Introduction
The mystery of Egypt has captured the imagination of people for thousands of years. This
is mostly because the ancient Egyptians left behind so many huge monuments, covered
with inscriptions and hieroglyphs. For thousands of years, no one understood how to read
the hieroglyphs and people speculated as to why and how the ancient Egyptians built
such magnificent and beautiful buildings.
With the decoding of hieroglyphs came the understanding of Egyptian culture which
seemed full of gods and goddesses, kings and battles, intrigue, mystery and magic. Egypt
captured the attention of the world.
No ancient Egyptian contributed more to 'Egyptomania' than Tutankhamen and the
discovery of his tomb by Howard Carter. Filled with treasures, the discovery captured the
attention of the world. Egypt's legacy, however, was greater than the gold treasures of
Tutankhamen's tomb.
The pyramids
The ancient Egyptians built some of the world's largest monuments, in size and scale,
without modern technology. The largest monuments were the Great Pyramids at Giza and
the Sphinx. Modern historians have difficulty understanding how the Egyptians
constructed such vast monuments with only rudimentary (basic) mathematical systems
and no mechanised tools. The Egyptians had a labour intensive system of writing.
The Egyptians wrote out strokes for the numbers one to ten and used the symbol of a rope
to count for ten and above. Historians often wonder how such a simplistic mathematical
system was capable of performing the equations needed to calculate such exact angles.
The largest pyramid at Giza was built in 2550 BC and covered an area of five hectares. It
was 147 metres high - the largest stone monument on earth. The Giza pyramids are
visible from space.
The construction of the pyramids was exact. Each side aligned with true north, south, east
and west. Over two million stone blocks weighing over 2.5 tonnes each were used.
Within the Great Pyramid was a network of chambers and shafts. Two particular shafts
line up with constellations.
The pyramids were built by the sheer strength of thousands of people. Over 100 000
Egyptian workers (not slaves) built the largest pyramid. Construction took over 20 years.
The pyramids were built as tombs for the three Old Kingdom pharaohs, Khufu, Khafre
and Menkaure. Today, the mystery and magic surrounding the pyramids draw tourists
and historians from around the world, to marvel at their size and grandeur.
Art and architecture
Egypt also made a mark on the development of art. Egyptian pictures always showed
heads from the side, shoulders from the front and arms, torsos, legs and feet from the
side. These angles were considered the most beautiful. The Egyptians did not make their
mark on art in this respect, but in sculpture. The Egyptians made life-sized and
monumental sculptures. Ancient Egyptian artists used a grid to determine the proportions
of the human body. Ancient Greeks travelling in Egypt adopted this form of sculpture
and modified it to appear more natural. The Greeks also used the Egyptian grid. The
Greek adaptation of Egyptian statuary and proportion has influenced classical and
modern art.
The Egyptians also influenced architecture. Their design of doorways and use of obelisks
can still be seen today. Obelisks are long, tall pinnacle-shaped monuments that stand
upright. The Egyptians wrote important inscriptions on obelisks. Egyptian obelisks have
been transported around the world as gifts between nations and have been adapted for
modern usage.
Inventions and discoveries
The ancient Egyptian culture had a strong impact on other ancient civilisations. Egyptian
priests had invented items that measured time, including the sun dial, water clock and
calendar. The Roman politician Julius Caesar used the ancient Egyptian calendar as a
model for the Roman calendar, which was used in Western cultures until it was modified
slightly in 1582. The ancient Egyptians also developed the basic unit of measuring
length, the cubit. They made observations about astrology and astronomy and had a
developed understanding of medicine and the human body.
The Egyptians invented eyeliner. Both men and women wore make-up and fine jewellery
in ancient Egypt. They also used eyeliner and eye shadow like sunglasses. By lining their
eyes in thick black and green paints, they were able to reduce the damaging effects of the
sun reflecting off their skin. The Egyptians used kohl as eyeliner and kohl is still widely
available as eyeliner.
One of the greatest legacies of ancient Egypt was the invention of papyrus, reed paper.
Papyrus was highly sought after as paper for writing. It was the first paper and was used
for important documents both by the Egyptians and other ancient civilisations. Papyrus
was used for thousands of years.
History, archaeology, Egyptology and wonder
Egypt's legacy also lies in her mystery and wealth. Since ancient times, foreigners have
been intrigued by the mystery of Egypt, her gods and culture.
When the French conqueror Napoleon invaded Egypt in 1798-99, he brought with him
hundreds of keen historians and scientists. His soldiers and supporters made detailed
notes and drawings of the monuments and inscriptions they found. These discoveries
were published in a book called Description de l'Egypte and established modern
Egyptology (the study of ancient Egypt) and archaeology. Hieroglyphs were translated by
the French linguist Jean Francois Champollion in 1824. Egyptomania took hold of the
world. But attention also brought tomb raiders. Mummies were taken from their tombs
and used as fertiliser and firewood, tombs were looted for their valuables, and thousands
of statues and slabs of wall paintings and reliefs were taken to foreign countries and put
on display in museums.
In 1922 the archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the tomb of the young pharaoh
Tutankhamen. The tomb was packed with gold and gilded items including thrones,
chariots, statues, shrines and thousands of religious items.
Egypt's legacy is the story of an ancient and exotic land. The stories told by the wall
paintings and hieroglyphs tell of intrigue, love, war and faith.