Journal Article

Watermelon in Ancient Egypt

Al-Elimi, Faten Hamdi, El-Weshahy, Mofida Hassan, El-Srougy, Amna Wasfy

2022

Overview

The ancient Egyptian was famous for his association with nature, and even for its introduction in different areas of his life. Vegetables were widely known in the Egyptian civilization, as they appeared on the walls of temples and tombs, due to their importance in the ancient Egyptian religion and their association with offerings to the gods. One of the most important of these vegetables is watermelon, which spread widely in the ancient Egyptian civilization, and its sizes, shapes, and uses increased. It comes from ancient Egypt: Citrullus lanatus, the watermelon. The local kind of the juicy giants on the reliefs of the tombs as early as 5,000 years ago. The fruit was also a popular offering, as strengthening for the deceased on their way to the afterlife. Most of tombs paintings shows an elongated fruit instead of the round wild variety, which suggests that cultivated forms of the watermelon, must have existed even then. In addition to its many uses in life, food and medicine for humans, it has also become useful for nature, as recently a liquid hormone was extracted from the seeds of green watermelon that helps to double the sizes of other plants so that it becomes ten sizes of its normal size. The research aims to Shed light on watermelon and its terms and origin in the Egyptian civilization; Studying the types of watermelon that known in ancient Egypt; Exploring the uses of watermelon in daily life; Recognize the medical importance of watermelon in ancient Egyptian medicine.

• Publisher: جامعة قناة السويس - كلية السياحة والفنادق
• Subject: البطيخ الأخضر / الغذاء والعلاج / القرآبين الآلهية / المصري القديم / مصر القديمة