The ancient Egyptians had cargo boats, passenger boats, funeral boats, and naval vessels. TRANSPORTATION & TRADE: The Nile provided an easy, cool transportation route. Because wood was scarce, boats were also made out of papyrus. The ancient Egyptians used papyrus to make paper, to build boats, to make sandals for their feet, and to make baskets to store their belongings and to carry their food. PAPYRUS: A plant called papyrus grew wild along the riverbanks of the Nile. As June returned, snow on the mountains to the south would begin to melt and the cycle started over again.If the slow floodwaters did not return, the land would become a desert. With Summer on the horizon, by the month of May the Nile becomes a little stream and the valley turned brown.By March and April crops were green and ready to harvest.During November and December the land near the riverbank was dry enough to plant crops in the rich black soil.The ancient Egyptians called that black soil the “the Gift of the Nile.” As the water receded, mineral-rich silt was left behind. By the end of October the flooding was over and the Nile started to shrink again.Like islands in the Nile, villages built on higher ground were typically surrounded by water at this time. While the Nile was still shallow at Summer’s end, by September it had become quite wide.In July, floodwaters would begin to reach Lower Egypt.Water ran down the mountains, into the lakes, and into the Nile riverbed. Each year around June, snow on the mountains to the south began to melt.The natural barriers that surrounded the Nile River protected the people who settled and lived along the Nile’s fertile riverbanks. And, to the south are mountains that hold the headwaters of the Nile. To the west of the Nile is the Western Desert. To the East of the Nile is the Eastern Desert and the Red Sea. Mountains, swamps, deserts, icefields, and bodies of waters such as rivers, large lakes, and seas are examples of natural barriers. To Egypt’s north lays the Mediterranean Sea. A natural barrier is a physical feature that protects or hinders travel through or over land. The Nile is surrounded on four sides by natural barriers.
The stalk is a long swaying curve and the flower is the river's fan shaped delta at the end, where the Nile empties into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is shaped like the lotus flower so often seen in ancient Egyptian art and hieroglyphs. That’s why Lower Egypt is located to the north and Upper Egypt is located to the south, on higher ground. It starts in the mountains in Central Africa and flows north, downhill, to the Mediterranean Sea. It is over 4000 miles long and flows through nine African nations. The Nile River is the longest river in the world. How were they able to maintain that continuity? Part of the answer lies in their geography.
More, Egypt managed to stay alive as a civilization for over 4000 years. Ancient Greece and Rome, especially, owe a debt to Egyptian art, architecture, and politics. While it’s easy to connect the ancient Egyptians to the pyramids in our minds, sometimes it’s harder to imagine just how influential Egyptian culture was on other ancient civilizations that existed at the same time.
They prepared for their afterlife by filling their tombs with small and large statues of friends and family, with household items, and with other items they might need to keep them company and to help them have a good time. They believed that people enjoyed many of the same activities in their afterlife as they did in their current life. The ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife. Any person who killed a cat paid for that crime with their life! The ancient Egyptians carefully protected their cats. They believed cats protected their homes and children from danger, and helped their crops to grow. The ancient Egyptians believed that cats had magical powers.
Cats, especially, were held in high esteem. Unlike other ancient cultures, whose gods looked somewhat like people, most ancient Egyptian gods had animal heads. Animals were very important to the ancient Egyptians.
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