10 fascinating facts about Ancient Egypt
- Nicole Sparrow Posted On Mar 3, 2020 | Coding Critters World Adventures
The Ancient Egyptians were crazy about cats! They loved cats so much they worshipped a cat goddess named Bastet (also known as Bast). No wonder our Coding Critters™ cats Scamper and Sneaker couldn’t wait to start their World Adventure Story in Egypt.
To see what Scamper and Sneaker got up to on their Egyptian escapade, follow our Instagram account and keep checking in because the rest of the Coding Critters friends are also packing their bags and getting ready for their World Adventure Stories. Plus, we’re giving away a Coding Critters pet and a Learning Resources Puzzle Globe each month, so you’ll definitely want to visit our Instagram account.
Learnmore about Ancient Egypt
Here are 10 fascinating facts about Ancient Egypt Scamperand Sneaker found on their journey. See how many you know and if you have aninteresting fact about Ancient Egypt that you’d like to share, leave us acomment at the end of this post, or on our Facebook and Instagram pages.
Did you know…
1. The goddess Bastet was daughter of Ra, the sun god. That’s one important cat! The Egyptians believed she protected women, children and domestic cats. She loved music, dance, and the sunrise.
2. The Ancient Egyptians revered cats so much, they mummified them when they died because they believed cats held a special place in the afterlife. Recently, archaeologists discovered cat mummies in an ancient tomb in Saqqara. Experts estimate that the tomb is over 4,000 years old. Yikes! Mummification was an interesting (but creepy) way of preserving humans, cats and other animals including crocodiles after they died. Learn more about it here.
3. The mysteries of Ancient Egypt have captivated our imaginations for many years. Did you know that someone who studies this intriguing history is called an Egyptologist?
Image - Getty
4. The Ancient Egyptians had an interesting form of writing called hieroglyphics. The walls of sacred sites including pyramids and temples are often covered with this unique from of writing. Much of the meaning of their writing system remained a mystery until the Rosetta Stone was discovered in 1799. This important artefact finally allowed historians to figure out what hieroglyphs meant. Today, you can see the Rosetta Stone at The British Museum in London. Want to see what it would look like if an Egyptian scribe wrote your name in hieroglyphics? Try that here.
Image - Getty
5. Speaking of pyramids, these ancient buildings served as tombs for rulers (known as pharaohs) and their families. There are over 110 of these impressive structures in Egypt and if you visit the capital city Cairo, you can see some of the most important ones at the Giza plateau.
6. The pyramids are the only remaining intact Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Great Pyramid of Giza (also known as the Pyramid of Khufu or the Pyramid of Cheops) is the oldest and tallest of the three pyramids at Giza. Take a closer look at it in this video.
7. The Ancient Egyptians loved board games and their favourite was called Senet. It was played on a long board with 30 squares arranged in three rows of 10. It’s one of the world’s oldest board games and while the Ancient Egyptians didn’t exactly leave us the instruction manual, many people today play it the way they think the Egyptians did. In fact, it’s thought that Senet is an ancestor of the popular modern board game, Backgammon.
Image - Getty
8. Both men and women wore makeup! To help protect their eyes from the bright glare of the sun, they would apply a dark substance called kohl around their eyes. They also believed makeup held magical healing powers.
9. There are many things invented or discovered by the Ancient Egyptians that we still use today, including toothpaste and breath mints, glass, the 365-day calendar, the door lock, and the vending machine.
10. The next time you head down to the library to check out a book, think of the Egyptians. One of the largest and most significant ancient libraries was the Royal Library of Alexandria. Here scholars could read important texts about science, history and maths on papyrus scrolls – just like you can read a STEM book at your local library! Unfortunately, it was destroyed in a huge fire about 2,000 years ago, which was apparently accidentally started by Roman ruler, Julius Caesar.
Look out for more Fascinating Facts blog posts in the Coding Critters World Adventure Stories series.
Main Image - Getty
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