Egypt's main economic activities were the exchange of gold and wheat, agriculture, livestock, fishing and handicrafts.
The Civilization of Egypt Used many forms of commerce, as well as agriculture, to maintain themselves economically. Mainly the economy consisted of exchanging gold and wheat. The economic aspects of civilization in Egypt made their lives successful and productive.
Most Egyptians relied on commerce to make money. They had many farms and livestock that they exchanged for tools to make their food; They also collected many different minerals and metals. At present, trade is still a major economic activity in Egypt.
Many sectors of the population worked in the farms, which could be their own or the nobles. Professions related to administrators, merchants, and artisans were also exercised in the population.
Crops in Egypt were much richer than other countries of that time, allowing a large percentage of urban development and various forms of production.
Thanks to these economic activities, cities and temples could be built; In addition they could equip their armies and have abundant wealth as a society.
Main economic activities of Egyptian civilization
farming
Agriculture created most of the riches of Egypt. Vegetables, grains and fruits were grown, while cattle, pigs, goats and poultry were reared.
Horses were not very popular, but donkeys were popularly used as brute force in the field.
Most of the harvests of ancient Egypt were wheat and barley, as well as lettuce, grains, onions, figs, dates, grapes, melons and cucumbers. Linseed was also cultivated by many farmers and was used for the production of flax.
Annual floods made the soil fertile. However, agricultural techniques were not very efficient; Development was rare, implements always remained primitive.
Commerce
Egyptian civilization was very good with bartering. They exchanged gold, papyrus, flax, and grains for cedar, ebony, ivory, iron, copper, and lapis lazuli.
Their boats sailed across the Nile River by importing and exporting objects from various ports. Once the objects were unloaded, they were transported to various merchants through camels, carts, and on foot.
Traders from Egypt met with other civilizations just after the mouth of the Nile River, to exchange objects that had brought them. In spite of this, it was not so common that they themselves traveled beyond the Nile River.
After their objects were consumed by the same producers - and after landowners and tax collectors had charged, the merchandise was sold on the free market directly to consumers or to professional traders.
Much of the wheat grown was kept in the stores of private owners. Many of the beans were collected as taxes. Objects and crops were used as a kind of coin.
Later, gold, silver, and copper were also popularly used in trade and commerce with foreigners.
Handicrafts
The crafts were produced in small shops. Its products included linen, crafts, bricks, tools, glass, weapons, furniture, jewelry, perfumes, ropes, baskets, carpets, and writing materials.
These products were then processed and exchanged by others, within the same Egyptian society, or exported to other societies and regions.
Fishing
Virtually all the fish consumed were captured from the Nile River. This civilization was one of the first to use fishing as a source of food. Many fishermen lived from this profession.
The fish were caught with elaborate meshes of willow branches and traps in the water; Harpoons as well as hook and thread were used.
Most of the fish species living on the Nile included tilapia, catfish, eels, sharks, and perch.
Technology
Innovations in many areas made it possible for Egypt to become an ancient power. Since trade was such an important economic activity, the Egyptians needed ships to function properly.
Egyptian civilization used their knowledge of aerodynamic science to build ships that caught the wind and could be propelled through the water.
The Egyptians developed numerous sails that could be adjusted opposite direction to the wind in different ships.
At first they built small boats made of papyrus, but eventually began to build larger ships made of cedarwood.
They also invented the concept of using string lattices to strengthen the beams of their ships. They were also the first to use rudders on their boats.
Mining
Most of the quarries in Egypt are near the Nile River. Most of their reserves are gold. Gold mining began in alluvial deposits And continued with underground tracks in Nubia in ancient Egypt.
Egypt was a great producer of gold for 1500 years. It is believed that the exploitation of gold, not military power, was the main feature that turned Egypt into an empire.
Quarries produced enough quality stones to produce decorative monuments such as sculptures and obelisks. Most of the stones found are different types of granite, quartz, and basalt.
Manufacture
A large number of the manufactured objects came from families who produced the raw materials. The work was divided by gender, with processing tasks usually left to women.
While men grew linseed, the women spun it into a net and wove flax. A large proportion of the grain produced was used to produce beer.
In the cities small factories were built, often financed by affluent people. These factories included bakeries, breweries, and carpenters with several dozen employees.
References
- The ancient egyptian economy. Recovered from reshafilm.org
- Economy during the ancient egyptian times. Recovered from egyptiandiamond.com
- Ancient egypt for kids- Economy and trade. Retrieved from egypt.mrdonn.org
- Stone quarries of ancient egypt. Retrieved from wikipedia.org
- Ancient egypt / Economy. Retrieved from looklex.com
- Fishing, hunting and fowling. The ancient egyptian economy. Recovered from reshafilm.org
- Ancient egyptian technology. Recovered from ancient-egypt-online.com
- Mining industry in egypt. Retrieved from wikipedia.org.