History Egypt's highway
Almost everyone in Egypt lived close to the Nile, and the river was the main road. It flows from south to north, and the wind usually blows from the north. So boats raised their sail to travel south, against the current, and lowered it to float or row north. Even in writing, the sign for "travel south" was a boat with its sail up, and "travel north" a boat with its sail down.
History Boats for the next life
Wealthy Egyptians were buried with model boats so they could travel in the next life. The tomb of Meketre, from around 1980 BC, held a whole fleet of painted wooden models, with tiny sailors pulling ropes and steering.
History The sun's boat
Egyptians imagined that even the sun traveled by boat: the sun god Ra sailed across the sky every day and through the underworld every night. Temples kept small boat-shaped shrines for their gods, and kings were buried with boats too, like the great cedar boat found beside the pyramid of King Khufu.
Art In this artwork
The illustration shows a wooden boat with a tall white triangular sail. Ancient Egyptian sails were tall and rectangular; triangular sails belong to later boats, like the feluccas still seen on the Nile.
Look closer
- Find the sailor steering at the back.
- Which way is the wind blowing?
Think about it
- Why did the Nile make travel easy in one direction?
- How do river boats carry goods today?
- What is the main "highway" where you live?
Key words
- Current
- The flow of water in a river.
- Upstream
- Against the flow of a river.
- Rudder
- A paddle or blade used to steer a boat.
Use it in class
- How were the pyramids built? (Explainer, grades 3-8)
Sources
The history on this page is a short summary based on these sources:
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Nile River"
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, models from the tomb of Meketre (granary, garden and boats), about 1980 BC
- Mark Lehner, The Complete Pyramids (1997)
- Ian Shaw (editor), The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000)
