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Ancient Egypt: Difference between revisions
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→Nile Flooding: Nileometer
(→Historiography of Egypt: adding more on Herodotus and others) |
m (→Nile Flooding: Nileometer) Tag: Reverted |
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*** see Google Earth coordinates for Blue Nile source region >> todo | *** see Google Earth coordinates for Blue Nile source region >> todo | ||
==== Nile Flooding ==== | ==== Nile Flooding ==== | ||
[[File:Assuan Elephantine Nilometer 14.JPG|thumb|right|Nilometer on Elephantine Island, used to measure the Nile River's coming flood levels]] | |||
** length of river = long, slow flooding season in Egypt | ** length of river = long, slow flooding season in Egypt | ||
** the Nile floods slowly: | ** the Nile floods slowly: | ||
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**** stays high September | **** stays high September | ||
**** slowly recedes in October | **** slowly recedes in October | ||
* Ancient Egyptians measured coming floods using "Nileometers" | |||
** structures that were placed in the Upper Nile river to measure its height | |||
** and thus measured the coming floods | |||
*** if the measurements were high = disastrous flooding | |||
*** if low = disastrously low crop production | |||
** priests used the measurements to make predictions, thus a source of their power | |||
** Nileometers were used by the ancient Egyptians all the way through to the 20th century building of the Aswan Dam, which collects the flood waters and releases them as needed | |||
==== characteristics of the Nile flooding ==== | ==== characteristics of the Nile flooding ==== | ||
* Nile floods = predictable | * Nile floods = predictable | ||