Archeologists Find Ancient Ship Remains (cargo carriers between Pharaonic Egypt and Punt)

AP on Yahoo ^ | 1/27/06 | AP

[NormsRevenge]

CAIRO, Egypt - An American-Italian team of archaeologists has found the remains of 4,000-year-old ships that used to carry cargo between Pharaonic Egypt and the mysterious, exotic land of Punt, the Supreme Council of Antiquities has announced.

The ships' remains were found during a five-year excavation of five caves south of the Red Sea port of Safaga, about 300 miles southeast of Cairo, the chairman of the supreme council, Zahi Hawass, said in a statement late Thursday.

The archaeologists, who came from Boston and East Naples universities, found Pharaonic seals from the era of Sankhkare Mentuhotep III, one of seven rulers of the 11th dynasty, which lasted from about 2133 B.C. to 1991 B.C.. They also found wooden boxes, covered with gypsum, bearing the inscription "Wonders of the land of Punt."

For the ancient Egyptians, Punt was a source of prized goods such as incense, ivory, ebony, gum and the hides of giraffes and panthers that were worn by temple priests. But the precise location of Punt remains a mystery. Historians have variously placed it in Sudan, Eritrea or Somalia.

Hawass said the remains showed the ancient Egyptians were "excellent ship builders" and that they had a fleet capable of sailing to remote lands.

"All the pieces found are in good shape and they will be moved for restoration and display," Hawass added in the statement.

Other artifacts included 80 coils of rope and pieces of pottery that date to the reign of Mentuhotep III.

[SunkenCiv]

The temple of Hatshepsut on the right, built next to the much earlier temple of Mentuhotep II:

http://www.bediz.com/hatshep/temple.jpg

[Natural Law]

Punt?......it was 4th and long.

[FairOpinion]

Not that I want to argue, especially not with you, ;) -- but:

RE-read the original question. Nobody constested the statement that they didn't know where Punt was, only RW's quip, "how do they know they went there"? And if they only found the ships, it's a very reasonable question, how would they know where the ships did or did not go a few thousand years ago. But then later in the article there is the statement I quoted: "They also found wooden boxes, covered with gypsum, bearing the inscription "Wonders of the land of Punt." Duh! That's how they knew!

Right Whale missed it, which is no big deal, I do that myself, so I just pointed out, without ribbing him/her for it. But You are the book reviewer, you are supposed to read the whole article and pay attention, so I picked on you a bit. Now you can go and be embarrassed, you didn't get it in the second round either. Need more coffee, or something. ;)

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If they don't know where Punt was, how do they know the ships went there?


2 posted on 01/27/2006 6:16:44 PM PST by RightWhale (pas de lieu, Rhone que nous)

===

[SunkenCiv]

:') I don't mind a bit. Yeah, there are allegedly some boxes which say wonders of the land of Punt. I'll love to see what these things are, or what they really are, whether they were locally made fake souvenirs, or some commemorative local works for an expedition by or on behalf of Mentuhotep, analogous to what Hatshepsut later did. A good number of New Kingdom pharaohs went to lengths to emulate pharaohs of the Old Kingdom (Thutmosis IV, Amenhotep III, Akhenaten) or the Middle Kingdom (Hatshepsut, at least). ;')

[SunkenCiv]

Other artifacts included 80 coils of rope and pieces of pottery that date to the reign of Mentuhotep III.

I find that pretty fascinating. No, really. More fascinating than Wonders of the land of Punt...

Hwt-Hrw's Temple of the Celestial Waters

Many of the citizen's problems were caused by the environment. Sand blown by the wind caused lung and breathing diseases. The sand also found its way into food, especially bread, the dietary staple. Eaten daily these grains of sand wore down the people's teeth, causing tooth decay and abcesses. Evidence of this can be seen as eroded holes in the cheeks and jaws of many x-rayed mummies.

[Ragnar54]

Wouldn't the stones used to grind grain be a more likely source of sand in bread?

[SunkenCiv]

I've seen that suggested also. :')

[Hegemony Cricket]

Hey - you're being a little liberal with the football analogy here - wouldn't it be easier to just use Fed-Ex?

[SunkenCiv]

:')

[SunkenCiv]

[SunkenCiv]

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[SunkenCiv]