SENET

Gaming Board for Amenhotep III with Separate Sliding Drawer, 
ca. 1390-1353 B.C.E.

SENET is a board game from ancient Egypt, whose original rules are the subject of conjecture. The oldest hieroglyph resembling a SENET game dates to around 3100 BC. The name of the game in Egyptian is thought to mean the "game of passing".

SENET is one of the oldest known board games. Fragmentary boards that could be SENET have been found in First Dynasty burials in Egypt, c. 3100 BC. A hieroglyph resembling a SENET board appears in the tomb of Merknera (3300–2700 BC). The first unequivocal painting of this ancient game is from the Third Dynasty tomb of Hesy (c. 2686–2613 BC). People are depicted playing SENET in a painting in the tomb of Rashepes, as well as from other tombs of the Fifth and Sixth Dynasties (c. 2500 BC). The oldest intact SENET boards date to the Middle Kingdom, but graffiti on Fifth and Sixth Dynasty monuments could date as early as the Old Kingdom.

SENET GAME

At least by the time of the New Kingdom in Egypt (1550–1077 BC), SENET was conceived as a representation of the journey of the "ka" (the vital spark) to the afterlife. 

This connection is made in the Great Game Text, which appears in a number of papyri, as well as the appearance of markings of religious significance on SENET boards themselves. The game is also referred to in chapter XVII of the ancient Book of the Dead.

People in neighbouring cultures also played SENET, and it probably came to those places through trade relationships between Egyptians and local peoples. It has been found in the Levant at sites such as Byblos, as well as in Cyprus. Because of the local practice of making games out of stone, there are more SENET games that have been found in Cyprus than have been found in Egypt.

        Senet pawns

The SENET game board is a grid of 30 squares, arranged in three rows of ten. A SENET board has two sets of pawns (at least five of each). Although details of the original game rules are a subject of debate, SENET historians Timothy Kendall and R. C. Bell have made their own reconstructions of the game. These rules are based on snippets of texts that span over a thousand years, over which time gameplay is likely to have changed. Therefore, it is unlikely these rules reflect the actual course of ancient Egyptian gameplay. Their rules have been adopted by sellers of modern SENET sets.

Watercolour copy of an ancient painting depicting Queen Nefertari playing SENET. Original in Egypt, Thebes, Valley of the Queens, Tomb of Nefertari; reign of Ramesses II (ca. 1279–1213 B.C.). Watercolour copy painted in 1921–22 by Nina de Garis Davies (1881–1965), a member of the Egyptian Expedition of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Tempera on paper, 17 x 18 1/8 in. (43 x 46 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Seems SENET was a very popular board game in ancient Egypt. Queens like Nefertari may have played it using a game box, while ancient Egyptians who were less wealthy may have played on a grid scratched into the floor. 

SENET game board pawns pieces

The original tiles and fragments were found in an ancient Egyptian tomb along with game pieces shaped like cones and spools. They are made of "faience", a ceramic material that was often produced in a blue or blue-green colour that symbolized life, most "scarabs" found in ancient Egypt have this distinguish colour. Conservators have filled in missing tiles and parts of tiles with modern material. You can see the difference, because the colour of the original faience appears darker while the modern ceramic material is a lighter blue. The conservators also used modern wood to reconstruct the box that held the tiles.

Playing SENET

Bird's eye view of the SENET game board

Two players determined their moves by throwing casting sticks or bones. A game piece started at square 1 on the upper left and zig-zagged across each row and down to the next, until it crossed square 30 on the bottom right. Each player could make moves to advance a piece and pass other pieces on the board. Each player could also block other pieces from moving forward or force their opponent backwards.

The last five squares (squares 26–30) are usually decorated. On the board to the right, two marked squares are preserved and a third one is fragmentary. Square 26 is usually marked with the sign for "good" (nefer). Landing in this special square gave the player a free turn. It seems that the players had to reach this sign before they could move on to win the game. Square 27 on this SENET board depicts a water hazard. If a game piece landed on this special square, it was removed from the grid before it could cross the final square on the bottom right. Players competed to cross the final square with all of their pieces.

Game boxes and depictions of SENET are found in a number of tombs. King Tutankhamun was buried with no fewer than five game boxes. The ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife, which means an existence after death. To reach the afterlife, a person who died had to perform certain rituals and pass many obstacles. In the New Kingdom, the game SENET, became associated with the journey to the afterlife. Some of the squares of the game corresponded to the hazards a person might meet on their journey to the afterlife, while other squares helped the players. Because of this connection, SENET was not just a game; it was also a symbol for the struggle to obtain immortality, or endless life.

SENET Board on a Clay Tablet

Instruction for playing SENET
_________________________

Information gathered from internet articles and different sources.

CUMIN

* (cuminum cyminum) seeds are native to the Mediterranean region and eastward into India. Cumin is a member of the parsley family. The ancient Egyptians who called it “tpnn” used cumin a lot. Ancient Egyptian king Rameses III offered gifts of cumin to the god Ra at Heliopolis. 

Several grains of ancient cumin are available for inspection at the Agricultural Museum in Dokki, Cairo and in the museum of Florence, Italy.

Cumin Seeds

The ancient Egyptians used cumin to treat gastro-intestinal disease, to expel intestinal parasites, and cumin was included in different medicinal recipes for mouth rinses, suppositories, and ear instillations. Cumin seed is listed in Biblical texts in both the Old and New Testaments. It was said in ancient Greece that if one planted coriander, during the sowing process it must be cursed – if the crop was to be abundant. Medieval healers recommended cumin seeds mixed with barley then boiled in wine as a general cure-all.

According to Keimer, Egyptian cumin (Cuminum cyminum) is different from the European cumin, Carum carvi, From the fact that the Egyptian name “tpjin”, preserved in Coptic “tapen”, is different from the Semitic names of the plant, one could conclude that the Arabs introduced the Semitic appellation kammoun when they invaded Egypt.

Cumin Plantation

The Roman epicurean Apicius reported that the Egyptians of his time used cumin when they cooked marrows and grilled fish. The Roman writer Pliny highly recommended cumin and wrote: Yet of all the seasonings that gratify a fastidious taste, cumin is the most agreeable. Pliny also mentioned that cumin mixed with water commonly was used to treat stomachache. In modern Egypt crushed cumin added to water and medicinal teas is used to treat colic and indigestion, and may be offered to pregnant and recently delivered women.

The Cumin Plant

Ancient Indian Ayurvedic medical texts report that cumin seeds are crushed and prepared as decoctions, sometimes fermented, and may be prepared as pills and mixed with ghee (clarified butter). Such preparations are used to enhance appetite, digestion, lactation, and taste perception. The medicinal use of these cumin-based pills is extended to treat conditions such as appetite loss, diarrhea, and fever. Several recent Indian medical journal reports claim that cumin contains anti-diabetic properties and that consumption improves secretion of saliva.

The Gerarde herbal reports says: cumin seeds scattereth and breaketh all the windiness of the stomachs, belly, guts, and matrix [uterus]; prepared as a broth cumin seeds are good for the chest and cold lungs; when mixed with vinegar and smelled, will stop nosebleeds.

Cumin Flowers

In the Mediterranean and Near Eastern countries, sweetening agents, jams, sweet jellies, or fruits, are not generally eaten with meats or cooked dishes, as they are in northern Europe or America. But spices are used more freely. Speaking in a rather schematic way, mint, oregano, thyme and laurel prevail in Greece; fennel, laurel, tarragon in Southern France; coriander, cumin and black pepper in Egypt; hot peppers in the Sudan and Congo; cardamom and saffron in the Arabian Peninsula; while pine seeds, raisins, pistachio nuts and almonds are often added to rice or to stuffing in Syria and the Lebanon.

A mixture of spices coriander and cumin, along with toasted nuts, salt and garlic was used to sweeten the coarse bread of daily life in ancient Egypt. That tradition lives on today in the Dukkah, a popular spice blend that modern Egyptians enjoy just as their ancestors did thousands of years ago.

The Plant & Seeds

Follow the recipe for Dukkah below to bring a taste of ancient Egypt into your own kitchen. It can be used as a condiment for roasted meat, as a topping for hummus or as a dip with crusty bread.

Ingredients

1-cup whole shelled hazelnuts

1-cup whole shelled almonds

1-tablespoon whole coriander seeds

1-tablespoon whole cumin seeds

1/4-cup whole sesame seeds

1/4-teaspoon salt

Preparation

1.   Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2.   On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spread the sesame seeds out in a single layer.

3.   Roast in the oven for about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

4.   Place the hazelnuts and almonds on the same baking sheet and roast in the oven for about 5 minutes.

5.   Remove and combine with the toasted sesame seeds.

6.   Combine the sesame seeds, hazelnuts, almonds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and salt, in a food processor and grind for 2 to 4 minutes.

7.   Store in an airtight container.

Dokka on Crust

ErkSous

The History of Licorice

Licorice is not a recent discovery. The ancient Egyptians used it as a pharmaceutical, and copious supplies were found in King Tut’s tomb. Egyptian hieroglyphics record the use of licorice as a popular beverage among the men of the time.

Manuscripts from 360 A.D. talk of licorice helping eye ailments, skin diseases, coughs, and loss of hair. Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar are on record as endorsing the benefits of eating licorice. Since the 14th century, it has been used to soothe coughs, colds, and bronchitis.

LICORICE ROOTS

Napoleon Bonaparte found licorice soothing during battle; he allegedly ate so much of it that his teeth turned black. (Don’t worry. The amount of licorice found in most of today’s licorice candy will not discolour your teeth.)

Modern licorice candy dates from 17th century Holland. At the time, Holland was one of the world’s most powerful countries. Her intrepid sailors spread this wonderful delicacy to other European nations. Today, licorice candy is manufactured throughout Europe, America, and Australia.

The Modern scientific Health Benefits of Licorice

Licorice is especially useful in fighting bronchitis, upper respiratory catarrh, and coughs. It stimulates mucus production and helps to loosen sticky phlegm. It also contains a chemical that has cough-suppressant properties.

THE LICORICE PLANT & FLOWER

Licorice also helps reduce stomach acid and increases mucus secretion in the gastric tract, soothing irritation and inflammation. It can be used to fight heartburn, indigestion, and gastric and duodenal ulcers. It may also shorten the healing time of mouth ulcers.

Small amounts of licorice, such as those found in candies, do not pose a risk. However, licorice is a powerful drug, and serious health problems can result from taking it at medicinal levels for long periods of time.

Long back in Italy was a saying, Ladies: 

"(L'amore e' un sogno, dolce come il latte e la Liquirizia)
 Love is a dream, sweet as milk and Licorice”

ITALIAN LICORICE SINCE 1731

Quick Facts About Licorice

The licorice plant, a shrub, is officially a weed. It is about four feet tall with purplish flowers and grows in hot, dry places.

Licorice root is one of the most popular herbs in the world. Its botanical name comes from the Greek words meaning "sweet root."

The ancient Greeks, Egyptians, Chinese, and Hindus recognized the natural medicinal qualities of licorice. Licorice helps relieve the pains that accompany certain types of ulcers, and it is good for the adrenal glands.

LICORICE

Carbenoxolone, a compound derived from licorice root, may help slow the effects of aging on the brain. Licorice root is a botanical ingredient in modern Chinese medicines used to manage cancers. Current research conducted at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, supports the use of licorice in the treatment of prostate and breast cancer.

In the United States, anise seed is a popular substitute flavouring for licorice. Although the anise seed has an unmistakable licorice flavour, it is not related to the European plant whose roots are the source of true licorice.

The root of the drink

MEDECIN MAN

The medicinal use of licorice can be traced back to many ancient civilizations. Babylonians used it some 4000 years ago as a drink to strengthen the body and its immune system. Ancient Egyptians would prepare a licorice drink as a ritual to honour the spirits of the Pharaohs. Raw ErkSous was also found in the tomb of the ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamun.

Ancient Egyptian doctors used to mix ErkSous with various medicines to treat stomach and liver problems,” said Dr. Mohamed Samy, an expert in alternative medicine, who practices herbal medicine.

“The Greeks, Romans and later the Arabs used it as well to treat coughs, indigestion, vomiting, stomach pains and general digestive ailments. Its health benefits have been mentioned in various old scrolls.”

The benefits of ErkSous

LICORICE ALLSORTS

ErkSous, extracted from the root of Glycyrrhiza glabra, a plant with blue flowers, has Licorice flower distinct sweet flavour. It contains sugar, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and others minerals. 

Until today Egyptians drink ErkSous to quench their thirst and for its health benefits.

“ErkSous strengthens the immune system,” said Mohamed Ibrahim, a spice shop owner and herbal medicine practitioner from Khan-Khalil. “It is a natural antibiotic that helps treat infections in the respiratory system.” that I greatly recommend to my clients, this sweet beverage can help and has no side effects.

“It is also very useful for coughs and throat soars. Some people used it as well to regulate the digestive system and for constipation,” added Ibrahim.

 Clank.. clink.. clank.. clink…

THE ERKSOUS VENDOR
 PAINTING BY C. CHAROBIM (1894-1975)

The rhythmic clanking of his cymbals resonates distinctively through the thick noise of Cairo’s busy downtown streets on hot summer days.

ErkSous, a healthy cold drink sold by the glass in the streets of Cairo and across the country.

When a thirsty passerby will stops the ErkSous Street Vendor for a cold ErkSous drink, the street vendor, in his baggy Turkish-style pants, thick cloth belt, little vest, and rubber boots, tilts his heavy ice-filled copper container decorated with a bunch of colourful plastic flowers that is strapped to his chest, and pours the brownish juice into a glass held way below his waist so as to foam up the liquid.

After rinsing the used glass with a dash of water sprinkled from a plastic jug slung over his shoulder, he tucks it back into a small rimmed tray fixed to one hip, and then bangs his cymbals again.

Preparing the drink

Preparing ErkSous is very easy and only takes a few hours to make.

A ErkSous Vendor from Souhag in Upper Egypt, has been doing it for years. He buys the raw ingredient from the spice shop. He places it in a bowl and sprays it with water and sodium carbonate, leaving to sit over night for seven or eight hours until it ferments.

Licorice Root Sodium carbonate helps in the fermenting process. ErkSous original color is light brown but turns dark as a chemical reaction to the sodium carbonate and the water.

ROAMING VENDOR

“The next morning, He rub the ErkSous together a little in his hands until it turns dark in colour,” a vendor, who learned the trade of making and selling ErkSous from his father". He then places the raw ErkSous in a sieve lined with fine gauze fabric, and pours water over it. The product is a drink ready to be served cold.

Many Egyptian families prepare this favoured drink in their homes. Some say making it themselves is cheaper than buying it, while others feel it is more hygienic than drinking it from a street Vendor.

The demand and consumption of ErkSous vary according to the time of the year.

Licorice, Kharoub and Sobia Cart

Our sales of raw ErkSous go up especially in the summer and of course during Ramadan,” said a spice shop owner in  Shubra, adding that his customers generally buy depending on the size of the family.

Sales increase in summer because ErkSous is served ice cold and is therefore very refreshing when the temperatures soar. During Ramadan, Egyptians also drink more ErkSous because it helps them prepare for the next day’s fast, as it lessens their thirst.

Times are changing

Today however, things are changing for the wandering ErkSous Vendors. Many have given up this job, finding it difficult to walk the streets with the heavy urns on their backs amidst Cairo’s crowded streets and traffic. Others on the other hand have opened juice shops where they can sell a larger assortment of drinks that better suits the demand of customers.

MODERN TIME
ERKSOUS AND OTHER JUICES
VENDOR ON CART

Life is hard nowadays and with the hot weather in the summer, the traffic and the bustling streets, who could stand walking around all day with that weight on their back,” said a juice shop owner in El-Sayeda. “That’s why my dad and I decided to open this shop to sell ErkSous and other refreshments as well.”

Other Vendors did not give up wandering the streets completely. Instead they have opted for a wheeled cart to help them reduce some of their works’ strain.

In the past the city was not so crowded with people and cars, summer were not that harsh and the pollution was much less, I was also much younger and had a better health, so it wasn’t difficult for me to walk around all day, but nowadays things are different.

COLOURED DRAWING
ON COPPER

After selling ErkSous for many years in the streets the smiling vendor said, I built this cart with wheels, which makes it a lot easier for me now to walk around from street to street without getting too tired. It also allows me to sell more than one type of drink at the same time, so today for example I have ErkSous, Tamr Hindi (a tamarind fruit ice drink) and sobia (a sweet drink made of grinded rice, coconut, sugar and milk mixed together in water). Also I have blocks of ice in the cart, to keep the drinks nice and cool.”

Parts of Article inspired by an Ingrid Wassmann blog.

GOLD

ARTICLE FROM AN INTERESTING SITE 

CALLED ANCIENT ORIGIN

 https://www.ancient-origins.net/

PHARAONIC GOLD RING

The periodic table of chemical elements  turns 150  this year. The anniversary is a chance to shine a light on particular elements some of which seem ubiquitous but which ordinary people beyond the world of chemistry probably don’t know much about.

One of these is gold, which was the subject of my postgraduate degrees in chemistry, and which I have  been studying  for almost 30 years. In chemistry, gold can be considered a late starter when compared to most other metals. It was always considered to be chemically “inert” but in recent decades it has flourished and a variety of interesting applications have emerged.

A long, curious history

Gold takes its name from the Latin word aurum (“yellow”). It’s an element with a long but rather mysterious history. For instance, it’s one of 12 confirmed elements on the periodic table whose discoverer  is unknown . The others are carbon, sulfur, copper, silver, iron, tin, antimony, mercury, lead, zinc and bismuth.

Though we’re not sure who discovered it, there’s evidence to suggest it was known to the ancient Egyptians as far back as  3000 BC . Historically, its primary use was for jewellery; this is still the case  today, it’s also used in mint coins. Gold is also found in ancient and modern art: it’s used to prepare ruby or purple pigment, or as gold leaf.

Egyptian golden lion sculpture (Dieter Hawlan / Adobe Stock)

South Africa was once the top  gold-producing country  by far: it mined over 1,000 tonnes in 1970 alone. Its annual output has steadily fallen since then – the top three gold producing countries  in 2017  were China, Australia and Russia, with a combined output of almost 1000 tonnes. South Africa has dropped to 8th position, even surpassed by Peru and Indonesia.

But gold’s uses and its chemical properties extend into many other areas beyond jewels and minted coins. From pharmaceutical research to nanotechnology, this ancient element is being used to drive new technologies that are pushing the world into the future.

Ancient Egyptian jewelry bracelets and necklaces of gold (EdNurg / Adobe Stock)

Why and how it’s useful

Of the 118 confirmed elements in the periodic table, nine are naturally occurring elements with radioactive  isotopes that are used in so-called nuclear medicine. Gold is not radioactive but is nevertheless very useful in medicine in the form of gold-containing drugs.

There are  two classes  of gold drugs used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. One is injectable gold thiolates – molecules with a sulfur atom at one end, and a chemical chain of virtually any description attached to them – found in drugs such as Myocrisin, Solganol and Allocrysin. The other is an oral complex called  Auranofin.

GOLD SHOES OF KING
TUTANKHAMON (1332 BC)

Gold is also increasingly being used in  nanotechnology. A nanomaterial is generally considered a material where any of its three dimensions is 100 nanometres (nm) or less. Nanotechnology is useful because it is not restricted to a particular material – any material could in principle be made into a nanomaterial – but rather a particular property: the property of size.

For example, gold in its bulk form has a distinct yellow colour. But as it is broken up into very small pieces it starts to change colour, through a range of red and purple, depending on the relative size of the gold nanoparticles. Such nanoparticles could be used in a variety of applications, for example in the  biomedical or optical-electronic fields.

Another exciting advancement for gold in nanotechnology was the discovery in 1983 that a clean gold surface dipped into a solution containing a thiolate could form  self-assembled monolayers . These monolayers modify the surface of gold in very innovative ways. Research into surface modification is important because the surface of anything can show very different properties than the bulk (that is, the inside) of the same material.

More to come

Pharaonic Gold dentistry

Gold nanoparticles have also proven to be an effective catalyst. A catalyst is a material that increases the rate of a chemical reaction and so reduces the amount of energy required without itself undergoing any permanent chemical change. This is important because catalysis lies at the heart of many  manufactured goods  we use today. For example, a catalyst turns propylene into propylene oxide, which is the first step in making antifreeze.

Two discoveries in the 1980s made scientists look at gold catalysis differently. Masatake Haruta, in Osaka, Japan, made mixed oxides containing gold – and  discovered the material was remarkably active to catalyse the oxidation of toxic carbon monoxide into carbon dioxide. Today, this catalyst is found in vehicle exhausts.

At the same time  Graham Hutchings , who was working in industry in Johannesburg, South Africa,  discovered a gold catalyst  that would work best for acetylene hydrochlorination. This process is central to PVC plastic, which is used in virtually all plumbing production. Until then, the industrial catalyst for this process was using environmentally unfriendly mercuric chloride material.

 

3D illustration of gold nanoparticles (Kateryna_Kon / Adobe Stock)

Many applications

In my opinion, gold has many more uses that haven’t yet been discovered. There is much more to come in the world of  gold research .

There will, in the next few years, be new developments in how the element is used in, amongst others, medicine, nanotechnology and catalysis. It will also find new applications in relativistic quantum chemistry (combining relativistic mechanics with quantum chemistry), surface science (the physics and chemistry of surfaces and how they interact), luminescence and  photophysics – and more.

Ancient Peruvian mask made of gold (Carlos Santa Maria / Adobe Stock)

 The article ‘ From medicine to nanotechnology: How gold quietly shapes our world ’ by Werner van Zyl was first published on The Conversation and has been republished under a Creative Commons license.

Goto Youtube for a video about the:  Scientific Uses of Gold

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I just present it here as is to my Blog readers with reference to the original...