Ancient Egyptian plants: Carob trees

Printout
For best results save the whole webpage (pictures included) onto your hard disk, open the page with Word 97 or higher, edit if necessary and print.
Printing using the browser's print function is not recommended.

Carob trees

The ever-green carob tree, Ceratonia siliqua, grows throughout much of the Mediterranean. The earliest finds date to the Middle Kingdom.
The fruit is sweet-tasting and can be used as sweetener. According to the Harris Papyrus the oblations of the festival offerings instituted by Ramses III included among other fruit

Sehetep of carob pods ........... 92,000
James Henry Breasted Ancient Records of Egypt, Part Four, § 295
Carob pods in measures ...... 106,000
James Henry Breasted Ancient Records of Egypt, Part Four, § 301

Carob wood was used for the fashioning of smaller items, according to Breasted's translations chairs, tables, chests, shrines, chariots and staffs were made from it.
Sebni, count, wearer of the royal seal, governor of the South, sole companion, ritual priest, received from Pepi II

... a chest of carob wood, ... containing ... and containing ointment
James Henry Breasted Ancient Records of Egypt, Part One, § 372

Senusret III in one of his temple endowments

made for him (i.e. Osiris) a portable shrine, the "Bearer-of-Beauty" of the "First-of-the-Westerners," of gold, silver, lazuli, fragrant woods, carob wood and meru wood.
James Henry Breasted Ancient Records of Egypt, Part One, § 667

		Home
		Index of Topics
		Ancient Egyptian Botanical