Of all the ancient civilizations, the Egyptians are today one of the best known. The pyramids built by them stand to this day, and their mummies and sarcophagi are valuable exhibits in the most famous museums. But at the same time, few people know that much of what modern people use was invented during the time of Ancient Egypt.
10. Mathematics
Mathematics in Ancient Egypt
The Egyptians had a wonderful knowledge of mathematics. The earliest records of geometry come from Egypt, where geometry specialists were called "arpedonapti". They used ropes to calculate the area of land, and then eventually passed on this knowledge to the Greeks. The Egyptians also developed effective methods of multiplication and division, as well as fractions.
2. Bowling
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Ancient bowling
The Egyptians played a game very similar to modern bowling. Archaeologist William Matthews Flinders Petrie discovered a child's grave, which contained coarse pins and small balls, and concluded that they were play accessories. More solid evidence for this theory was found in the excavation of a second-century residential area. Several balls and a track with a hole in the middle were found in one of the rooms.
3. Alphabet
Egyptian alphabet
Of course, people today do not use the Egyptian alphabet, but the idea of the phonetic alphabet (where each character represents a sound, not a whole word) came from Egypt. Common Egyptian hieroglyphs used a character for each word, but there were also 24 characters that were used to represent sounds in order to somehow write borrowed foreign words.
4. Paper and letter
Although the Egyptians did not invent the paper that is used today, papyrus was a huge step up from carving texts on stone and clay tablets, both in terms of ease of writing and ease of carrying around. The Egyptians invented papyrus (and the reed pens with which they wrote on it) in 3000 BC, but it was not until 500 BC that they began to be widely used.
Papyrus became one of the largest export items for Egypt: it was very expensive and its manufacturing technology was heavily guarded. Inspired by the example of Egypt, Europe eventually switched to parchment, and then China invented paper in 100 BC, making it from mulberry bark and hemp rags.
5. Wigs
Ancient Egyptians in wigs
The ancient Egyptians had a dilemma: they didn’t want to wear long hair in the hot sun, but they also didn’t want to cut their hair so that the sun's rays would not burn their scalp, and also for fashion reasons. As a result, wigs appeared. Heat protection was far from the only reason the Egyptians started using wigs. They also protected against head lice.
6. Medical records
People have been healing wounds with all kinds of herbs and crushed animal parts for a long time. However, with their new and convenient writing techniques, the Egyptians left behind some of the oldest descriptions of medical procedures and medicinal recipes. So far, scientists have found nine separate papyrus journals that talk about how the Egyptians treated patients.
7. Surgery
Surgery originally from Ancient Egypt
Continuing the theme of medicine, the Egyptians were the civilization that owned the earliest surgical instruments discovered. They were found in the grave of Kara, who was known as "the palace physician and keeper of the Pharaoh's secrets." In the grave next to Kara's head, several bronze surgical instruments were found, each with a hole for hanging on a hook.
8. Door locks
Ancient Egyptians door locks
In fact, the Egyptians did not invent door locks (the Assyrians did), but the Egyptians popularized them and improved on the original design. Egyptian designs are remarkably similar to those in use today, except that the mechanisms were made of wood or brass. In the end, it was much cheaper than hiring a security guard. Eventually, the castles spread throughout Greece and the Roman Empire.
9. Toothpaste
Egyptian tooth sticks
Methods for keeping teeth clean have been around for a while, but the Egyptians invented the first ever oral health care product. In some Egyptian tombs, toothbrushes have been found that were made from a twig macerated at one end. A recipe for toothpaste was found in papyrus documents: 1 drachma (0.3 grams) of rock salt, two drachmas of mint, 1 drachma of dried iris flower, and a little pepper.
10. Glass
Glass vase from Ancient Egypt
Evidence that humans created and used glass in handicrafts can be found as far back as 3500 BC. - in the Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations. Mostly glass was used in the form of small glass beads. The Egyptians then discovered an efficient method of making vases by pouring molten glass into molds of compacted sand. The earliest discovered Egyptian vases were dedicated to Pharaoh Thutmose III and date from around 1500 BC. e.