The Importance of Wheat

                In ancient Egypt, agriculture became a main way of survival. The Egyptians began to produce grains, vegetables and fruits. These products were very important for survival. Although there was one product that stood above the others: wheat! Wheat was a staple in their everyday lives. They used it for food, beer, medical uses and much more.

 

                Wheat was such an important crop for the ancient Egyptians because it was a main food source. The Nile would recede towards the end of November and early December, this is when the ancient Egyptians would begin plowing and sowing. By March and April the wheat would be harvested (David, 1988, p. 129). They received many nutrients from the wheat such as protein and starch (Howard, 2011). Since they did not have potatoes or rice, wheat was the best way to get the nutrients their bodies needed to sustain themselves throughout the day.

 

                Once the wheat was harvested it would be ground up and stored in grain silos. The ground up grain would be used to make bread, an everyday essential. The dough would be made with the wheat flour and water, sometimes they would add honey and fruit to make it sweet. Bread and wheat has also been found inside tombs of the dead, this tells us that they wanted to make sure the dead had their own form of sustenance when they crossed over.

 

                Beer was also a product of wheat. The dough of bread was used to brew the beer; it helped to flavor this drink.  The wheat would soak in water all day, then it would be taken out to dry. After this it would be added to more water, then crushed and compressed into large containers with yeast. Once it had fermented it would be strained and set aside to mature. They would also use stale bread instead of the wheat grains to make the beer. The last step was to season the beer with spices, safflower, mandrake, figs and other essences. (Strouhal, 1992, p.127-128). The Egyptians drank beer more than wine.

 

                Wheat was also used to feed the cattle that help to plow the land. They also used the cattle as a source of food. Wheat had a medicinal purpose as well. It was used as a type of home pregnancy test. Ancient Egyptian doctors believed that if a woman were pregnant, her urine would contain a type of enzyme that would cause wheat or grains to sprout. They also used the wheat to determine if a woman was carrying a male fetus and barley would determine if she was carrying a female fetus. A woman would pee on the grains and if they sprouted she was pregnant, if the wheat sprouted it was going to be a male baby and if the barley sprouted it would be a female. (Strouhal, 1992, p. 15).

 

                Wheat was a very important grain. It helped to sustain a people in their everyday lives, it was how they were able to get through their days of hard work. It was used to create a beverage that was very popular. Wheat was an easy solution that helped to determine pregnancies in a time where you couldn’t do that.

 

 

Bibliography

Howard, Jane. "Tour Egypt :: Bread in Ancient Egypt." Bread in Ancient Egypt. N.p., 21 Aug. 2011. Web. 12 Oct. 2014.

 

David, A. Rosalie. "IV Building and Planting." The Egyptian Kingdoms. London: Elsevier Phaidon, 1988. 129-31. Print.

 

Strouhal, Eugen. Life of the Ancient Egyptians. London: Op