How the Ancient Egyptians Managed the Nile River to Make Their Lives Easier

Over the years, scientists have found alongEgyptian river Nile mysterious stone walls. Some of them are located in places where water lay thousands of years ago. For a long time, no one could understand what kind of stones they were and why they were carefully laid out, but in the course of a new study, a group of researchers from Australia and the UK were able to unravel this mystery. It turned out that with the help of these stone walls, people could control the currents of the Nile River. The walls helped them collect fertile silt, irrigate agricultural crops, and protect the banks from being washed away by water. In general, these groups of stones allowed the inhabitants of Nubia to control a powerful element. This is the oldest system of its kind, because the stone structures are estimated to be 3,000 years old.

Already 3,000 years ago, the Egyptians could manage the Nile River to make their lives easier.

Mystery of the Egyptian River Nile

The amazing discovery was reported inscientific journal Science Alert. The stone walls were created by the inhabitants of Nubia, a historical region in the Nile Valley, in northern Sudan. With the help of satellite images and surveys of local residents, scientists put structures on the map - it turned out that there are hundreds of them. Some of them are still buried in the waters of the Nile, while others stand on the site of dry riverbeds. By location, some structures stretch along the river, while others across.

Variety of stone walls along and across the Nile River

How did the Egyptians use the Nile River?

Stone walls stand in different positions alongin relation to the flow, which means they can perform different functions. For example, they helped to collect fertile silt - in agriculture, slurry from the bottom of reservoirs is sometimes used as fertilizer. It is believed to contain a lot of phosphorus, which plays an important role in photosynthesis, as well as cell division and the transfer of genetic information.

Mysterious stone walls near the Nile River, view from above

Also, with the help of stone structures, ancientthe inhabitants of the northern part of Sudan could change the direction of the water to make it easier for them to water the land. High walls could protect settlements from floods, as well as create ideal fishing spots protected from the wind. In general, the Egyptians controlled the currents of the Nile very skillfully and literally subjugated the powerful elements.

See also: See what the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamen looked like during his lifetime

The oldest hydraulic system in the world

During conversations with local residents, scientistslearned that the lands formed by changing water flows are still used. Moreover, similar structures were built even in the 1970s. The old stone walls, which are essentially part of a complete hydraulic system, cannot be used because global warming has changed the direction of the Nile River. It is impossible to say exactly when this or that design was created. But the age of the most ancient is 3,000 years.

This incredibly durable hydraulic systemplayed a critical role in allowing ancient communities to grow food and thrive in Nubia's challenging landscapes for more than 3,000 years, the authors of the study announced.

Some piles of stones lie among the sand because some areas have dried up.

Some stone structures are very large.For example, not far from the ancient city of Soleb on the west bank of the Nile, there is a wall 700 meters long, which is made up of huge boulders weighing up to 100 kilograms. Perhaps it was needed in order to create an area with calm water near the coast, where boats could sail.

Scientists are surprised that they paid attention tothese groups of stones are only recently. Without any exaggeration, they found the oldest hydraulic system in the world. Previously, the structure on the Yellow River, which is considered one of the largest in China, was considered the oldest structure of this kind. A new discovery has proven that the inhabitants of Egypt learned to manage large flows of water to their advantage 2,500 years earlier than craftsmen from China.

Subscribe to our Zen channel and stay up to date with all the latest scientific discoveries. It's free!

In general, Egypt is a country with a very ancient andmysterious story. It can be considered the most interesting from the point of view, because it is there that the tombs of the pharaohs with mummies and treasures, ancient cities and so on are found. For example, in 2000, the flooded city of Heraklion was found there, the study of which is complicated by the fact that archaeologists have to dive deep under the water. At the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea, scientists have already managed to find ancient monuments, boats and even well-preserved fruits. You can learn more about the features of this discovery by reading our article “Fruit baskets found in the sunken city of Egypt. What's so amazing about that?"