The Papyrus Project

Over 5,000 years ago a wise Egyptian figured out that if he (or she) cut papyrus into thin strips, soaked them in water, laid them out on a rock to form a sheet, and pressed the papyrus with other flat stones until it dried, that it would form a durable, yet flexible surface which could be written on. We will be recreating this remarkable sequence of events (without the rocks) next week in class. We have started the process by soaking the papyrus strips which were sent to us from Egypt, after they had been cut down from the banks of the Nile River. Stay tuned for updates as we proceed next week. (Note: I left my camera at school which has the pictures I took of the papyrus in our classroom. This is a picture that I copied from Mrs. Williams' blog since her class is also making papyrus next week. On Tuesday I will upload our pictures...In the meantime, thanks Mrs. Williams)