Because the Nile flows north, and Egypt was a long strip beside it, the river was the best road in the land. Stone, grain, animals, people and even the king traveled by boat.
Key idea
Going north, boats floated with the current. Going south, they raised a sail, because the wind in Egypt usually blows from the north.
Why it works
Two natural forces worked together. The current always runs north. The usual wind blows from the north toward the south. So a boat could ride the current one way and the wind the other way. On the trip north, sailors took the sail down and steered, or rowed to go faster.
Worked example: From Karnak to Memphis
A boat carries grain from Karnak to Memphis. Memphis is to the north. What moves the boat?
- North is downstream.
- The current flows north.
Answer: The current. The sail can come down.
Worked example: From Memphis to Elephantine
Now the boat goes from Memphis to Elephantine, far to the south. What moves it?
- South is upstream, against the current.
- The wind usually blows from the north toward the south.
- A sail catches that wind.
Answer: The north wind, filling the sail.
Common mistake
Thinking boats needed their sails both ways. Going north, the current did the work. Egyptians even wrote "travel north" with a picture of a boat with no sail, and "travel south" with a boat with its sail up.
Small boats were made of bundles of papyrus reeds. Big ones were built of wood, often cedar brought from Lebanon. A full-size wooden boat of King Khufu, about 43 meters long, was found buried beside the Great Pyramid in 1954.