Ancient Egyptian Inventions.Ancient Egyptians were a very smart civilization, so they contributed a lot of ideas and inventions to the world. These inventions are things that you and I probably use every day. A lot of their inventions were probably lost. But a couple of inventions were not.

In Ancient Egypt, building the Pyramids was not easy. So they invented organized labour. Although we do not use all of the inventions today, the Egyptian inventions have opened up many ideas to improve society. One example is the ox drawn plough that today is replaced by a tractor. However, some inventions such as simple machines are still used today.

The Ancient Egyptians are credited with inventing the 365 day calendar. Ancient civilizations recorded time with a lunar calendar.

Egyptians also invented the sail and sailboat for transportation and trading on the Nile River. To keep everybody in line the Ancient Egyptians thought of something that no one had thought of - a police force. These teams of well trained men were keeping everybody from breaking rules.

Medicines A very important invention of the Egyptians was medicine. The Egyptians were very good at figuring out human anatomy and were even able to recognize internal organs when people died. They also knew that pulse was somehow related to the heart. From the Edwin Smith Papyrus, we can tell that they treated dislocated bones and performed minor surgical procedures. We also know that they treated diseases in a physical manner along with other spiritual practices. Much of the treatment consisted of crushing and mixing herbs. Today, some medicines we use still have Egyptian ideas in it. When Egyptologists discovered mummies, they also discovered medicines in their bodies. In the tombs of Pharaohs, medicines were stored in canopic jars for the believed afterlife. Other

Good To Know :

King Tutankhamen, also known as King Tut, was one of the most famous Pharaohs. Although he died at 18 years of age, he was well known.

important items such as food and clothing were also stored in canopic jars for the afterlife.

Simple Machines

There were many inventions made in ancient Egypt, but the easiest to use were the simple machines. The simple machines consist of levers, pulleys, wedge, ramps, and wheels. The most used of these inventions were the pulleys and wheels. The pulleys were used to lift objects to higher elevations that regular Egyptians could not reach. Bricks were lifted multiple amounts of times to help make the pyramids. The wheels were used make transporting objects place to place at an easier and faster rate. Instead of pulling objects around they could now easily roll an object on a board much easier.

Calendar

The ancient Egyptians also have the distinct honour of having invented not only the modern 365 day calendar but the leap year system as well. Ancient civilizations recorded and marked time using a lunar calendar system. A solar system established calendar, based on twelve months of 30 days each, with five extra days, was first conceived of by the ancient Egyptians. The Egyptians also devised the leap year calendar of adding an extra day every fourth year in the year 238 B.C.

Farming

Good to Know:

The ancient Egyptians built pyramids as tombs for the pharaohs and their queens. Extensive ramps and early machinery were required to make Pyramids.

The first ox-draws ploughs appeared in Egypt as early as 2500 B.C. Skilled metal working would have been required in order to form a workable plough. One might wonder why the ancient Egyptians would have even needed ox-drawn ploughs when the majority of the Egyptian nation consists of deserts. While there certainly is a great amount of sweeping desert land in Egypt, the nation is also the home of extremely fertile black soil along the banks of the River. This soil makes a very hospitable environment for growing crops such as wheat, in addition to a multitude of vegetables. Ancient Egyptian inventions, such the ox-drawn plough, would have made farming much easier and more profitable.

Other Inventions Egyptians are credited with the invention of lock. Another of their favourite invention was probably makeup. Everyone, even the poor wore decorative paint. Some people seem to think that the Egyptians used the makeup protect themselves from the evil eye.

Name__________ Date__________

Read the “Ancient Egyptian Inventions” carefully. Then answer the following questions:

1. Why do we need Police?

2. What is a leap year?

3. What difficulties would the ancient Egyptians must have faced while constructing the Pyramids?

4. Why do you think the writer calls Egyptians smart?

5. How would life be different today if no one had come up with the idea of a lock?