Ancient Egypt was one of the first early civilizations. But even they had to trade to get everything they needed. Egyptians traded many things, with different people, and in varying ways. Trade started in Mesopotamia and Egypt is very close to Mesopotamia. Because of this, both of them became trade partners. Not many people know about Egyptian trade, and that was just a few facts. If you decide to learn more about it, you will too be introduced to an interesting topic.
Did you know ancient Egyptians traded various things? Some of these items included; gold, ebony, papyrus, linen, grain, cedar wood, copper, iron, ivory, lapis lazuli, wine, elephants, incense, beer, silk, glass, dyes, tin, pearls, horses and wool. They also traded bronze, pottery, animal skins, olive oil, perfume, barley, bread, fruit, vegetables, turquoise, and grain. All of these objects can be found in the countries and cities found, near, or in Egypt.
If the Egyptians were going to trade, they had to get their resources from somewhere. Ancient Egypt traded with the following countries of Upper Egypt, Lower Egypt, Mesopotamia, Levant, Libya, Nubia, Lebanon, Canaan, Ancient Rome, Crete, Ancient Greece, Cyprus, Phoenicia, Persia, Afghanistan, and India. These places are northeast of the great country of Egypt. Egypt, like other places, traded to get things they needed or did not have access to in their homeland.
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Beyond who the Egyptians traded with, they traded in multiple ways. Splash! The boat just hit an immense wave as they passed over a cataract. The traders stumble back but are used to this bad weather. This is what being a trader on water was like. The group of traders were on the Nile river, in a little boat. When they reached a cataract they had to take everything out of the boat and put it on their backs.
These people could only put the items back once the choppy waters of the river calmed down. Traveling on a donkey would not be much better for trade. Someone could take their possessions. Also the ride would be bumpy, very bumpy! The last way that you will learn about is trading on foot. These traders would have to walk the whole way! This way of transportation was a long trip. So hopeful where they were going was near. People who were going on foot would have carried everything on their back. So, that would make the trip even longer!
Finally, you can see how different trade can be, all in one country. In the last unit, in my Social Studies class, we studied Mesopotamia, and it was cool how Mesopotamia and Egypt connected. To this day, we still trade with Egypt. Do you think Egypt still trades the same way today? They most likely don’t, but it would make for a day of research!
Bibliography
- Donn, Lin. “ Ancient Egypt for Kids: Economy and trade.” Mr. Donn, Social Studies School Service and Good Year Books https://egypt.mrdonn.org/trade.html. 11/26/18
- Mark, Joshua J. ‘Trade in Ancient Egypt.’ Ancient History Encyclopedia. Ancient History Encyclopedia, 15 Jun 2017. Web. 10 Dec 2018. https://www.ancient.eu/article/1079/trade-in-ancient-egypt/ 11/27/18
- Alchin, Linda. “Egyptian trade.” mummies2pyramids, June 2014 www.mummies2pyramids.info/geography-cities/egyptians-trade.htm 11/27/18
- additional resources were found at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LXwJlzyCr3F5hLwslCVcy0RmVHLV7sRSFKzsJOB8G3Y/edit
