Dr Spindle Journal

Notes on Egypt

Every year the Nile flooded, and a rich layer of silt was washed across the valley, making the land very fertile. The ancient Egyptians were able to grow a good supply of crops - both for food, and to make textiles and papyrus.

The land also had a good supply of building stone, metals, gold and precious stones, which the Egyptians used to build pyramids, temples and statues, and to make decorative ornaments and jewellery.

The ancient Egyptians had their own writing system called hieroglyphs, a mixture of pictures, signs and symbols. This was written on papyrus, and carved onto their tombs and temples.

They also had a numerical system, using their own mathematical symbols.

The ancient Egyptians believed in many gods, and in an afterlife. The Egyptian gods were believed to have great powers, and were worshipped through prayer and ritual in order to gain their favour.

Hieroglyphic Numbers

The Egyptians had a decimal system using seven different symbols.

1 is shown by a single stroke.
10 is shown by a drawing of a hobble for cattle.
100 is represented by a coil of rope.
1,000 is a drawing of a lotus plant.
10,000 is represented by a finger.
100,000 is a tadpole or frog.
1,000,000 is a figure of a god with arms raised above his head.

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