Ancient+Egyptian+Food+&+Agriculture

Ancient Egyptian Food and Agriculture By: Amanda Gibbons



The land of Ancient Egypt was divided into two types of land; black land, or “kemet” which was the fertile land on the banks of the river and the only land in which anything would grow. The other 94% of the land was inhospitable red land (desert). The desert was barren land on both sides of the Nile and though it offered the Egyptians protection from invasion, it greatly limited their agricultural resources. The Nile River was the life blood of the Ancient Egyptian civilization. It flows south form the Mediterranean Sea; the shape of the river resembles the Ancient Egyptian symbol for life, the lotus flower. The Nile provided water and nutrients to crops, plants, animals and humans. Every year the Nile flooded which brought silt and fertile soil from the delta in the south. The size of the flood varied annually; high waters meant good fertility, low waters brought drought and famine. It flooded between the months of June and September and the flood was measured on a [|nilometer]. media type="custom" key="4992873"
 * The Land and River **

**Early Farming and Agriculture** Farming began in Egypt as early as 4500 B.C. with the Badari, a semi-nomadic Neolithic culture near Nubia (modern day Sudan). They made use of the land, inhabiting small villages for short periods of time; hunting wild game, oxen, sheep, goats and fish, and farmed wheat, barley, lentils and flax. As far as agriculture, irrigation was key; it needed to be organized and regulated in order to be efficient. A universal irrigation system was initiated as early as the Scorpion King in the first dynasty. The complex system was state organized with earth dikes that would divide the land into varying sizes and during the flood the water was directed into these areas through a canal system. The black silt from the river bed would then reach the necessary areas, and the remaining water would then drain off leaving rich soil to be plowed and filled with crops. The archaeological evidence of this first irrigation system can be seen on a ceremonial limestone mace head found in Hieraconopolis; scenes carved into the mace head depict the Scorpion King undertaking and initiating an irrigation program (David, 2003).

Agricultural tools have been found by archaeologists all along the Nile. A complete set was found in Kahun that date to 1890 B.C.; these tools included a wooden hoe and rake, which were used to clear the ground before plowing, a sickle for collecting the crops, a wooden winnowing scoop and a wooden scoop for collecting grains. Scenes have been found on tomb walls demonstrating the stages in plowing and preparing the ground, followed by the scattering of seeds (David, 2003). Once the Nile waters receded in the fall, the seeds were scattered in the soil, then plowed either by hand or a plow pulled by two cows. They also used sheep and pigs following the plowing to pack the soil into the ground and the harvest was gathered the following spring. Egypt’s lower class worked on the land, which consisted of most of the population. These workers harvested their crops for their own needs as well as for the state. In the eyes of the government, the king owned all of the land in Egypt, and since the state organized irrigation, they were also entitled to anything and everything the land produced. In addition to the state organized irrigation, the government also organized the country’s food supply in granaries. Farmers’ taxes were paid in the form of their crops, often some type of cereal. The stages of production of these cereals were often depicted on tomb walls to be sure the deceased had an abundance of food in the next life. The two major crops of Egypt were wheat (spelt and emmer, as well as barley) and linen, made from flax (Helbaek, 1955). Cotton cultivation eventually replaced flax as the main fiber source being produced in Egypt, beginning in the Coptic Period.
 * Tools and Techniques **

**Gardens, Crops and Harvest** In addition to large scale farming during the fall and spring season, the Egyptians were also market gardeners (David, 2003). The orchards and gardens near the basins were available for cultivation all year round, having a continuous water supply that regularly fed them. The gardeners were responsible for transporting water into their gardens, either bringing it over in pots or by using a shaduf. The shaduf was introduced during the New Kingdom; it had a bucket on one end of a rope that was lowered into the river, which was counterbalanced like a see-saw by a weight at the other end of the device. The gardens produced much smaller crops, such as beans, lentils, chickpeas, radishes, onions, lettuces and herbs. Some plants also produced perfume oils as well as dyes and medicines. Fruits were also gardened on a smaller scale; fruits such as figs, grapes, dates and pomegranates. Like the linen they harvested, Egyptians also harvested papyrus on a large scale for something other than as a food source, though parts of it could be eaten. The Egyptians utilized every part of the plant; the skin was used for mats, cloth, sails, sandals, and rope, the inner tissue was often eaten or used as a substitute for wood and made into household utensils and occasionally fuel, and the stems used to make boats, as it was very buoyant. The most common and popular use of papyrus was for writing paper, the inner tissue was sliced into thin strips and woven, then dried to create whatever length of parchment was needed.

The archaeological evidence for the Ancient Egyptian diet paints a good picture of what they subsisted on; what was common to everyone, consumed daily and the level of consumption. Food remains and offerings include: duam palm nut, barley, olive pits, millet, date pits, grape pits, farva beans, wheat, etc. Cooking utensils have also been found, as well as tomb models and tomb art depicting food processing. Architectural evidence of bakeries and breweries show the large quantities of beer and bread that Egyptians were producing. Written evidence for their diet has also been found on papyrus, in codex and lists. Physical remains are also a good source for information on their diet. Dental pathologists are able to do calculus testing on human mummified remains as well as stable isotope analysis to see where the food was coming from. The remains of the stomach and intestines paint pathologists a picture of the person’s diet right before death, as well as preserved human excrement (Dupras, 2009).
 * Evidence for Diet**

**Fruits and Vegetables** Vegetables were commonly grown in private gardens, on a much smaller scale than grain, which was mass produced. Vegetable crops include beans, chickpeas, lentils, green peas, leeks, lettuces, garlic, onions, radishes and turnips. Fruits that were grown for consumption include dates, which were the most popular, figs, grapes, pomegranate, watermelon, plums, peaches and olives (Dupras, 2009).

Ancient Egyptians used a variety of oils, seasonings and sweeteners to cook with and flavor their food with, most commonly bread. The oils came from vegetables, flowers and plants and included sesame, caster, flax seed, radish seed, horseradish, safflower, colocynth and olive. Olive oil was the most common, though horseradish was very popular; there is evidence of olive oil including texts, images and olive presses. These oils were used for frying meats and vegetables, as well as other domestic uses. The Egyptians had access to salt from the Siwa Oasis but pepper was not introduced until the Greeks came during the Hellenistic Period. Their lack if pepper did not limit the flavor of their food, they still had access to aniseed, cinnamon, mustard, thyme, rosemary, cumin, dill, fennel and coriander. For sweeteners, the most commonly used was honey though they also used fruit, namely dates (Dupras, 2009).
 * Oils, Seasonings and Sweeteners **

**The Animal’s Role in Diet and Agriculture** When Egyptians began farming, they also began to domesticate animals. During the Old Kingdom, cows, oxen, donkeys and sheep were used for many different agricultural tasks, and pigs were later introduced for packing fields. These animals were used as tools as well as for meat, milk, leather and as sacrifices. In addition to these mammals, fowl was also bred specifically for consumption and eggs. The fowl bred included geese, ducks, cranes and pigeons (David, 2003). Dairy products included milk from cows, goats and sheep, cheese, butter and cream and many foods were cooked in a milk and butter mixture as well as fat. Fat from cows and goats were not only used for cooking, but also as a base in some makeup. Not all of the land was cultivated for crops; large areas were left untouched for hunting and fishing. The Nile provided an endless supply of fish and it was one of the only proteins available to every class, and it was either boiled or preserved in salt. Wild game that was hunted included: antelope, ibex, gazelle, deer and hippo. The lower class had some access to hunting wild game, as long as they weren’t hunting on someone else’s property but as far as beef, pigs and geese; those meats were traditionally reserved for the upper class (Dupras, 2009).

**Staple Food and Beverage** Bread was the staple of the Egyptian diet. They made their bread out of barley and emmer wheat, and the process for baking the bread changed over time. During the Old Kingdom, baked in a conical mold and placed over an open fire, and in the New Kingdom, multiple loaves were cooked inside and outside of a dome shaped oven (Bard, 2008). Leavening was not always used, giving the bread a varying consistency. Flavorings were added to the bread including sesame, aniseed, coriander, honey, dates and other herbs for variety. Bakeries were all over Ancient Egypt and they were not only used to bake bread but also to brew beer. Brewing beer and baking bread had the same production process, with only a few steps being different (Delwin, 1999). Beer was a part of daily life, like bread was, and there was no class distinction with either. Beer was made from fermented wheat or from stale bread. The beer in Ancient Egypt was not like the beer around today, it was a lot thicker with an almost porridge-like consistency. Both processes required dry grains and arid conditions (Dupras, 2009).

Luxuries such as wine were not available to everyone; it was something only the upper class was able to enjoy. Wine was very expensive and came in several varieties. Regional varieties were offered by esteemed wine makers, grapes were predominantly used and harvested from vineyards, dates, palm and pomegranate were also used in the wine making process. Evidence from art on tomb walls that still have their color depict white, pink, green, red and dark blue grapes, giving them a great variety. In addition to wine, the upper class also enjoyed honey, meats and exotic meats like hippo. They also ate bread, though it was a much higher quality than the bread the lower class was able to consume. It wasn’t as lumpy, and it was less gritty. The upper class didn’t consume much beer, since they had access to wine and drinks made from fermented honey. The lower class had beer and bread readily available to them, though they lacked many of the proteins that the upper class consumed. Their proteins were mainly fish and fowl game that they hunted. They cooked with a lot of garlic and onions for seasoning and their main dairy product was goat’s milk (Dupras, 2009).
 * Wine and Diets by Class **

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">__Bibliography__ <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Bard, Kathryn A. <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">2008 An Introduction to the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">David, Rosalie <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">2003 Handbook to Life in Ancient Egypt. New York: Facts on File, Inc. <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Delwin, Samuel <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">1999 Bread Making and Social Interactions at the Amarna Workmen’s Village. //World archaeology// V. 13, no. 1, p. 121-44 <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Dupras, Tosa <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">2009 Life and Death in Ancient Egypt: Lectures 1/9/09, 4/10/09 – 4/13/09 <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Helbaek, Hans <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">1955 Ancient Egyptian Wheats. Prehistoric Society. Proceedings//.// vol. XXI, p. 93-95 plate V.

Module Assignments:

[|Photo Link]

Module 7 Some ideas I plan on covering in my Wiki on Ancient Egyptian Food and Agriculture are main diet staples, food production processes, and agricultural and irrigation techniques. The Nile River was imperative to the Ancient Egyptians, and the annual flooding of the river was vital to their main crops. Before the introduction of money as we think of it, gold, silver, etc, the Egyptians would use grain for trade and barter. Grain was necessary for two of their main food items; bread and beer. The fertile land, or “black land” along the Nile was excellent for growing a variety of other foods, though some of the more decadent produce was only reserved for the upper class and royalty.

<span style="color: black; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; msobidifontfamily: Arial;">Module 8 JSTOR: "The Floodplains along the Nile constitute an important but as yet little utilized series of laboratories for the comparative study of the origins and interaction of ancient civilizations." [“Kerma: The Rise of an African Civilization,” Bruce G. Trigger, __The International Journal of African Historical Studies__, Vol. 9, No. 1. (1976)]

Work in Progress:

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">The land of Ancient Egypt was divided into two types of land; black land, or “kemet” which was the fertile land on the banks of the river and the only land in which anything would grow. The other 94% of the land was inhospitable red land (desert). The desert was barren land on both sides of the Nile and though it offered the Egyptians protection from invasion, it greatly limited their agricultural resources. The Nile River was the life blood of the Ancient Egyptian civilization. It flows south form the Mediterranean Sea; the shape of the river resembles the Ancient Egyptian symbol for life, the lotus flower. The Nile provided water and nutrients to crops, plants, animals and humans. Every year the Nile flooded which brought silt and fertile soil from the delta in the south. The size of the flood varied annually; high waters meant good fertility, low waters brought drought and famine. It flooded between the months of June and September and the flood was measured on a [|nilometer] (**LINK)**.

Library Article Pertaining to my Wiki: Saffirio, L. "Food and Dietary Habits in Ancient Egypt" //Journal of human evolution// V. 1, no. 3 (1972), p. 297-305 **Journal Code:** J hum Evol