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[QUOTE]Originally posted by Doug M: [QB] Obviously that is an incorrect statement. The legacy of Egypt on world maritime traditions is tremendous, yet the bias and distortion of Egyptology have hidden it from view. Old Kindom burials featured multiple boat pits, some with multiple boats, during the Old Kingdom: [QUOTE] A complete fleet of 14 boats has been found by the American Archaeologists under the direction of N.Y. Univ. Dr. David O'Connor at Abydos North (nearly 2 Km North of the Early Dynastic Royal cemetery of Umm el-a'ab). I ve added a brief account of a New York lecture (January 2001) by David O'Connor and Matthew Adams (thanks to Christine Van Heertum). The first 12 boats were cleared in recent years, but the prows of the northernmost ones had been already reached in mid/late 1980s when they had been erroneously interpreted as the bastioned corner of a small mudbrick enclosure (Hor Aha?) which would lie between the Shunet ez-Zabib and the Western Mastaba (see plan). The boats vary from 18/19 to 24/27 meters long and they seem to have been sealed by mudbrick casing. Traces of some pygments have been found on the wood planks, indicating that the boats could have been painted white. They have prows towards the Nile. A part of the mudbrick casing suggests that there could have been a support for poles/pennants on top of the boats, as in the boats depicted on pottery or atop the archaic shrines onto some maceheads/palettes and in the HK loc. 29A cultual center. The interior of the boats was filled with mudbricks too. Boulders aside some boats have been interpreted as model anchors. The wood planks, painted in yellow on the outside, seem not to be of cedar. They were lashed by holes and rendered impermeable to water by reeds between them. Pottery and small seal impressions have been recovered by one of the 14 boats; no king's name appears, but the general impression points more towards the early First Dynasty (Aha) than the late Second Dynasty (Khasekhemwy). Naval archaeologist Cheryl Ward revealed to have been amazed by the high degree of technical skill shown by these artifacts. Their age should be more than 400 years older than Khwfw's (Cheops) and, although found nearby the vast enclosure (Shunet ez Zebib) of Khasekhemwy, it appears possible that they belong to the second king of the first dynasty, Horus AHA, owner of Umm el Qa'ab tombs B19. Much remains to be known from these boats that Dr. D. O'Connor began to excavate in 1991 (articles in 'Expedition' and 'Egyptian Archaeology') after an important campaign at the northern site of the Funerary Palaces (Talbezirke) of some kings of the first dynasty and the last two of the second (J.A.R.C.E. 26, 1989); C14 analysis and the study of jars and seal impressions found in the boats will tell more about the attribution of these boats to Hor Aha. The wood has been treated with acrylic and wax to strenghten it before removal; much of it has become frass (wood-beetle excrement) which in turn can give us an idea of the wood shape and specie; the boats have been covered with sand at the end of each digging campaign. It can be already said that archaic boats had been found at Helwan by Z. Saad and a 'model estate' and funerary boat was found at Saqqara by W. Emery (in 1957-8; tomb S 3357); both these examples were very early in the first dynasty, thus the date to the reign of Aha can't be excluded. In total 4 or 5 boat burials were found at Helwan, 2 at Abu Roash Hill M, and finally others at the northerly Abydos site of the Royal enclosures, near those just found. The most famous boat was found in 1954 beside Khwfw's pyramid south side - 4 more boat pits exist - and later reconstructed by Ahmed Yussef Mustafa. Six boats of Middle Kingdom date were found at Dahshur. They're about 10 m long each. Old Kingdom boats are depicted in the royal complexes of the Fifth Dynasty (Sahure, Unas), in the Mastaba of Mereruka and, later, there are the famous scenes at Deir el Bahari; but these are all for transportation purposes, as those reproduced in the M.K. models of Meketra (Deir el Bahari). It has been extimated that a boat for the transportation of the Hatshepsut obelisk in Karnak had to be at least 63 meters long.(cfr. A. Gottlicher in K.Bard ed. Encyclopedia of the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt p. 728 ff). As for the wood long distance trade, we know that Aha's immediate predecessor Narmer had a great deal of relations with the Near East (Canaan) as attested in various sites expecially by Serekhs with his name onto wave handled jars (fragments). The hard cedar wood of Lebanon has been found in poles and beams of the Umm el Qaab tombs but it was already imported earlier as we can see from D.A.I.K. findings in Abydos cemetery B(Iry Hor, Ka, Narmer) and U (expec. Naqada IIIa2, c.3250). [/QUOTE]From: http://xoomer.alice.it/francescoraf/hesyra/news.htm Ancient Egypt had canals criss crossing the country, many of which were serviced by water taxis, barges and other types of transport vessels. Old Kingdom mastaba tombs often feature scenes full of LARGE BOATS, not mere river rafts, with sails, oars or both. A good example is in the mastaba of Mereruka. Egypt, from the very Old Kingdom and possibly prior, had to get much of its timber from outside the country. One of the main sources of timber was in Byblos, somewhere near modern day Syria. This trade was supplanted by Egyptian expansion into the area, which made vassal states of many of the people in the area. The Egyptians used these states in trade and as subjects as the source of wood for boats and possibly even the boats themselves. In later periods, direct military action by Egypt in the region caused the Egyptians to again use the local harbors, resources and population to build fleets for the Armies of Thutmosis III. All of this maritime trade and construction with Egypt led to the growth and development of the technologies that became a hallmark of the Phoenicians years later. The fact that the Phoenicians grew to be a powerful maritime force from the same area where Egypt harnessed the resources and population for its own maritime needs cannot be a coincidence. It is also no coincidence that many of the boats built in the later eras of Mediterranean sea warfare were ALSO built by the Phoenicians, again a legacy of the ancient maritime relationship between Egypt and people of that region. From this you get Greek ships that look remarkably like those of the Old Kingdom in Egypt. It is also from this relationship that you get eyes painted on the bow of Greek and Mediterranean ships, which is derived from the Egyptian legacy of painting boats with symbols of their gods, including the Eyes of Ra or Horus. Boat from the Pyramid complex of King Sahure in the Old Kingdom. Notice that this complex is often described as having many images of boats with oars and sails, which means they were SEA WORTHY. That combined with the ancient boat burials, which were all not of the "ceremonial" or reed float type of the Khufu or Temple processions, shows that there was indeed a seagoing maritime capability in Egypt from a very early period. Again, the fact that they say there isn't is more a reflection of their bias or lack of serious scholarship. I would assume the former is more likely. Therefore, how can someone say no EVIDENCE exists for a sea going tradition in Egypt, with all the evidence that is there? I mean a culture that valued ships so much that they depicted them in tombs, built scale models (oldest in the world) and BURIED THEM would OBVIOUSLY be considered as having a OCEAN GOING MARITIME tradition. Yet this is the nonsense that keeps being told to us. King Sahure: [IMG]http://image.bayimg.com/oagajaabf.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.bayimg.com/magaiaabf.jpg[/IMG] Copy of image from Sahure's complex at Abu Sir: [IMG]http://image.bayimg.com/magalaabf.jpg[/IMG] Both of these and other boats from the Old Kingdom show the style of boats that would become common in the Mediterranean in later periods. [QUOTE] The cheapest form of primitive boat was the pot boat, simply a clay container large enough to accommodate a passenger. It was meant for places free of rocks and was ideal for getting around the marshy areas of the Nile delta. Egypt was fairly treeless and it would be difficult to find other means of building boats. The Egyptians did find enough wood to make planked boats. [b]There is evidence that the Old Kingdom of Egypt had the first planked boats ever made. [/b]These were used even in burial rituals. Fourteen have recently been found buried in the region of Abydos. The boat made out of planks was an improvement on the dugout which was hollowed out of a single log. In southern Egypt, archaeologists have found a multitude of pictures of boats that, shortly before 3100 BCE, were drawn on rock outcrops or were included as part of the decoration on pottery. Among them, are some that show a mast with a broad square sail hung from it. The tombs of Egypt have yielded pictures and even models of a variety of river craft, from tiny rowboats through swift yachts and dispatch boats to enormous barges large enough to carry huge obelisks weighing hundreds of tons from the quarries. When Sahure in 2450 BCE wanted to transport men to the Lebanon coast, boats were needed that adapted this river-design to sea sailing. Around one end of the vessel was looped an enormous hawser, which was carried along the centerline above the deck and looped about the other end. A stout pole was then placed through the strands of the hawser, where it passed over the deck, and by twisting, one could tighten the entire harness just like a tourniquet. This served for internal stiffening, as the hawser kept the ends from sagging when the boat rode heavy waves. An elaborate netting was also added, which ran horizontally about the upper part of the hull. This may have been another aid for holding the ship together, or merely gear to protect the sides from rubbing. A two-legged mast rather than the single mast was also designed, and it served to distribute the pressure, steadied by lines fore and aft. A tall, slender square-sail was mounted with two spars spreading it, a yard along the head, and a boom along the foot. When there was no wind, sail was taken in, the mast lowered, and rowers could power the ship along. [/QUOTE]From: http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/shipsandboats.htm Some good pages on the development of Maritime technology in the Mediterranean and the role played by Egypt: http://www.artsales.com/ARTistory/Ancient_Ships/index.html But this is just a part of the legacy of ancient Egypt in maritime tradition. Just like the Egyptians influenced the Mediterranean maritime tradition, they also influenced that of the Red Sea and Persian Gulf as a result of the spread of Islam. Maritime trade was a key feature during the Islamic period of Islamic control of the Mediterranean and Egyptian ship designs were an important part of this history. The felucca and other styles of ships derived from Egyptian boats were prominent during the Islamic age of domination of Mediterranean commerce. Also, it has been said that the first DRY DOCK was built in Egypt, by a Phoenician no less. [QUOTE] Antiquity According to the ancient Greek author Athenaeus of Naucratis, the drydock was invented in Ptolemaic Egypt, some time after the death of Ptolemy IV Philopator (reigned 221-204 BC): “ But after that (the reign of Ptolemy IV Philopator) a Phoenician devised a new method of launching it (a ship), having dug a trench under it, equal to the ship itself in length, which he dug close to the harbour. And in the trench he built props of solid stone five cubits deep, and across them he laid beams crosswise, running the whole width of the trench, at four cubits' distance from one another; and then making a channel from the sea he filled all the space which he had excavated with water, out of which he easily brought the ship by the aid of whatever men happened to be at hand; then closing the entrance which had been originally made, he drained the water off again by means of engines (organois); and when this had been done the vessel rested securely on the before-mentioned cross-beams.[1] ” Since Athenaeus recorded the event 400 years later (around 200 AD), there is sufficient reason to believe that drydocks had been known throughout classical antiquity. [/QUOTE]From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dry_dock Another translation of the Athenaeus text. But this is only to expected, given the 3,000 year history of Egyptian maritime technology by that time and the fact that the Egyptians had been building causeways, dams and canals for even longer than that. A drydock combines the excavation and canal capabilities of ancient times with the nilometer and other fluid volume measurement systems of the Nile. The markings on the undersides of ships and the sides of canals traces their origins back to Egypt, the Nilometer and the measurments of the inundation. Aswan Nilometer: [IMG]http://image.bayimg.com/iagaiaabf.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://image.bayimg.com/iagajaabf.jpg[/IMG] http://lexicorient.com/egypt/aswan04.htm Not only that, but the tradition of using such boats in naval warfare in the Mediterranean can also be traced back to Egypt as the scenes in the Old Kingdom mastabas and records of the military actions of Thutmosis III show clearly. [/QB][/QUOTE]
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