Notepads discovered in ancient Egypt

8 Feb 2022

Notepads discovered in ancient Egypt

Once upon a time, notepads were as cool as the latest gadget in our pockets. Surprised? We all use notepads for jotting down our thoughts, right? But would you believe that people living in ancient Egypt used notepads too?

One day, archaeologists - who are kind of like treasure hunters of history - found a big pile of these notepads in Egypt. These weren't any ordinary notepads, oh no! These were from the 20th century BC. That's way before your great-great-great-great-great-great-grandma was born!
Where Did They Find Them?
These super old notepads were discovered in a city called Athribis, right in the heart of Egypt. The archaeologists didn't just find notepads though, they also found pottery pieces with writing on them. And guess who they think wrote on these pieces? Students! Just like you.

Instead of paper and pencils, the people in ancient Egypt wrote on rocks and pottery pieces, calling them ostraca. Imagine using a piece of rock or pottery for your homework!
What Are Ostraca?
"Ostraca" is a fancy word for rocks or pieces of pottery used as notepads by the people in ancient Egypt. They didn't just use ostraca for homework, but also to write down shopping lists, keep track of trades, and write stories.

The archaeologists believe that these ancient notepads were from a very, very old school. That's so cool, right?
The Ancient Notepads
Now, the writings on these ostraca weren't just doodles or scribbles. They were important stuff like lists of months, numbers, math problems, and grammar exercises. Kind of like what you find in your textbooks today, but in ancient Egyptian!

They found hundreds of ostraca in Athribis. Many had the same characters written over and over again, kind of like when you practice writing your letters.

These notepads were written in a script called Demotic, during the time when a king named Ptolemy XII ruled the city. At that time, Athribis was a very important city, located near the Nile river.

The notepads weren't just written in one language, they had Greek, Arabic and Coptic too. This shows that Athribis was a city where many different cultures lived together.
Wrapping Up the Story
Wow, isn't it fun to learn about how kids in ancient Egypt studied and used notepads just like us? History sure is full of surprises! To learn more cool facts like this one, stick around with us at Curious Times.

Where Did They Find Them?

These super old notepads were discovered in a city called Athribis, right in the heart of Egypt. The archaeologists didn’t just find notepads though, they also found pottery pieces with writing on them. And guess who they think wrote on these pieces? Students! Just like you.

Instead of paper and pencils, the people in ancient Egypt wrote on rocks and pottery pieces, calling them ostraca. Imagine using a piece of rock or pottery for your homework!

What Are Ostraca?

“Ostraca” is a fancy word for rocks or pieces of pottery used as notepads by the people in ancient Egypt. They didn’t just use ostraca for homework, but also to write down shopping lists, keep track of trades, and write stories.

The archaeologists believe that these ancient notepads were from a very, very old school. That’s so cool, right?

The Ancient Notepads

Now, the writings on these ostraca weren’t just doodles or scribbles. They were important stuff like lists of months, numbers, math problems, and grammar exercises. Kind of like what you find in your textbooks today, but in ancient Egyptian!

They found hundreds of ostraca in Athribis. Many had the same characters written over and over again, kind of like when you practice writing your letters.

These notepads were written in a script called Demotic, during the time when a king named Ptolemy XII ruled the city. At that time, Athribis was a very important city, located near the Nile river.

The notepads weren’t just written in one language, they had Greek, Arabic and Coptic too. This shows that Athribis was a city where many different cultures lived together.

Wrapping Up the Story

Wow, isn’t it fun to learn about how kids in ancient Egypt studied and used notepads just like us? History sure is full of surprises! To learn more cool facts like this one, stick around with us at Curious Times.