Date

The Date Palm in Ancient Egypt


 * Egyptian Name:**

//Bni//, //Bnrit,// or //Bener//

The Date Palm was grown in ancient Egypt since the middle of the third millennium B.C.E. The timber was used for making roofing beams and wooden pillars, the leaves for weaving mats, baskets, and paintbrushes, and the fibrous bark for making ropes and wigs. However, the date palm was mostly grown for its fruit, which could be eaten fresh or dried, and was used as a sweetener for bread and beer.

The hieroglyphic symbol for dates signified sweetness in general, as in a "sweet person" or a "sweet act." Dates were also fermented and turned into wine. Date wine was produced by mashing dates and fermenting the resulting juice, which was then squeezed out and strained through a sieve.

Dynastic finds of dates and date-cakes are countless, and actual dates or wooden or faience models were buried with the dead. Date palm wine was used to wash the deceased during mummification. Dates were also offered to the gods - Ramses III offered 65,480 dates to the Temple of Ra, and several thousand to the Temple of Hapi. Date leaves formed part of a garland found in the tomb of Tutankhamen. The date palm was associated with the sun-god Ra, because of its tall stem and ray-like leaves, spreading like the sun. The goddesses Hathor and Nut both bore the title of "Lady of the Date Palm," and were pictured rising out of a palm to offer food and drink to the deceased. Palm leaves were known as the "bouquet of life," and were offered to the dead by high-ranking priests.

Because the date palm was thought to grow a new leaf every lunar month, this tree was associated with counting the flow of time, and with the counting of the life span. The hieroglyphic of a stripped rib of the palm meant "a year." The god of time, Heh, was often shown holding palm branches, symbols of longevity. Beads in the shape of date palm leaves were popular in jewelry. A symbol of femininity, palm branches often decorated the prow or stern of sacred barques. In tombs at Deir el Medina the deceased is shown kneeling under a date palm and drinking water from a basin or canal to receive the palm's blessing. At times the date palm was used as a symbol for Upper Egypt.

Palms of Ancient Egypt