The real miracle of the world is the artisans in Ancient Egypt

In 1905, the Italian archaeologist and orientalist Ernesto Schiaparelli, who had already immortalized his name by discovering the tomb of Nefertari, the first chief wife of Ramses II, made another amazing discovery. On the west bank of the Nile, opposite Luxor, he discovered a group of Theban necropolises, and quite near to it - a settlement of artisans who created magnificent temples of the Valley of the Kings. This settlement, Deir el-Medina, is now known to every Egyptologist as a "place of truth," an undistorted mirror showing how the craftsmen lived in Egypt from the time of the pharaohs.

Deir el-Medina originated under Pharaoh Thutmose I, approximately in the middle of the 16th century. BC. E. However, the original art of the craft was familiar to the ancient Egyptians long before this event. Archeologists know of artifacts of a very high quality, dating from the early Bronze Period (about 3 thousand years BC). From bronze and copper, tools, utensils, figurines and weapons were made. Iron at first was so scarce metal that the ancient Egyptians considered it a fallen star sent from the sky.
Artisans in ancient Egypt, who worked with metals, were always in price, but there was no one more important than jewelers who worked gold and precious stones. Many of the ornaments and cult attributes found in the tombs of the pharaohs and temples are unrivaled so far, and the technology of their manufacture has not been solved to this day.

Another respected group of artisans were those who worked with wood. This was due to the lack of quality wood: on both banks of the Nile grew, mainly palms, plane trees and sycamore. Of these, ordinary furniture was made. Monopoly possession of the pharaoh by trade allowed to deliver to Egypt from the eastern countries pine trunks, which went to ship needs. And from the countries of the South, the most expensive ebony was imported, from which luxury goods and furniture were made for the upper strata of society.

Artisans stood apart, creating from the stone individual architectural elements of majestic tombs and temples. Despite their relatively privileged position, they depended entirely on the orders of the pharaoh or the priests. No one, except them, "architectural excesses" were not needed.

For ordinary residents intended products of clay and reeds. Artisans in Ancient Egypt established a mass production of pottery and wicker chairs, mats, baskets. On the dishes you can often find jewelry in the form of figures, reliefs, images of gods, people and animals.

The production of linen cloth dates back to the first dynasties of the pharaohs. Tali it with the help of vertical and horizontal machine tools. The paint was also made to paint it. About the colorfulness of linen clothing can be judged by color paintings in tombs and temples.

The picture will be incomplete, if not to mention the manufacture of papyrus, which has become an integral symbol of ancient Egyptian history. Monopoly for the harvest and processing of reeds, which was abundant in the delta of the Nile, also belonged to the pharaoh. Artisans in ancient Egypt processed cane fibers and stems, and a papyrus for writing was obtained, thanks to which we received valuable information about the events that took place several thousand years ago.

From the set of details, discovered during the excavations in Deir el-Medina as a mosaic, there is a single picture showing the life of artisans in Ancient Egypt. On the one hand, they were slaves of their involvement in the secrets of erecting tombs: each of them was looked after by the manager, and the village separated from the rest of the world a high wall. However, they were allowed to live with their wives and children. And in general, compared with other artisans, their situation was considered privileged.

With Deir el-Medina is associated with the most amazing event for the ancient world - the first strike in the history of mankind! Yes, artisans in ancient Egypt once decided to defend their rights, after they for a long time did not pay anything for their labors. A document telling about this is called "Papyrus strike".

Everyone who has ever visited Egypt, visited his museums, saw the creations of human hands of that time, erected grandiose structures, understands: the main miracle of the world here is not pyramids and sarcophagi, but ordinary people who created them, who knew their craft and never Life is not received for him a decent reward.