Stonework was one of the earliest industries in ancient Egypt. A natural wealth of ornamental stone was first exploited in the Pre-Dynastic period ( 4,000 BC ) and various quarry sites yielded basalt, breccia, granite, porphyry, limestone and alabaster. Two traditional alabaster quarry sites have been identified, one at Wadi Gera and the other near Helena and in an area south of Mania. While Egyptian alabaster, geologically known as Calcium carbonate, was worked from the Pre-Dynastic time on, it was preferred during the New kingdom. The use of alabaster in Egypt dates well into the Pharaonic period of Egyptian history, and it is obvious when one visits the temples, tombs and museums in Egypt.
the first alabaster was a kind of Calcite, a transparent spread or gypsum. On the hardness scale of one to ten, the alabaster would stand at just two to 2.5 soft enough to scratch with a fingernail. Due to the low hardness, it is easy to cut and polish, but it is also easily weathered, particularly in wet conditions. Due to its softness , alabaster is typically carved for statuary and other decorative purposes. Ancient pharaohs used alabaster for many purposes, including home items, ritual objects, and for a selection of different funerary purposes such as sarcophaguses and canopic equipments.
The Working of hard stone reached its height during the 3rd and fourth dynasties ( 2600 – 2400 BC ). The early vessels were of straightforward but elegant shape, regularly with flat broad edges and tiny lug handles for suspension. The traditional workmen demonstrated their mastery of this medium as they shaped hard stone as if it were clay, producing a diversity of finely crafted vessels. there were no intact stone drilling tools recovered from ancient Egypt, although part of a stone employee toll kit survived. Decorative tomb paintings showing daily life scenes have been the best source of information as to how stone pots were carved.
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