The World’s Oldest Rope

More than 30 coils of rope were found carefully stored in a hand-hewn cave on the Red Sea coast of Egypt at Marsa Gawasis. These ropes proved to be nearly 4,000 years old, the oldest actual examples known so far, and have given Egyptologists and maritime researchers a lot to think about.

They were originally discovered in 2005. Excited researchers described the ropes as well preserved and undisturbed. Surprisingly, they were coiled and tightened in the same way that today’s sailors handle their ropes. They were stored in piles and researchers believe there are actually more than 60 coils. Most were found at the back of the cave
.
Egyptian rope is believed to be one of the strongest ropes ever made in the ancient world, and researchers hope to learn the secrets of Egyptian rope-making by studying the physical composition and method of manufacturing used by their ancient makers

.The coils are described as about 98 feet (30 meters) long and very thick. Experts believe they were used to produce structural stability on the ship. They would have been secured at the bow and stern of the ship to prevent the vessel from weakening and collapsing at either end. Ancient Egyptian portrayals of ships distinctly show the use of these rope trusses, and Thor Heyerdahl’s experiments with ancient replicas clearly showed the need for these stabilizers, especially on papyrus boats.

The ropes are made of a single type of unidentified vegetable fiber. Scientists have so far ruled out materials such as halfa grass, papyrus and palm as the source of the fibers and have begun looking at reed.

While there is evidence that cords and ropes were being made many thousands of years earlier, these Egyptian ropes are now believed to be the oldest actual examples of ancient ropemaking.

For more information about these ancient ropes and other discoveries made in caves at Marsa Gawasis, visit this site

The World’s Oldest Known Prosthetic

A toe made of wood and leather is thought to be the oldest known prosthetic. It was found on a female mummy buried at Luxor and has been dated to approximately 950 and 710 BC.

The loss of a big toe hampers walking. Researchers, with the help of two volunteers who had lost big toes, showed that the artificial toe was a practical device that would have helped its wearer walk more naturally in sandals, although there were some problems when the testers walked barefoot. This lends support to the idea that these devices were not created for mere cosmetic purposes.

There are other examples of ancient prosthetic devices, though none are currently thought to be older than the Egyptian toe. One is a big toe known as the Greville Chester toe which dates before 600 BC and is currently in the British Museum. This toe is made of cartonnage, a papier mache made with a mixture of animal glue, linen and plaster. A much later example is a Roman bronze and wooden leg, known as the Capua leg, dated to approximately 300 BC.

The Cairo toe is currently at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. For more information and to view photos of the Cairo toe, go here