given the context of Egyptian thought, economic life, and military interests, it is impossible for one to imagine what stimulus could have motivated Necho in such a scheme and if we cannot provide a reason which is sound within Egyptian terms of reference, then we have good reason to doubt the historicity of the entire episode." Lloyd, Alan B. (1977). "Necho and the Red Sea: Some Considerations". Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 63: 149. doi:10.2307/3856314.
52. ↑ M. J. Cary. The Ancient Explorers. Penguin Books, 1963. Page 114
53. ↑ Die umsegelung Asiens und Europas auf der Vega. Volume 2. By Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld. p148
54. ↑ Heinz Gartmann: Sonst stünde die Welt still. Das große Ringen um das Neue. Econ, Düsseldorf 1957
55. ↑ The Cambridge History of the British Empire. CUP Archive, 1963. p56
56. ↑ Lloyd, Alan B (1977). "Necho and the Red Sea: Some Considerations". Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 63: 142–155. doi:10.2307/3856314.
57. ↑ The Geographical system of Herodotus By James Rennel. p348+
58. ↑ Blake L. White, Ancient Egypt Provides an Early Example of How A Society's Worldview Drives Engineering and the Development of Science. Strategic Technology Institute. Page 2.
59. ↑ JG Manning, "Water, Irrigation, and Their Connection to State Power in Egypt" (Econ Yale 2012), 8.
60. ↑ "Amenemhet III". Britannica Concise. http://concise.britannica.com/ebc/article-9006076/Amenemhet-III.
61. ↑ JG Manning, "Water, Irrigation, and Their Connection to State Power in Egypt" (Econ Yale 2012), 9.
62. ↑ Helaine Elsin (2008). "Nilometer". Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in .... p. 1753.
63. ↑ Brian Fagan (1 August 2010). The Great Warming: Climate Change and the Rise and Fall of Civilizations. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 167. ISBN 978-1-59691-780-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=dpUDCcbmZJIC&pg=PT167.
64. ↑ Susan Hampton. "Glassmaking in Antiquity". The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. http://www.unc.edu/courses/rometech/public/content/arts_and_crafts/Susan_Hampton/Roman_Glass.html#Origin Myth.
65. ↑ "Glass making may have begun in Egypt, not Mesopotamia Artifacts from Iraq site show less sophisticated technique, color palette". 2016-11-22. https://www.sciencenews.org/article/glassmaking-may-have-begun-egypt-not-mesopotamia?tgt=nr.
66. ↑ Ronald A Wells, "Archaeoastronomy in Egypt", in Walker, Christopher, Ed Astronomy before the telescope, British Museum Press, 1996 p.28
67. ↑ John Britton and Christopher Walker, Astrology and Astronomy in Mesopotamia, in Walker, Christopher, Ed Astronomy before the telescope, British Museum Press, 1996 p. 42
68. ↑ Tyldesley, Joyce, Pyramids: The Real Story Behind Egypt's Ancient Monuments, Viking, 2003, p. 74
69. ↑ Neugebauer, Otto (1969). The Exact Sciences in Antiquity. Acta historica scientiarum naturalium et medicinalium. 9 (2 ed.). Dover Publications. pp. 1–191. ISBN 978-0-486-22332-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=JVhTtVA2zr8C. , p.86
70. ↑ De Santillana, G.; Von Dechend, H. (1977). Hamlet's Mill. David R. Godine. ISBN 9780879232153. https://books.google.com/books?id=ql7ATHGee50C.
71. ↑ Paul Jordan (2006). "Esoteric Egypt". in Garrett G. Fagan. Archaeological Fantasies:How Pseudoarchaeology Misrepresents the Past and Misleads the Public. Routledge. p. 123. ISBN 978-0-415-30593-8. https://books.google.com/books?id=oB7pBZ3s6dIC&q=precession+Egyptians&pg=PA123.
72. ↑ Shiffman, Melvin (2012-09-05). Cosmetic Surgery: Art and Techniques. Springer. p. 20. ISBN 978-3-642-21837-8.
73. ↑ "A note from history: landmarks in history of cancer, part 1". Cancer 117 (5): 1097–102. March 2011. doi:10.1002/cncr.25553. PMID 20960499.
74. ↑ 74.0 74.1 74.2 Zimmerman, Leo M.; Veith, Ilza (1993). Great Ideas in the History of Surgery. San Francisco: Jeremy Norman Publishing. ISBN 978-0-930405-53-3.
75. ↑ Sullivan, Richard (August 1996). "The Identity and Work of the Ancient Egyptian Surgeon". Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine (SAGE Publications) 89 (8): 467–73. doi:10.1177/014107689608900813. PMID 8795503.
76. ↑ van Middendorp, Joost J.; Sanchez, Gonzalo M.; Burridge, Alwyn L. (2010). "The Edwin Smith papyrus: a clinical reappraisal of the oldest known document on spinal injuries". European Spine Journal 19 (11): 1815–1823. doi:10.1007/s00586-010-1523-6. PMID 20697750.
77. ↑ Porter, R. (1997). The Greatest Benefit to Mankind: A Medical History of Humanity from Antiquity to the Present. Harper Collins. pp. 49–50. ISBN 978-0-00-215173-3.
78. ↑ Barr, Justin (July 2014). "Science Direct: Cardio-vascular system in Ancient Egypt.". Journal of Vascular Surgery 60 (1): 260–263. doi:10.1016/j.jvs.2014.04.056. PMID 24970660.
79. ↑ "No. 1705: A 3000-Year-Old Toe". Uh.edu. 2004-08-01. http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi1705.htm.
80. ↑ 80.0 80.1 Microsoft Word – Proceedings-2001.doc
81. ↑ 10th Annual Proceedings of the History of Medicine Days
82. ↑ "animal dung can have curative properties". http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0838/is_n65/ai_12694466.
83. ↑ "A comparative study of urban and rural tetanus in adults". Int J Epidemiol 7 (2): 185–8. June 1978. doi:10.1093/ije/7.2.185. PMID 681065.
84. ↑ Frank J. Snoek (August 2001). "The Mind Matters". Diabetes Spectrum 14 (3): 116–117. doi:10.2337/diaspect.14.3.116. http://spectrum.diabetesjournals.org/content/14/3/116.full.
85. ↑ Doherty, Sarah (2015). The Origins and Use of the Potter's Wheel in Ancient Egypt. Archaeopress. p. 66-68. ISBN 9781784910600.
86. ↑ M. Oats, Joclyn (2021). An Illustrated Guide to Furniture History. Routledge. ISBN 9781000406108. https://books.google.com/books?id=0_kvEAAAQBAJ&q=Earliest+woodworking+lathe.
87. ↑ Petrie, Sir William Matthew Flinders (1883). The Pyramids and Temples of Gizeh, chapter VIII. Cambridge University Press. https://archive.org/details/cu31924012038927. Retrieved 21 March 2023.
88. ↑ Köpp-Junk, Heidi (2016). "Wagons and Carts and Their Significance in Ancient Egypt". Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections 9: 14–58. https://www.academia.edu/39035175.
89. ↑ Hyskos introduced chariots to ancient Egypt
90. ↑ Heinrich Karl Brugsch-Bey and Henry Danby Seymour, "A History of Egypt Under the Pharaohs". J. Murray, 1881. Page 422. (cf., [... the symbol of a] 'serpent' is rather a fish, which still serves, in the Coptic language, to designate the electric fish [...])
91. ↑ Bruno Kolbe, Francis ed Legge, Joseph Skellon, tr., "An Introduction to Electricity". Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner, 1908. 429 pages. Page 391. (cf., "[...] high poles covered with copper plates and with gilded tops were erected 'to break the stones coming from on high'. J. Dümichen, Baugeschichte des Dendera-Tempels, Strassburg, 1877")
92. ↑ Stern, Bolko (1998). Ägyptische Kulturgeschichte. Reprint-Verlag-Leipzig. pp. 106–108. ISBN 978-3-8262-1908-5.
93. ↑ 93.0 93.1 Örjan Wikander (2008). "Chapter 6: Sources of Energy and Exploitation of Power". in John Peter Oleson. The Oxford Handbook of Engineering and Technology in the Classical World. Oxford University Press. pp. 141–2. ISBN 978-0-19-518731-1.
94. ↑ 94.0 94.1 Adriana de Miranda (2007). Water architecture in the lands of Syria: the water-wheels. L'Erma di Bretschneider. pp. 38–9. ISBN 978-88-8265-433-7.

## References

* Leslie C. Kaplan, "Technology of Ancient Egypt. 2004, 24 pages. ISBN 0-8239-6785-9
* Denys Allen Stocks "Experiments in Egyptian Archaeology: Stoneworking Technology in Ancient Egypt". Routledge, 2003. 336 pages. ISBN 0-415-30664-7
* Katheryn A. Bard" Encyclopedia of the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt By Katheryn A. Bard". Routledge, 1999. 968 pages. ISBN 0-415-18589-0
* R. J. Forbes, "Studies in Ancient Technology". 1966.
* Örjan Wikander, "Handbook of Ancient Water Technology". 2000.
* Patricia Blackwell Gary; Richard Talcott (June 2006). "Stargazing in Ancient Egypt". Astronomy 34 (6): 62–7. Bibcode: 2006Ast....34f..62G.
* Evans, James. The History and Practice of Ancient Astronomy. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.
* Pannekoek, A. A History of Astronomy. New York: Dover, 1961.
* Parker Richard A. "Egyptian Astronomy, Astrology, and Calendrical Reckoning". Dictionary of Scientific Biography 15: 706–727.
* Budge, E. A. Wallis. Egyptian Religion. Kessinger Publishing, 1900.
* Budge, E. A. Wallis. The Gods of the Egyptians Volume 1 of 2. New York: Dover Publications, 1969 (original in 1904).

## Further reading

* David, Rosalie A.; H.G.M. Edwards; D.W. Farwell (2001). "Raman Spectroscopic Analysis of Ancient Egyptian Pigments". Archaeometry 43 (4): 461–473. doi:10.1111/1475-4754.00029. Bibcode: 2001Archa..43..461R.
* Earl, Bryan (Summer 1995). "Tin Smelting at the Oriental Institute". The Oriental Institute News and Notes 146.
* Gourdin, W.H.; W.D. Kingery (1975). "The Beginnings of Pyrotechnology: Neolithic and Egyptian Lime Plaster". Journal of Field Archaeology 2 (1–2): 133–150. doi:10.1179/009346975791491277.
* Lucas, Alfred. 1962. Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 4th Edition. London: Edward Arnold Publishers.
* Meyer, Carol; Bir Umm Fawakhir (1997). "Insights into Ancient Egyptian Mining". JOM 49 (3): 64–8. doi:10.1007/BF02914661. Bibcode: 1997JOM....49c..64M.
* Nicholson, Paul T. and Ian Shaw, eds. 2000. Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology. University Press, Cambridge.
* Pulak, C. A (1998). "The Uluburun Shipwreck: An Overview". International Journal of Nautical Archaeology 27 (3): 188–224. doi:10.1111/j.1095-9270.1998.tb00803.x.
* Scheel, Bernd. 1989. Egyptian Metalworking and Tools. Haverfordwest, Great Britain: Shire Publications Ltd.
* Shaw, Ian. Editor. 2000. The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
* Shortland, A.J. (2004). "Evaporites of the Wadi Natrun: Seasonal and Annual Variation and its Implication for Ancient Exploitation". Archaeometry 46 (4): 497–516. doi:10.1111/j.1475-4754.2004.00170.x. Bibcode: 2004Archa..46..497S.
* Davis, Virginia. "Mines and Quarries of Ancient Egypt, an Introduction" Online article
* Institutt for Arkeologi, Kunsthistorie og Konservering website, in English at [1]

* v
* t
* e

History of technology

* History of technology cultures

* Prehistoric technology
* Neolithic
* Ancient Egypt
* Mayan
* Ancient Greek
* Roman
* Chinese
* Indian
* Byzantine
* Medieval Islam
* Medieval Europe
* Renaissance
* Ottoman
* Great Divergence
* Industrial Revolution
* Modern

* History of technology domains

* History of biotechnology
* History of communication
* History of computing hardware
* History of electrical engineering
* History of materials science
* History of measurement
* History of medicine
* History of nuclear technology
* History of transport

* v
* t
* e

Ancient Egypt topics

* Glossary of artifacts
* Index
* Main topics

* Agriculture
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* Trade
* Egypt–Mesopotamia relations

* Egyptology
* Egyptologists
* Museums

*   * Category
* Commons
* Outline
* WikiProject

* v
* t
* e

Ancient seafaring

Vessels

| Types|

* Balangay
* Bangka
* Beden
* Coracle
* Dhow
* Dragon boat
* Dugout canoe
* Fire ship
* Galley
* Penteconter
* Kunlun ship
* Liburna
* Longship
* Multihull
* Navis lusoria
* Obelisk ship
* Outriggers
* Sakman
* Single-outrigger
* Catamaran
* Trimaran
* Polyremes
* Bireme
* Oared warships
* Trireme
* Quadrireme
* Quinquereme
* Hexareme
* Tessarakonteres
* Raft
* Reed boat
* Sailing ship
* Solar ship
* Tomol
* Tākitimu
* Uru

|

by region|

* Austronesia
* Egypt
* Persia
* Rome

Propulsion|

* Paddling
* Sailing
* Towing
* Poling

Components|

* Anchor
* Bow
* Cabin
* Deck
* Figurehead
* Hull
* Planking
* Keel
* Mast
* Oar
* Paddle
* Rope
* Rudder
* Steering oar
* Sail
* Sail components
* Stem
* Sternpost
* Strake
* Tiller

Construction|

* Boat building
* Careening
* Carvel built
* Clinker built
* Dugout
* Framing
* Frame-first
* Shell-first
* Joinery
* Lashed-lug
* Mortise and tenon
* Phoenician joint
* Scarf joint
* Sewn-plank
* Shipbuilding
* By region:
* Egypt

Rigging|

* Crab claw
* Fore-and-aft
* Lateen
* Settee
* Tanja
* Triangular sail
* Junk
* Mast-aft
* Spritsail
* Square

Armaments|

* Ballista
* Catapult
* Corvus
* Dolphin
* Fire ship
* Harpax
* Ram
* Sambuca

Wrecks
and relics|

| Earliest|

* Pesse canoe
* Dufuna canoe
* Abydos
* Moor Sand
* Dokos
* Khufu ship
* Ferriby Boats
* Dover Bronze Age Boat
* Uluburun
* Canaanite
* Cape Gelidonya
* Zambratija
* Rochelongue

|

Austronesia|

* Pontian boat
* Butuan boats

Black Sea‎|

* Sinop D

Greek|

* Kyrenia
* Leontophoros
* Syracusia
* Ashkelon
* Antikythera

Canaanite
and Phoenician|

* Bajo de la Campana
* Canaanite shipwreck
* Gozo
* Ma'agan Michael
* Mazarrón

Punic|

* Marsala Punic shipwreck

Roman|

* Alkedo
* Arles Rhône 3
* Blackfriars I
* Caligula's Giant Ship
* De Meern ships
* Isis
* Madrague de Giens
* Nemi ships
* Marausa
* Yassi Ada

Nordic|

* Hjortspring boat
* Nydam boat

Lists|

* Oldest surviving
* Museum ships
* Surviving ancient ships

File:Galley - Layard - Ninive page 324 detail.png

Navigation, and ports and harbors

| Navigation|

* Celestial
* Charts
* Coastal
* Lighthouses
* History
* Ocean swell
* Stick chart
* Periplus
* Piloting
* Pilot boat
* Maritime pilot
* By region:
* Inuit
* Micronesian
* Polynesia

|

Ports and
harbors|

* Actium
* Aden
* Adulis
* Alexandria
* Apollonia
* Aradus
* Arikamedu
* Arsinoe
* Avalites
* Barbarikon
* Barygaza
* Basra
* Berenice Troglodytica
* Bosphorus
* Byblos
* Caesarea Maritima
* Canopus
* Carthage
* Centumcellae
* Charmutha
* Chittagong
* Delos
* Essina
* Giao Chỉ
* Godavaya
* Guangzhou
* Jambukola
* Jeddah
* Kaveri Poompattinam
* Kedah
* Korkai
* Leptis Magna
* Lothal
* Manthai
* Madurai
* Malao
* Mersa Gawasis
* Myos Hormos
* Martaban
* Mueang Phra Rot
* Muscat
* Muziris
* Narbonne
* Nesis
* Óc Eo (Cattigara)
* Opone
* Ostia Antica
* Palembang
* Piraeus
* Portus Augusti
* Portus Pisanus
* Prosphorion
* Ptolemais Theron
* Puteoli
* Qal'at al-Bahrain
* Qandala
* Quilon
* Rhacotis
* Sarapion
* Satingpra
* Sidon
* Socotra
* Sounagoura
* Thapsus
* Trincomalee
* Tulum
* Tyndis
* Tyre
* Wadi al-Jarf
* Zanzibar

File:Galley - Layard - Ninive page 324 detail.png

History

| Prehistory|

* Timeline
* Britain
* Oceania
* Remote
* Near
* Ubaid period
* Indus Valley

|

Civilizations|

* Ancient Egypt
* Old Kingdom
* Austronesia
* Sa Huỳnh
* Lapita
* Micronesia
* Langkasuka
* Kedah
* Champa
* Kutai
* Tarumanagara
* Kalingga
* Srivijaya
* Sunda
* Polynesia
* Minoan
* Indus Valley
* Tamilakam
* Chola
* Chera
* Pandya
* Somalia
* Dilmun
* Maya
* Nuragic
* Mycenaean
* Phoenicia
* Olmecs
* Carthage
* Greece
* Archaic
* Classical
* Rome
* Achaemenid
* Nabatea
* Aksum

Migration and
exploration|

* Peopling of Australia
* Peopling of Micronesia
* Austronesian Expansion
* Greeks in pre-Roman Gaul
* Ocean exploration
* Phoenician maritime expansion
* Sardinia
* Circumnavigation of Africa
* Pytheas's voyage to Britain
* Roman circumnavigation of Britain
* Timeline

Mariners and
explorers|

* Henenu
* Euthymenes
* Hanno the Navigator
* Himilco
* Sataspes
* Androsthenes of Thasos
* Archias of Pella
* Alexander the Great
* Nearchus
* Pytheas
* Megasthenes
* Xu Fu
* Hippalus
* Julius Caesar
* Eudoxus of Cyzicus
* Maes Titianus

Military|

| Navies|

* Egyptian
* Achaemenid
* Greek
* Roman

|

Battles|

* Mediterranean: Alashiya
* Nile Delta
* Salamis
* Artemisium
* Eurymedon
* Naupactus
* Olpae
* Syracuse
* Cynossema
* Arginusae
* Mytilene
* Hellespont
* Echinades
* Salamis II
* Mylae
* Cape Hermaeum
* Ecnomus
* Drepana
* Aegates
* Lake Trasimene
* Chios
* Myonessus
* Nile
* Naulochus
* Mycale
* Actium

Tactics|

* Boarding
* Grappling
* Incendiaries
* Oared vessels
* Sailing ships
* Greek navy
* Ramming

By region|

* China
* India
* Odisha
* Japan
* Rome
* South America
* Rafts

File:Galley - Layard - Ninive page 324 detail.png

Economy and trade

* Whaling
* Fishing
* Egypt
* Land of Punt
* Indo–Mesopotamia relations
* Meluhha
* Tin
* Spice trade
* Austronesian network
* Sa Huynh-Kalanay
* Incense trade
* Maritime Silk Road
* Periplus of the Erythraean Sea
* Maya
* Greece
* Greco–Indian
* shipping
* Rome
* Indo–Roman

File:Galley - Layard - Ninive page 324 detail.png

Piracy

* History
* Mediterranean piracy
* Ameinias the Phocian
* Cilician pirates
* Jewish pirates
* Kidnapping of Julius Caesar
* Pompey's campaign against the pirates

File:Galley - Layard - Ninive page 324 detail.png

Research and education

| Scholars|

| Historians|

* David Blackman
* Lionel Casson
* Fik Meijer
* John Sinclair Morrison
* William L. Rodgers
* Chester G. Starr

|

Archaeologists|

* George Bass
* Jean-Yves Empereur
* Boris Rankov
* J. Richard Steffy
* Peter Throckmorton
* Shelley Wachsmann

Topics
and theories|

* Coastal defence and fortification
* Grave goods
* Lighthouses
* Alexandria
* Marine art
* Marine navigation
* Maritime archaeology
* Naval warfare
* Maritime temples
* Temple of Isthmia
* Temple of Poseidon, Sounion
* Samothrace temple complex
* Nusantao network
* Phoenician discovery of America
* Pre-Columbian theories
* Sea Peoples
* Shipbuilding
* Shell middens
* Ship burial
* Tacking
* Thalassocracy
* Underwater archaeology
* Underwater exploration

Sites|

* H3
* Qal'at al-Bahrain

Experimental
archaeology|

* Ship replica
* Heyerdahl expeditions
* Kon-Tiki
* Ra and Ra II
* Austronesian replicas
* Hōkūleʻa
* Sarimanok
* Te Au o Tonga
* Hawaiʻiloa canoe
* Samudra Raksa
* Alingano Maisu
* Saina
* Balangay Voyage
* Faʻafaite
* Gaualofa
* Marumaru Atua
* Mediterranean
* Olympias
* Regina
* Phoenician Ship Expedition
* Viking replicas
* Viking
* Others
* Vital Alsar
* Ivlia
* Abora
* Viracocha
* Tangaroa
* Oakleaf
* Morgawr

Institutes and
conferences|

* Advisory Council on Underwater Archaeology
* Archaeological Institute of America
* European Association of Archaeologists
* Institute of Nautical Archaeology
* International Congress of Maritime Museums
* Nautical Archaeology Society
* RPM Nautical Foundation
* Sea Research Society
* Society for American Archaeology

Museums and
memorials|

* Boat Museum, Kolkata
* Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology
* Giza Solar boat museum
* Grand Egyptian Museum
* Ancient Shipwreck Museum at Kyrenia Castle
* Museum of Ancient Seafaring
* Museum of Ancient Ships, Pisa
* National Museum of Subaquatic Archaeology
* Viking ship museums:
* Oslo
* Roskilde

File:Galley - Layard - Ninive page 324 detail.png

Legend and literature

| Legend|

* Ark of bulrushes
* Flood myths
* Genesis
* Gilgamesh
* Greek

|

Literature|

* Odyssey
* Histories (Herodotus)
* On the Ocean
* Argonautica
* Histories (Polybius)
* Metamorphoses
* Geography
* Aeneid

File:Galley - Layard - Ninive page 324 detail.png

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