For most readers, the mention of Ancient Egypt is associated with the majestic Pyramids, mummies or the mysterious figure of the Sphinx. But the objects and documents discovered during the excavations show that the inhabitants of the land of the pharaohs long ago invented and created many of the things we use in our life today: for example, fountain pens and ink, high heels or sliding doors. Consider a few of these inventions, which are most firmly entrenched in our life.
For the oral cavity
Professor Frank Ruley of the University of Zurich has devoted many years to the study of Egyptian mummies. He claims that the ancient inhabitants of the African country often suffered from toothaches. This is due to the smallest sand, which, along with food, constantly got into the oral cavity and erased the tooth enamel.
Researchers believe that it was in ancient Egypt that the first dental fillings were used. They were made on the basis of resin, which was mixed with malachite powder - a stone with antiseptic properties.
In addition, ancient Egyptian healers are recognized as the inventors of toothpaste. At first (3,000 to 5,000 years ago), it consisted of a mixture of pumice, ash and vinegar that cleaned the teeth but damaged the enamel. According to the doctors' recommendations that have survived to this day, cleaning should be carried out in the morning and evening. The paste was applied to the teeth using the fingers, but a little later, the ancient Egyptians invented a toothbrush. One end of this stick was sharpened and served as a toothpick, and a stiff brush was attached to the other end.
About 2000 years ago, the composition of toothpaste changed and became more useful. The Austrian professor Hermann Harrauer found an ancient Egyptian papyrus in the Vienna Museum of Art History with a record of the ingredients of a powder that cleans teeth and makes them white. It was composed of salt, mint, pepper and dried iris flowers. When combined with saliva, the powder turned into a paste.
It is curious that modern doctors only relatively recently learned about the healing properties of iris for strengthening the gums. At the request of Professor Harrauer, Viennese dentists prepared this mixture, observing the indicated proportions, and tested it on volunteers. It turned out that the ancient Egyptian paste has a pleasant taste, it cleans teeth well and keeps pleasant sensations in the mouth for a long time.
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Also for the first time in the history of mankind, the ancient inhabitants of the Nile Valley used pills to freshen their breath - small chewing balls, which included tree resin, cinnamon and honey. Bad breath in those days was condemned not only because it was unpleasant to others - it was considered a sign of poverty: this person does not have the money to look after himself.
Shaving and depilation
Of course, the Egyptians weren't the first people to shave. Archaeologists have discovered that in this way the hair on the face and body with pointed stones was removed by the Neanderthals - about 100 thousand years ago. Then the shaving process was closely associated with tattoos - special cuts were applied to the cleansed skin, into which the dye was rubbed.
But the ancient Egyptians were the first to shave regularly - both women and men. All hair on the face and head was removed, including the eyebrows. This was due to many reasons. Lack of hair helped protect against lice and skin diseases. The warriors did not have to fear that the opponents would grab their hair. Religious considerations played a huge role - the ancient Egyptians believed that by shaving their hair, they became cleaner in front of the gods.
In addition, only the pharaoh and people who were especially close to him had the right to wear a beard (as a sign of power), and these beards were artificial.
It is curious that the famous female pharaoh Hatshepsut from the 18th dynasty, who ruled in the 15th century BC, also wore a false beard during official ceremonies. While other peoples removed hair with stone scrapers, the ancient Egyptians invented razors - they were made of copper or bronze and had a sickle shape.
But the most interesting invention in terms of body hair removal was female depilation. Yes, yes, the ancient Egyptians invented it too! Starting from the 4th millennium BC, Egyptian women began to remove hair on their legs to look more beautiful. At first they were simply shaved off, but after this simple procedure, they grow back. The women steamed their feet in hot water and pulled out hairs with special tweezers. The procedure, of course, was very painful. In the end, one of the queens of Ancient Egypt (different sources point to Nefertiti or Cleopatra) invented a depilation method close to the modern one. A thick mass of honey, wax and plant sap was applied to the legs and, after hardening, was torn off along with the hair. Isn't it very similar to today's funds?
First wigs
The shaved heads of men and women had to be somehow protected from the scorching sun. It is with this that scientists explain another invention of the ancient Egyptians - wigs. In addition to the main task, they had to decorate their owner and show his social status.
Wig from the era of the reign of Amenemhat III. Approximately two thousand years BC.
The largest and most expensive human hair wigs were worn by the country's most notable and wealthy. The wigs of the poorer people were made from sheep's wool, vegetable fibers, and even ropes. Artificial hair was black or dark in color, only in the last few centuries of the existence of the ancient Egyptian state came the fashion for light and even bright products - orange or blue.
Ancient Egyptian wigs were distinguished by the correct geometric shape - for example, a trapezoid or a ball. Their style has survived to this day: the popular bob haircut is essentially nothing more than a reproduction of Cleopatra's wig - long thick bangs and strict contours.
Sometimes, to protect against sunstroke, a second wig was worn on the first wig - and a layer of air between them protected the head from the heat. The hairstyles on the wigs were done by specially trained slave hairdressers. As the records on the papyri show, in the houses of the rich and noble Egyptians, each of them was a master of only one operation, so styling, curling, weaving of jewelry and other manipulations with wigs was carried out for a very long time and carefully.
In the era of the New Kingdom (from the 16th to the 11th century BC), small containers with aromatic oil were placed inside the wigs, which exuded a pleasant smell through special holes.
Beauty requires sacrifice
Among the inventions of Ancient Egypt, a number of cosmetics and make-up products can also be distinguished. According to research by scientists, face and body decoration originated in this country 4500 years ago and reached its heyday after about 1000 years. Moreover, cosmetics were popular among both women and men.
The ancient Egyptians paid special attention to eye makeup. They believed that painted eyelashes and thick eyeliner prevented the penetration of evil spirits through the eyeballs. In addition, the cosmetics helped protect the organs of vision from the bright sun.
The Egyptians considered the most beautiful eye color to be green. Men and women traced their eyelids with mascara made of soot with the addition of crushed minerals galena and malachite and having a greenish tint. From this mixture, when dried, they made hard sticks, with which they then outlined the contours of the eyes and smeared the eyelids. Thus, the first cosmetic pencils appeared.
After about a thousand years, a thick mass of antimony, crocodile droppings, water and honey began to be used for eyeliner. It was applied with a thin stick - this was already the prototype of the modern mascara brush.
Egyptian women associated themselves with cats, which were considered very beautiful and graceful creatures. Therefore, the eyes were tinted so that they looked slightly elongated and similar to a cat - almost the same makeup is applied today.
To give the face whiteness, the ancient Egyptians treated it with flour and plaster powder or covered it with lead white. Only the very wealthy could afford to use expensive rice powder. The skin of the face was cleaned with pumice stone and fine sand. After that, to make the face lighter (in Ancient Egypt, as in many hot countries, white skin was valued as a sign of beauty and nobility), a rather original ointment was applied to it. Her recipe has come down to us in the notes of the procedures that Cleopatra regularly did. The main component was crocodile droppings, to which white was added. Beauty truly demanded sacrifices!
In addition to decorative cosmetics, the Egyptians also used medicinal cosmetics. Women made masks from wheat dough soaked in donkey milk or from crushed snails with bean decoction. All cosmetic secrets were carefully guarded, because the Egyptians believed that the decoration of the human body is magical in nature: it allows you to prolong youth and be desired for the opposite sex.
The sun as a stimulant
The hot sun was the reason for another invention of the ancient Egyptians - sunglasses. Ordinary inhabitants of the country covered their eyes with papyrus visors. But for the rich and noble, plates were made of transparent stone, which were fastened with a metal bridge and resembled pince-nez. Similar glasses were found in the tomb of Tutankhamun (a pharaoh from the XVIII dynasty, who ruled in the XIV century BC), the plates in them were made of emerald, and the compound was made of bronze.
As you can see, many modern objects for us were invented thousands of years ago - and we are just improving what was a familiar part of the way of life of the ancient Egyptians.
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