Ten fun and interesting facts about Ancient Egypt...
Ancient Egyptians liked to party with perfumed lard on their heads!
The lard would gradually melt and release its fragrance…
The Great Pyramid of Giza is the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing
The pyramid is made of approximately 2.5 millions stones and was the tallest building in the world for more than 4000 years.
Most Egyptian royals and nobles were bald
They had shaved heads or short hair and wore wigs. Priests removed all their hair - including their eyebrows.
Egypt is home to the Nile, the world's longest river
The Nile stretches 4000 miles is home to some 200 species of fish, 350 species of birds and the famous Nile crocodile.
Cleopatra wasn't Egyptian, she was Greek
Cleopatra VII (the famous one!) was descended from Ptolemy I Soter, a Macedonian and one of Alexander the Great’s successors.
Cleopatra was not killed by an asp
Cleopatra VII allegedly used the bite of this snake to commit suicide. However the asp is not native to Egypt - so she probably used a cobra.
The Egyptians invented eyeliner and the toilet seat
… and much more besides including anaesthesia, the potter's wheel, scissors, toothpaste, ink and the loom
Women had financial independence in Ancient Egypt
Women who weren’t slaves could own property, run a business and were entitled to a fair share if they split from their husbands
Powdered mummies were used as medicine and paint
16th century artists added the powder to paint, to stop it from cracking when it dried. As late as the 17th century, some doctors fed ground mummy to sick people, believing it had life-giving properties.
Pharaoh Pepi II allegedly covered slaves with honey to attract the flies
- and keep them away from him!
