Onion

The Onion in Ancient Egypt


 * Egyptian Name:**

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Onions, which celibate priests were forbidden to eat because of their supposed aphrodisiac effects, were a staple food of the ancient Egyptians. Small white Egyptian onions were likened to sound white teeth, and they were sweeter and less eye-watering than modern kinds. Onions are featured in numerous tomb scenes and texts, and representations of onions appear on the inner walls of the pyramids of Unas and Pepi II.

The onion was eaten and used in cooking, and it was also extensively used in medicine - the antibacterial juice of the onion was used to treat wounds. A dried onion put into the hole of a snake was thought to ensure that it would not return. The ancient Egyptians held the onion as sacred, believing that its spherical shape and concentric rings symbolized eternal life. According to Pliny, garlic and onions were invoked by the Egyptians when taking an oath, "in the number of their deities."

It was offered to the gods and the dead, and wooden models as well as actual onion bulbs have been found in tombs, including the tomb of Tutankhamen. Onions were also used in mummification and funerary rites. Onion rings or bulbs were at times packed into the mummy wrappings, and the eyes, ears, and pelvis were sometimes covered with them. Onions were found in the eye sockets of Ramses IV. Onions were sacred to the underworld god Sokar, and mourners at funerals wore strings of onions around their necks.

The Israelites, who had become accustomed to the Egyptian diet of bread, fish, and vegetables, complained when they were wandering in the desert: "We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic." (Numbers 11)

The Vegetables of Ancient Egypt

Seasonings and Spices