Fun Fact Friday!

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Fun Fact Friday!! Did you know that the Egyptians wrote love poetry? Swipe through to read some amazing examples ❤️ . These poems were most likely sung aloud rather than recited. They majority of examples are found written in Late Egyptian Hieratic, which is like a cursive version of hieroglyphs. They are typically written on large pieces of papyrus or ostraca, which are broken pieces of stone or pottery. These were cheaper alternatives and are better preserved than papyrus. . A lot of examples have been found in the workmen’s village of Deir el-Medina, which I talked about last week. These date from the New Kingdom, approximately 1,500 to 1,000 B.C.E. The poets describe a variety of themes, including their beloved’s beauty, the feeling of being drunk in love, and even the separation of lovers. . I love that even though the translations are a little fuzzy or archaic, the thoughts and feelings of the ancient Egyptians are still relatable to modern readers! . . . #melissaindenile #funfact #funfacts #funfactfriday #funfactfridays #egypt #egyptian #egyptians #ancientegyptian #ancientegypt #egyptianart #egyptianpoet #egyptianpoets #egyptianpoetry #poetry #ancientegyptianpoetry #egyptology #deirelmedina

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Happy Fun Fact Friday! . A study in ancient Egyptian mummies’ teeth, found that nearly 90% of the teeth showed some evidence of tooth decay. Now while some may just attribute this to a lack of dental hygiene in ancient Egypt, there is actually one other possible culprit: sand. . Egypt is of course full of sand just outside of the lush border of the Nile River valley. Now the sand in the Egyptian diet is most likely attributed to the grinding of grain to make bread. To grind emmer (otherwise known as farro), the Egyptians used heavy grinding stones. And sometimes they added sand to the stone to speed up the process. Even though they would sieve through the flour, it wasn’t very efficient, as the sand and even little flakes of stone would remain in the grain. . Now the Egyptians weren’t one to waste food, so the flour mixed with sand would get baked into bread. Archaeologists have recovered several loaves of bread from different burial and temple contexts. Loaves were baked in a variety of shapes, but flat triangles and cones were the most popular! . Because Egyptians ate sand, and possibly flakes of stone, with every slice of bread, their teeth wore down over time. Some ancient Egyptians got abscesses or infections in their teeth or gums. In some cases, these infections are the only injury that could have been the cause of death! . So I guess what I’m saying is…don’t eat sand 😂 . . . #melissaindenile #funfactfriday #funfactfridays #egypt #egyptian #egyptians #egyptology #ancientegypt #ancientegyptian #ancientegyptians #ancientegyptianfood #sand #ancientegyptianbread

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Did you know that the Egyptians had three seasons instead of four? The annual Nile flood and the farming schedule helped organize the year into three seasons. These seasons are called Akhet/Inundation (September to January), Peret/Growth (January to May), and Shemu/Harvest (May to September). Currently, we are in Akhet! . The Egyptians had several calendars to mark time. They had a lunar calendar, a civil calendar, and a solar calendar. According to the civil calendar, there were 365 days, which were divided into 12 months of 30 days, with an extra 5 leap days that were celebrated at the end of Akhet. Each season was 4 months long and each month was three 10-day periods know as decans. In the New Kingdom, the last two days of a decan may have been treated like a weekend for royal artisans who didn’t have to go to work! . The year did not run consecutively as ours do, but they were measured in years id the current pharaoh’s reign. When writing the date, the Egyptians first wrote the Reginald year, the the month, then the day. For example, and Egyptian could write, “Regnal Year 2, third month of Peret, day 5.” The New Year was celebrated on the first day of the month of Akhet! . . . #melissaindenile #funfactfriday #funfactfridays #egypt #egyptian #ancientegyptian #ancientegyptians #ancientegypt #egyptology #egyptiancalendar #akhet #peret #shemu #egyptianflood #egyptianseasons #civilcalendar #lunarcalendar #solarcalendar

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Happy first Fun Fact Friday! ✨ Say Hello to Medjed! Medjed is a very mysterious Egyptian god, who swept the world recently through Japanese popular culture! . Medjed means “The Smiter,” and he is only mentioned in two surviving Books of the Dead: The Greenfield Papyrus (EA10554,12 and EA10554,76) and the Papyrus of Nebseni (EA9900,14), both located in the British Museum. The Book of the Dead, or more literally “The Book of Coming Forth by Day,” is a collection of funerary texts that were commissioned by Egyptians to be placed in their tomb to help guide them through the afterlife. . Medjed is described as an unseen god, who can fly, shoot rays of light from his eyes, breathe fire, and smite other beings, all to protect the God Osiris. Medjed is depicted as a shroud or mound with two feet and two eyes. . When the Greenfield Payrus, which contains the only known images of Medjed, was displayed at the Moro Art Museum and Fukuoka Museum of Art in Japan in 2012, Medjed became an internet sensation! Fanart, comics, manga. Anime and even video games have been created about this cute little god. . Even though so little is known about him, Medjed has risen again in popular culture and created a new life for himself in this digital age! . . . (Photo credits available upon request) #funfactfriday #melissaindenile #egypt #egyptian #ancientegypt #ancienteyptian #egyptology #egyptiangod #egyptiangods #medjed #tokyo #japan #japanese #japanesepopculture #papyrus #greenfieldpapyrus #nebsenipapyrus #britishmuseum #britishmuseumlondon #moriartmuseum #fukuokamuseum

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