When you hear about Ancient Egypt, what's the first thing that comes to your mind? Maybe pyramids? Or the pharaohs? But Ancient Egypt was much more than that. It was one of the most successful, progressive and resilient civilizations in history. Today's article contains facts and myths about Ancient Egypt that you might not know about.
The ancient Egyptians were very tolerant of genetic diseases and abnormalities. Dwarfism, for example, was very common at the time. However, the dwarfs were highly respected people. Amenemopetus, a Pharaoh from the 21st Dynasty, wrote that caring for the old, the sick, and the ugly is the moral duty of every Egyptian.
Pharaohs wore metal fake beards to resemble the god Osiris, whose duty was to judge the deceased in the afterlife.
There is ample evidence that the ancient Egyptians were very well versed in mathematics and astronomy. It was found, for example, that the location of the pyramids of Giza exactly coincides with the Orion belt.
There are also many strange facts about Ancient Egypt. For example, some pharaohs forced their servants to smear themselves in honey so that flies would stick to them and not bother the pharaohs.
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The ancient Egyptians spent their free time playing interesting board games such as, for example, "Mehen" and "Mancala". However, the most popular game was considered "Senet" - one of the oldest board games in the world, the origin of which dates back to 3100 BC.
Hygiene and appearance were very important to the ancient Egyptians. The men shaved their entire bodies and enjoyed using floral scents. It is not surprising that it was the pharaohs who used the most fragrant and expensive perfume.
The Nile River was of great importance to the Egyptians, as it was the main source of water. They believed that the river originates from the pristine ocean of Nun, goes through the land of the dead, paradise and finally ends up in Egypt.
Cleopatra's Needle is an ancient obelisk that was transported to New York from Alexandria in 1881. In that short time, he suffered more in America than in his 3,000 years in Egypt. Pollution and acid rain are to blame.
The women of Ancient Egypt were on a par with men in almost all spheres, with the exception of professions. Women could marry and divorce at will, could do any business (albeit with certain restrictions), dispose of their property, travel freely, and much more.
The famous ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs may have looked very cool, but they took too long to write. Therefore, they were used only for the most important texts (for example, for decorative inscriptions on tombs). Simple texts were written in hieratic writing - a simplified form of hieroglyphics.
One of the most famous man-made structures in the world - the Great Pyramid of Giza - was built from approximately two and a half million limestone blocks, each weighing an average of 2.6 tons. The total mass of the pyramid is thus more than 6.3 million tons.
Ramses II the Great is the most famous and prolific pharaoh who ruled Egypt for sixty years and is believed to have over a hundred children. He died when he was over ninety. Rarely did anyone live up to that age at the time.
The word "Pharaoh" is translated as "big house". Initially, it meant the palace of the pharaoh and his greatness, and not just the king himself.
One of the most common myths about Ancient Egypt is that when the pharaoh died, his family, servants and advisers were buried alive with him. This kind of sacrifice has happened several times in history, but it certainly was not a common practice.
In ancient Egypt, both men and women wore special makeup, but rather not for beauty, but as protection from sunburn and sandy winds.
When the human body was mummified, all internal organs were obtained, except for the heart. The Egyptians believed that the heart was the source of wisdom, as well as emotion, memory, soul, and personality itself.
The ancient Egyptians were the first to use the 365-day calendar, which was almost equal to the solar year. This is because they needed to know when the Nile flooded. The earliest version of the calendar dates back to around 3000 BC.
The Egyptian pyramids are not only the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, but they are also the only ones that have survived to this day. The Arabic proverb perfectly reflects the steadfastness of the pyramids: "Man is afraid of time, and time is afraid of pyramids."
Cats were the most sacred animals of the ancient Egyptians. When they died, the whole family grieved and shaved off their eyebrows as a sign of this. Often dead cats were mummified and buried in a special cat cemetery.
While the wives of the pharaohs were endowed with great power and deeply revered, only a few women were full-fledged rulers of Egypt. Among them are Nefertiti, Hatshepsut, Nitokris, Sebekneferu and, perhaps, the most famous - Cleopatra.
Speaking of Cleopatra, this outstanding ancient Egyptian queen has been described as "a woman of extraordinary beauty." However, recent studies based on her ancient busts and images on coins have revealed that in fact her appearance was rather average. Perhaps she was with a hump on the nose and even a little masculine.
Ancient Egyptian texts, as well as modern research on mummies, have suggested that the terrible parasite known as the rishta was very common in ancient Egypt. Once the parasite reached maturity, it exited through its host's skin. He could reach a length of one meter. The process of crawling out of the worm was very painful for an infected person.
Most people believe that Tutankhomon's grave was intact when Howard Carter discovered it in 1922. Although the tomb was filled with wonderful treasures, it was not completely intact: it was robbed several times in antiquity.
Dmitry Utochkin
