The "Sakkar bird" is an artifact that was discovered in Egypt near the Saqqara pyramid in 1898 during the excavation of Padimen's grave. The subject of a small bird has sparked a lively debate among scientists.
The fact is that this small wooden figurine is about 2200 years old. And its shape, although it resembles a bird, is much closer to the aerodynamic contours of current aircraft. In addition, the figure bears the inscription “Amun's Gift”, and next to it were found three papyri containing the phrase “I want to fly”.
According to Dr. Kalil Messia, who discovered the figurine, all these details indicate that the inhabitants of Ancient Egypt built this model under the impression of some kind of flying machine, which could either be built or seen somewhere. Messia noted that the bird has aerodynamic qualities, and the only detail that is missing is the tail unit with stabilizers. With them, she could take off.
To test his theory, the scientist built a model with an added tail unit that could actually fly. In 2006, another replica of the Sakkar Bird was built by an expert in aerodynamics and aviation, Simon Sanders. He even tested it in a wind tunnel, albeit without a tail. As a result, it turned out that the "bird" can carry a load through the air four times its weight.
There was another attempt to test the flying qualities of the artifact, which was made in 2002 by the glider designer Martin Gregory. True, he got different results. When creating the model, balsa was used, and the following conclusion was made: flight was possible only with a tail fin, but even with it, the efficiency would be very low. Therefore, Gregory concluded that the bird was just a toy.
According to most archaeologists, in reality, the artifact is just a bird that accidentally turned out to be like a glider. It is possible that this is part of the bow figures that were used on sacred boats.
We know for sure that the Egyptians had a well-developed civilization. They achieved great success in engineering, architecture and art. So maybe this miniature model was an attempt to create a real aircraft? Moreover, considering the papyri found next to it, as well as its specific characteristics.
