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'''Ancient Egyptian technology''' describes devices and technologies invented or used in [[Ancient Egypt]]. The [[Egyptians]] invented and used many [[simple machines]], such as the [[inclined plane|ramp]] and the [[lever]], to aid construction processes. They used [[rope]] [[truss]]es to stiffen the [[beam (nautical)|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 history|maritime]] technology including [[ship]]s and [[lighthouse]]s.
[[File:Ancient Egypt rope manufacture.jpg|thumb|222px|right|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]]

==Technology in Dynastic Egypt==
Significant advances in [[ancient Egypt]] during the [[History of ancient Egypt|dynastic period]] include [[astronomy]], [[Egyptian mathematics|mathematics]], and [[Ancient Egyptian medicine|medicine]]. Their [[geometry]] was a necessary outgrowth of [[surveying]] to preserve the layout and ownership of farmland, which was flooded annually by the [[Nile river]]. 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#Alchemy in Ancient Egypt|alchemy]] research for much of the western world.

===Paper and writing===
[[File:Egypt.Papyrus.01.jpg|thumb|222px|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 [[Egypt]]ian [[writing material]] called [[papyrus]], which was formed from beaten strips of [[Cyperus papyrus|papyrus plants]]. Papyrus was produced as early as 3000 BC in Egypt, and sold to ancient [[Greece]] and [[Rome]]. The establishment of the [[Library of Alexandria]] limited the supply of papyrus for others. As a result, according to the Roman historian [[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]] ([[Natural History (Pliny)|Natural History]] records, xiii.21), [[parchment]] was invented under the patronage of [[Eumenes II of Pergamon]] to build his rival library at [[Pergamon]]. This however 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 were derived. With this ability, writing and record keeping, the Egyptians developed one of the —if not ''the''— first [[Decimal|decimal system]].<ref>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.''")</ref><ref>Robert E Krebs,
Groundbreaking scientific experiments, inventions, and discoveries of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Page 127. {{ISBN|0-313-32433-6}}</ref><ref>Thomas Little Heath, Manual of Greek Mathematics. Page 11.</ref>

The city of [[Alexandria]] retained preeminence for its records and scrolls with its [[Library of Alexandria|library]]. That ancient library was damaged by fire when it fell under Roman rule,<ref name="Plutarch">[[Plutarch]], ''Life of Caesar'' 49.3.</ref> and was destroyed completely by 642&nbsp;CE.<ref>[[Abd al-Latif al-Baghdadi (medieval writer)|Abd-el-latif]] (1203): "the library which [[Amr ibn al-A'as|'Amr ibn al-'As]] burnt with the permission of '[[Umar]]."</ref><ref>''Europe: A History'', p 139. Oxford: Oxford University Press 1996. {{ISBN|0-19-820171-0}}</ref> With it, a huge amount of antique literature, history, and knowledge was lost.

===Structures and construction===

====Tools====
Some of the older tools 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”. <ref>A. Lucas and J. Harris, "Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries" (New York: Courier Corporation, 2012), 48.</ref> Other tools that were used were "limestone, chiseled stones, wooden mallets, and stone hammers". <ref>A. Lucas and J. Harris, "Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries" (New York: Courier Corporation, 2012), 64.</ref> With these tools, ancient Egyptians were able to create more than just housing, but also sculptures of their gods, goddesses, pyramids, etc.

====Buildings====
Many [[Egyptian temple|temple]]s from Ancient Egypt 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 jewellery 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.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://whatiscivilengineering.csce.ca/history_engineering.htm |title=What is Civil Engineering: Imhotep |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080112195627/http://whatiscivilengineering.csce.ca/history_engineering.htm |archivedate=2008-01-12 |df= }}</ref>

[[File:PHAROS2006.jpg|thumb|right|222px|The [[Lighthouse of Alexandria]] on the island of Pharos.]]
In [[Ptolemaic Egypt|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&nbsp;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. A 2006 drawing of it created from the study of many references, is shown at the right.

====Monuments====
{{main|Egyptian pyramids|Egyptian pyramid construction techniques}}
The Nile valley has been the site of one of the most influential [[civilization]]s in the world with its architectural monuments, which include the [[pyramids of Giza]] and the [[Great Sphinx]]—among the largest and most famous buildings in the world.

[[File:Egypt.Giza.Sphinx.01.jpg|222px|thumb|Giza Plateau, Cairo. Khafre's pyramid in the background]]
The most famous [[pyramid]]s are the [[Egyptian pyramids]]—huge structures built of brick or stone, some of which are among the largest constructions by humans. Pyramids functioned as [[tomb]]s for [[pharaoh]]s. 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 {{convert|13|acre|m2}} in area. It is one of the [[Seven Wonders of the Ancient World|Seven Wonders of the World]], and the only one of the seven to survive into modern times. The [[Ancient Egypt]]ians capped the peaks of their pyramids with gold 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]] of [[Ancient Egypt|Egypt]] (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. [[26th century BC|2580 BC]]) contains a huge granite [[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]] (see [[Dahshur]]). Other uses in [[Ancient Egypt]],<ref>[http://www.eeescience.utoledo.edu/Faculty/Harrell/Egypt/Mosques/CAIRO_Rocks_1.htm eeescience utoledo.edu : Cairo Rocks]</ref> include [[column]]s, door [[lintel]]s, [[Sill plate|sill]]s, [[jamb]]s, and wall and floor [[wiktionary:veneer|veneer]].

The ancient Egyptians had some of the first monumental stone buildings (such as in [[Sakkara]]). How the [[Egyptians]] worked the solid [[granite]] is still a matter of debate. Archaeologist [[Patrick Hunt (archeologist)|Patrick Hunt]]<ref>[http://hebsed.home.comcast.net/hunt.htm Arce/Nc Archives] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071014031747/http://hebsed.home.comcast.net/hunt.htm |date=October 14, 2007 }}</ref> has postulated that the Egyptians used [[Emery (mineral)|emery]] shown to have higher [[Hardenability|hardness]] on the [[Mohs scale of mineral hardness|Mohs scale]]. Regarding construction, of the various methods possibly used by builders, the [[lever]] moved and uplifted [[obelisk]]s weighing more than 100 [[Tonne|tons]].

====Obelisks and pillars====
[[Obelisk]]s were a prominent part of the architecture of the ancient Egyptians, who placed them in pairs at the entrances of various monuments and important buildings, such as temples. In 1902, Encyclopædia Britannica wrote, "The earliest temple obelisk still in position is that of [[Senusret I]] of the XIIth Dynasty at Heliopolis (68&nbsp;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 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 (magazine)|Astronomy]]'' senior editor Richard Talcott that the shapes of the [[ancient Egypt]]ian [[pyramid]] and Obelisk were derived from natural phenomena associated with the [[sun]] (the sun-god [[Ra]] being the Egyptians' greatest deity).<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Patricia Blackwell Gary |author2=Richard Talcott |title=Stargazing in Ancient Egypt |journal=[[Astronomy (magazine)|Astronomy]] |pages=62–7 |date=June 2006 }}</ref> It was also thought that the deity existed within the structure. The Egyptians also used [[Column|pillar]]s extensively.

It is unknown whether the Ancient Egyptians had [[kite]]s, but a team led by Maureen Clemmons and Mory Gharib raised a 5,900-pound, {{convert|15|ft|m|sing=on}} obelisk into vertical position with a kite, a system of pulleys, and a support frame.<ref name="autogenerated1">[http://pr.caltech.edu/media/Press_Releases/PR12164.html Caltech researchers successfully raised an obelisk with a kite to test theory about ancient pyramids]</ref> Maureen Clemmons developed the idea that the ancient Egyptians used kites for work.<ref name="autogenerated1"/> 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. Maureen Clemmons subsequently lead a team of researchers demonstrating a kite made of natural material and reinforced with shellac (which according to their research pulled with 97% the efficiency of nylon), in a 9&nbsp;mph wind, would easily pull an average 2-ton pyramid stone up the 1st two courses of a pyramid (in collaboration with Cal Poly, Pomona, on a 53-stone pyramid built in Rosamond, CA).
[[File:Wells egyptian ship red sea.png|thumb|222px|Egyptian ship, 1250&nbsp;B.C. Egyptian ship on the Red Sea, showing a board truss being used to stiffen the beam of this ship]]

===Navigation and ship building===
The Ancient Egyptians had knowledge to some extent of [[sail]] construction. This is governed by the [[science]] of [[aerodynamics]].<ref>A primary feature of a properly designed sail is an amount of "[[draft (sailing)|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.</ref> The earliest Egyptian sails were simply placed to catch the wind and push a vessel.<ref name="SportsStudies">Encyclopedia Of International Sports Studies. Page 31</ref> Later Egyptian sails dating to 2400 BCE were built with the recognition that ships could sail [[close-hauled|against the wind]] using the [[forces on sails|lift of the sails]].<ref name="SportsStudies"/><ref>Technological Choices: Transformation in Material Cultures. Page 410.</ref> Queen [[Hatshepsut]] oversaw the preparations and funding of an expedition of five ships, each measuring seventy feet long, and ''with several sails''.{{dubious - discuss|date=July 2017}}{{citation needed|date=July 2017}}Various others exist, also.
<Gallery>
File:Illustrerad Verldshistoria band I Ill 008.jpg|Egyptian ship with a loose-footed sail, similar to a [[longship]]. From the 5th dynasty (around 2700 BC)
File:Antico regno, modello di nave, da saqqara, 01.JPG|Model ship from the [[Old Kingdom]] (2686–2181 BC)
Image:Maler der Grabkammer des Menna 013.jpg|Stern-mounted steering oar of an Egyptian riverboat depicted in the Tomb of [[Menna]] (c. 1422–1411&nbsp;B.C.) Note that the sail is stretched between yards.
File:Die Gartenlaube (1886) b 796 1.jpg|Loading Egyptian vessels with the produce of [[Land of Punt|Punt]]. Shows folded sails, lowered upper yard, yard construction, and heavy [[deck cargo]].
</Gallery>
Ancient Egyptians had experience with building a variety of ships.<ref>[http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/shipsandboats.htm Ships and boats in Egypt]</ref><ref>[http://www.solarnavigator.net/ancient_egyptian_boat_building.htm Ancient Egyptian boat building]</ref><ref>[http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/timelines/topics/shipconstruction.htm Shipbuilding in Ancient Egypt]</ref> Some of them survive to this day as [[Khufu Solar ship]].<ref>[http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt//timelines/topics/solarships.htm Solar ships]</ref> The ships were found in many areas of Egypt as the [[Ancient Egyptian Boats (First Dynasty) – Abydos|Abydos boats]]<ref>[http://www.archaeology.org/online/news/abydos.html The Abydos Ship]</ref><ref name="autogenerated3">[http://www.anthro.fsu.edu/people/faculty/ward/ward2006.pdf Sakkara and Abydous Ship Graves] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929113132/http://www.anthro.fsu.edu/people/faculty/ward/ward2006.pdf |date=September 29, 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Abydos Boat |url=http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Alley/4482/Abydosboat.html |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/5kn6qJhuJ?url=http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Alley/4482/Abydosboat.html |archivedate=2009-10-25 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref> and remnants of other ships were found near the pyramids.<ref name="autogenerated3"/><ref>[http://www.digitalegypt.ucl.ac.uk/travel/ships.html Ancient Egypt Ships]</ref><ref>[http://homepage.powerup.com.au/~ancient/museum10.htm Ship Minimatures at Egyptian museum] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080722131827/http://homepage.powerup.com.au/~ancient/museum10.htm |date=2008-07-22 }}</ref>

Sneferu's ancient cedar wood ship [[Praise of the Two Lands (ship)|Praise of the Two Lands]] is the first reference recorded to a ship being referred to by name.<ref name ="famousfirstfacts">Anzovin, item # 5393, page 385 ''Reference to a ship with a name appears in an inscription of 2613 BCE that recounts the shipbuilding achievements of the fourth-dynasty Egyptian pharaoh Sneferu. He was recorded as the builder of a cedarwood vessel called "Praise of the Two Lands."''</ref>

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).

===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]]).<ref>Blake L. White, [http://www.strategic-tech.org/images/Egyptian_Engineering_and_Culture.pdf Ancient Egypt Provides an Early Example of How A Society's Worldview Drives Engineering and the Development of Science]. Strategic Technology Institute. Page 2.</ref> 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 survival domesticated animals, crops, and the people of Egypt, there were times where the Nile would flood the area wreaking havoc amongst the land. <ref>JG Manning, "Water, Irrigation, and Their Connection to State Power in Egypt" (Econ Yale 2012), 8.</ref> There is evidence of the ancient Egyptian [[pharaoh]] [[Amenemhet III]] in the [[Twelfth dynasty of Egypt|twelfth dynasty]] (about 1800 [[Common era|BCE]]) using the natural lake of the [[Al Fayyum|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]].<ref>{{cite web
|title=Amenemhet III
|work=
|publisher=Britannica Concise
|date=
|url=http://concise.britannica.com/ebc/article-9006076/Amenemhet-III
|format=
|doi=
|accessdate=2007-01-10
}}{{dead link|date=May 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> 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. <ref>JG Manning, "Water, Irrigation, and Their Connection to State Power in Egypt" (Econ Yale 2012), 9.</ref>

===Glassworking===
Egyptian knowledge of glassmaking was advanced.<ref>[http://www.lockergnome.com/news/2007/12/17/ancient-egyptian-glassmaking-recreated/ Ancient Egyptian Glassmaking Recreated]. Lockergnome, December 17, 2007</ref> The earliest known [[glass]] beads from [[Egypt]] were made during the [[New Kingdom]] around 1500&nbsp;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]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.unc.edu/courses/rometech/public/content/arts_and_crafts/Susan_Hampton/Roman_Glass.html#Origin%20Myth| title = Glassmaking in Antiquity| accessdate = 2007-03-21| author = Susan Hampton| publisher = The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20070405113459/http://www.unc.edu/courses/rometech/public/content/arts_and_crafts/Susan_Hampton/Roman_Glass.html| archivedate= 5 April 2007 <!--DASHBot-->| deadurl= no}}</ref>

===Astronomy===
{{main|Egyptian calendar|Archaeoastronomy}}
The Egyptians were a practical people and this is reflected in their astronomy<ref>Ronald A Wells, "Archaeoastronomy in Egypt", in Walker, Christopher, Ed ''Astronomy before the telescope'', British Museum Press, 1996 p.28</ref> in contrast to Babylonia where the first astronomical texts were written in astrological terms.<ref>John Britton and Christopher Walker, Astrology and Astronomy in Mesopotamia, in Walker, Christopher, Ed ''Astronomy before the telescope'', British Museum Press, 1996 p. 42</ref> Even before Upper and Lower Egypt were unified in 3000 BCE, 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 mud-brick 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.<ref>Tyldesley, Joyce, Pyramids: The Real Story Behind Egypt's Ancient Monuments, Viking, 2003, p. 74</ref>

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.<ref>{{Cite book | edition = 2 | publisher = [[Dover Publications]] | last = Neugebauer | first = Otto | author-link = Otto E. Neugebauer | title = The Exact Sciences in Antiquity | origyear = 1957 | year = 1969 | isbn = 978-0-486-22332-2 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JVhTtVA2zr8C}}, p.86</ref> 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 (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.

During the [[Fifth Dynasty]] six kings built sun temples in honour of Ra. The temple complexes built by [[Niuserre]] at [[Abu Gurab]] and [[Userkaf]] at [[Abusir]] have been excavated and have astronomical alignments, and the roofs of some of the buildings could have been used by observers to view the stars, calculate the hours at night and predict the sunrise for religious festivals.{{citation needed|date=September 2013}}

[[File:Dendera.jpg|222px|thumb|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]].<ref>{{cite book |last=De Santillana |first=G. |last2=Von Dechend |first2=H. |title=Hamlet's Mill |year=1977 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ql7ATHGee50C |publisher=David R. Godine |isbn=9780879232153}}</ref> 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." <ref>{{cite book|title=Archaeological Fantasies:How Pseudoarchaeology Misrepresents the Past and Misleads the Public|year=2006|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-30593-8|url=https://books.google.com/?id=oB7pBZ3s6dIC&pg=PA123&dq=precession+Egyptians#v=onepage&q=precession%20Egyptians&f=false|author =Paul Jordan|editor=Garrett G. Fagan|page=123|chapter=Esoteric Egypt}}</ref>

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===
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]]. However, medical historians believe that ancient Egyptian pharmacology was largely ineffective.<ref name="autogenerated2">[http://www.hom.ucalgary.ca/Dayspapers2001.pdf Microsoft Word – Proceedings-2001.doc] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080407062556/http://www.hom.ucalgary.ca/Dayspapers2001.pdf |date=April 7, 2008 }}</ref> According to a paper published by Michael D. Parkins, 72% of 260 medical prescriptions in the Hearst Papyrus had no curative elements.<ref>[http://www.hom.ucalgary.ca/Dayspapers2001.pdf 10th Annual Proceedings of the History of Medicine Days] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080407062556/http://www.hom.ucalgary.ca/Dayspapers2001.pdf |date=April 7, 2008 }}</ref> According to Michael D. Parkins, sewage pharmacology first began in ancient Egypt and was continued through the Middle Ages,<ref name="autogenerated2"/> and while the use of animal dung can have curative properties,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0838/is_n65/ai_12694466 |title=animal dung can have curative properties |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=http://web.archive.bibalex.org/web/20040918170945/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0838/is_n65/ai_12694466 |archivedate=2004-09-18 |df= }} </ref> 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.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1093/ije/7.2.185 |vauthors=Mamtani R, Malhotra P, Gupta PS, Jain BK |title=A comparative study of urban and rural tetanus in adults |journal=Int J Epidemiol |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=185–8 |date=June 1978 |pmid=681065 |url=http://ije.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=681065}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite journal |author =Frank J. Snoek |date=August 2001 |title=The Mind Matters |journal=Diabetes Spectrum |volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=116–117 |doi=10.2337/diaspect.14.3.116 |url=http://spectrum.diabetesjournals.org/content/14/3/116.full }}</ref>

[[Mummy|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. The Egyptian funeral was a complex ceremony including various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in honor of the deceased. The poor, who could not afford expensive tombs, were buried in shallow graves in the sand, and because of the arid environment they were often naturally mummified.

===The Wheel===
Evidence indicates that Egyptians made use of [[potter's wheel]]s in the manufacturing of pottery from as early as the [[4th Dynasty]].<ref>{{cite thesis |last=Doherty |first=Sarah |date=2013 |title=The origins and the use of the potters wheel in Ancient Egypt. |type= |chapter= |publisher=Cardiff University |docket= |oclc= |url=http://orca.cf.ac.uk/45612/ |access-date=8 January 2016}}</ref> [[Chariots]], however, are only believed to have been introduced by the invasion of the [[Hyksos]] in the [[Second Intermediate period]];<ref>[http://www.historymatters.appstate.edu/documents/egyptchariots_000.pdf Hyskos introduced chariots to ancient Egypt] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100629203129/http://www.historymatters.appstate.edu/documents/egyptchariots_000.pdf |date=June 29, 2010 }}</ref> during the [[New Kingdom|New Kingdom era]], [[Chariotry in ancient Egypt|chariotry]] became central to Egypt's [[Military of ancient Egypt#New Kingdom Armies|military]].

===Other developments===
[[File:Henry Holiday weaving and spinning in ancient Egypt.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Stained glass window from c. 1914 depicting weaving and spinning in ancient Egypt]]
The Egyptians developed a variety of [[furniture]]. There in the lands of ancient Egypt is the first evidence for [[Chair|stool]]s, [[bed]]s, and [[Table (furniture)|table]]s (such as from the tombs similar to Tutenkhamen's). Recovered Ancient Egyptian furniture includes a third millennium BC bed discovered in the Tarkhan Tomb, a c.2550&nbsp;BC. gilded set from the tomb of Queen [[Hetepheres I]], and a c. 1550&nbsp;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 eel]]s).<ref>Heinrich Karl Brugsch-Bey and Henry Danby Seymour, "''[https://books.google.com/books?vid=0CJl3KVQupibKmzuADNu17&id=LoiTizgRo9kC 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'' [...])</ref> The comment about lightning appears to come from a misunderstanding of a text referring to "high poles covered with copper plates" to argue this<ref>Bruno Kolbe, Francis ed Legge, Joseph Skellon, tr., "''[https://books.google.com/books?vid=0o90G64Z2FDIyKUsLs9&id=150IAAAAIAAJ 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")</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite book | last = Stern | first = Bolko | title = Ägyptische Kulturgeschichte | publisher = Reprint-Verlag-Leipzig |origyear=1896 |date=1998 | pages = 106–108 | isbn = 978-3-8262-1908-5 }}</ref>

[[File:Dendera light 002.jpg|222px|thumb|The single representation of the image, called the "[[Dendera light]]" by some alternative suggestions, exists on the left wall of the right wing in one of the crypts of the [[Hathor temple]]]]

Those exploring [[fringe science|fringe theories]] of [[History of technology|ancient technology]] have suggested that there were [[Dendera light|electric lights used in Ancient Egypt]]. Engineers have constructed a working model based on their interpretation of a relief found in the [[Hathor]] temple at the Dendera Temple complex.<ref name="KrassaHabeck">Krassa, P., and R. Habeck, "''Das Licht der Pharaonen.''". {{ISBN|3-548-35657-5}} (Tr. ''The Light of the Pharaohs'')</ref> Authors (such as [[Peter Krassa]] and [[Reinhard Habeck]]) have produced a basic theory of the device's operation.<ref name="KrassaHabeck"/> The standard explanation, however, for the ''[[Dendera light]]'', which comprises three stone reliefs (one single and a double representation) is that the depicted image represents a lotus leaf and flower from which a sacred snake is spawned in accordance with Egyptian mythological beliefs. This sacred snake sometimes is identified as the Milky Way (the snake) in the night sky (the leaf, lotus, or "bulb") that became identified with Hathor because of her similar association in creation.

==Later technology in Egypt==

===Greco-Roman Egypt===
{{main|Ancient Greek technology|Roman technology}}

Under [[Ptolemaic Egypt|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 [[History of Roman Egypt|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.<ref name=Wikander/><ref name=Miranda/> This is seen as an evolution of the paddle-driven water-lifting wheels that had been known in Egypt a century earlier.<ref name=Wikander>{{Cite book|contribution=Chapter 6: Sources of Energy and Exploitation of Power|author =Örjan Wikander| author-link = Örjan Wikander|title=The Oxford Handbook of Engineering and Technology in the Classical World|editor=John Peter Oleson|editor-link=John Peter Oleson|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2008|isbn=0-19-518731-8|pages=141–2|postscript={{inconsistent citations}}}}</ref> 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 Philopator|Ptolemy IV]] in the late 3rd century BC.<ref name=Miranda>{{Cite book|title=Water architecture in the lands of Syria: the water-wheels|author =Adriana de Miranda|publisher=L'Erma di Bretschneider|year=2007|isbn=88-8265-433-8|pages=38–9|postscript={{inconsistent citations}}}}</ref>

[[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===
{{main|Inventions in medieval Islam|Muslim Agricultural Revolution|Timeline of science and engineering in the Islamic world}}

Under [[History of Arab Egypt|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 [[Battle of Baghdad (1258)|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 [[Islamic Golden Age|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 Egypt-related topics]]
* [[Egyptian chronology]]
* [[History of ancient Egypt]]
* [[History of technology]]
* [[Egyptian mathematics]]
* [[History of science in early cultures]]
* [[Astrology and astronomy]]
* [[Archaeoastronomy]]
* [[Hand drill (hieroglyph)]]
* [[Imhotep]]
* [[Hero of Alexandria]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|2}}

==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.
* {{cite journal |author1=Patricia Blackwell Gary |author2=Richard Talcott |title=Stargazing in Ancient Egypt |journal=Astronomy |pages=62–7 |date=June 2006 }}
* 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.
* {{cite journal | author = Parker Richard A | year = | title = Egyptian Astronomy, Astrology, and Calendrical Reckoning | url = | journal = Dictionary of Scientific Biography | volume = 15 | issue = | pages = 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==
* Anzovin, Steven et al., ''Famous First Facts (International Edition)'', H. W. Wilson Company, 2000, {{ISBN|0-8242-0958-3}}
* {{cite journal |doi=10.1111/1475-4754.00029 |author =David, Rosalie A. |author2=H.G.M. Edwards |author3=D.W. Farwell ||last-author-amp=yes |title=Raman Spectroscopic Analysis of Ancient Egyptian Pigments |journal=Archaeometry |volume=43 |issue=4 |pages=461–473 |year=2001 }}
* {{cite journal |author =Earl, Bryan |title=Tin Smelting at the Oriental Institute |journal=The Oriental Institute News and Notes |volume=146 |date=Summer 1995 }}
* {{cite journal |author1=Gourdin, W.H. |author2=W.D. Kingery |title=The Beginnings of Pyrotechnology: Neolithic and Egyptian Lime Plaster |journal=Journal of Field Archaeology |year=1975 | doi = 10.1179/009346975791491277 |jstor=529624 |volume=2 |pages=133–150}}
* [[Alfred Lucas|Lucas, Alfred]]. 1962. Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 4th Edition. London: Edward Arnold Publishers.
* {{cite journal |doi=10.1007/BF02914661 |author =Meyer, Carol |author2=Bir Umm Fawakhir |title=Insights into Ancient Egyptian Mining |journal=JOM |volume=49 |issue=3 |pages=64–8 |year=1997 |bibcode = 1997JOM....49c..64M }}
* Nicholson, Paul T. and Ian Shaw, eds. 2000. Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology. University Press, Cambridge.
* {{cite journal |author =Pulak, C. A |title=The Uluburun Shipwreck: An Overview |journal=International Journal of Nautical Archaeology |volume=27 |pages=188–224 |year=1998 |doi=10.1111/j.1095-9270.1998.tb00803.x |issue=3}}
* 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.
* {{cite journal |doi=10.1111/j.1475-4754.2004.00170.x |author =Shortland, A.J. |title=Evaporites of the Wadi Natrun: Seasonal and Annual Variation and its Implication for Ancient Exploitation |journal=Archaeometry |volume=46 |issue=4 |pages=497–516 |year=2004 }}
* Davis, Virginia. "Mines and Quarries of Ancient Egypt, an Introduction" [http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/minesandquarries1.htm Online article]
* Institutt for Arkeologi, Kunsthistorie og Konservering website, in English at [https://web.archive.org/web/20080129184449/http://www.hf.uio.no/iakh/forskning/sarc/iakh/lithic/LEV/Lev.html]

==External links==
==External links==
* [http://egipto.com/obeliscos/obeliskindex.html History of the Egyptian obelisks], egipto.com
* [http://egipto.com/obeliscos/obeliskindex.html History of the Egyptian obelisks], egipto.com

Revision as of 20:47, 18 January 2018

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