THE WEALTH OF THE NILE -- THE CULTURE AND ECONOMY OF ANCIENT EGYPT

The main energy source of ancient times was muscle power provided to a large extent by humans. The harnessing of animals was inefficient. The yoke resting on the animals' shoulders was unknown, and the shafts of the ploughs were fastened to the horns of the cows.

Vehicles with light spoked wheels came into use during the New Kingdom and served mostly for warfare and sport.

 

Horses were introduced during the Second Intermediary Period and never achieved economic importance. Anything transported by land, even in arid desert regions, was either carried by humans or donkeys, or dragged on wooden sledges.

Wind energy was exploited only by ships and even there quite inefficiently: The square sails used enabled only sailing before the wind. The Egyptians were fortunate in that the Nile flowed from south to north. The prevailing winds were northerly and sufficed to blow the ships upriver. They were let to drift downriver with furled sails. But often a destination could only be reached through rowing which required large crews.

Fire was needed for cooking and baking food, smelting and casting metal, burning pottery and very rarely for making bricks. For the working of metals high temperatures had to be achieved and this was done quite possibly with charcoal. No coal was available in ancient times and wood was not very plentiful. One suspects that ordinary fires were fed with any dry vegetable or animal matter that was at hand.

The heat of the sun on the other hand was put to very good use in the production of mud bricks, which were the perfect building material in a practically rainless country like Egypt.

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