With Alexander's conquest of Egypt (332 BC), and the subsequent Ptolemaic dynasty, Greeks came more than ever before into Egypt, and from Greek centers like Alexandria and Arsinoe in the Faytum the Greek language began to spread. It is well known that some Jews had taken refuge in Egypt in 586 BC, taking the prophet Jeremiah with them, and with some such band of refugees the Yeb colony may have originated, although it may have been much older (compare Jeremiah 44:1,15 Biblical World, XXIX, 1907, 305 XXXI, 448 chief publications by Euting, Sayce and Cowley, and especially Sachau, Drei aramdische Papyrusurkunden aus Elephantine, 2nd edition, 1908 Aramaische Papyrus und Ostraka, 1911). In 408, the Egyptians had destroyed their temple at Yeb, and the Jews appealed for redress to the Persian governor. They show that between 470 and 408 BC a flourishing colony of Jews existed there, doing business under Persian sway, and worshipping their god Yahu, not in a synagogue, but in a temple, in which they offered meal offerings, incense and burnt offerings. In very recent years (1898, 1904, 1907) several Aramaic papyri have been found on the Island of Elephantine, just below the First Cataract, dating from 494 to 400 BC. The Wenamon Papyrus (11th century) relates that 500 rolls of papyrus were among the gifts sent from the Delta to the Prince of Biblus, but except in the rarest instances papyri have escaped destruction only in Upper Egypt, where climatic conditions especially favored their preservation. By the year 1000 BC, papyrus had doubtless come to be used for writing far beyond the limits of Egypt. For the XIXth, XXth and XXIst dynasties, indeed, papyri are relatively numerous, and their contribution important for Egyptian history, life and religion. long, in 117 columns, dates from the middle of the 12th century BC and records the benefactions and achievements of Ramses III. The Papyrus Ebers of the 16th century BC sums up the medical lore of the Egyptians of the time of Amenhotep I. Egyptian documents of great historical value have been preserved on these fragile rolls. The Egyptian rolls were sometimes of great length and were often beautifully decorated with colored vignettes (Book of the Dead). The process and the product are described by Pliny the EIder (NH.xiii.11-13).Įgyptian papyrus rolls are in existence dating from the 27th century BC, and no doubt the manufacture of papyrus had been practiced for centuries before. The sheets thus formed were pasted one to another to form a roll of any length desired. Two layers of these strips were laid at right angles to each other, pasted together (Pliny says with the aid of Nile water), dried and smoothed. ![]() ![]() ![]() The white cellular pith of the long triangular papyrus stalk was stripped of its bark or rind and sliced into thin strips. Most importantly, from it was made the tough and inexpensive paper which was used from very ancient times in Egypt and which became the common writing-material of the ancient world. ii.37, 69), and bundles of the long, light stalks were bound together into light boats ( Isaiah 18:2 Breasted, History of the Egyptians, 91). Ropes, sandals, and mats were made from its fibers (see Odyssey xxi.391 Herod. Like the lotus, it suggested one of the favorite capitals of Egyptian architecture. The papyrus tuft was the emblem of the Northern Kingdom in Egypt. Pa-pi'-rus (Cyperus papyrus bublos, biblos, whence biblion, a roll, ta biblia, "the Books" = the Bible):Ī marsh or water plant, abundant in Egypt in ancient times, serving many purposes in antiquity.
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