Page 65 - J. C. Turner - History and Science of Knots

Ancient Egyptian Rope and Knots 53

Except for simple three- and four-strand plaits, plaiting is basically un-
known in Pharaonic Egypt. Complicated knots, which can be considered re-
lated to plaiting do not occur either.
B erenike
Berenike, a harbour town at the Red Sea coast, differs from Amarna both
in date and region. Both sites have in common that they were located in
a more or less isolated area. The workmen's village near the tombs in the
desert, Berenike in the Eastern desert at the edge of the sea. The plant
material in the vicinity of Berenike was limited to desert shrubs. The ropes
used in seafaring were mainly made of the leafsheath fibres of the date palm
(Phoenix dactylifera). This material must have been imported from the Nile
Vally, a journey which took 12 days by camel. Other materials used were
dom palm (Hyphaene thebaica), grass (Desmostachya bipinnata), flax (Linum
usitatissumum) and cotton (Gossypium arboreum). Cotton was not introduced
into Egypt until the fourth century A.D. (Germer 1985: 123).

Fig. 12. A rope made of untanned camel hide, with a detail of the method of
connecting strips of hide (Strap Bend, #1491)
The rope found at Berenike is well made. Unlike the rope from the
Pharaonic period, which consisted mainly of grass (thin bundles for string,
thick bundles for rope), the rope from Berenike is made of cabled date palm
fibre. Another method of making strong rope was by wrapping a bundle of
grass with zS2 grass string. This type of rope must have been particularly
resistant against pulling forces on the width of the rope and might have been
part of a Roman ballista. Apart from vegetable materials, grasses and palm