Herodotus In Living Colour 3.0
- Ntandoyenkosi
- Dec 31, 2025
- 27 min read
Another Herodotus episode if you like, and this one will strictly be about Egypt. And man wrote a lot on Egypt. And his book reads like an Intricate ancient old journal, remember we are reading: pre invasion, pre contemporary history, pre colonial, pre most things - and we find here historically objective details left for us to decipher. Events written down through first hand accounts, although some are indeed second hand accounts. And ancient sources like these, we think believers, but also scholars and academics, should choose lean very much on. Most of these writings are solid ground as we see them. Not at all Scripture don`t get us wrong, these are not inspired works from the Prophets or SoNiNi Himself, but people must understand that writings like these tend to confirm Scripture. What we already know to be true, Herodotus indeed confirms. They should be read and elaborated until they go against Scripture. Then we can discharge them, not before. Evidence is evidence, let us present it before the courts. A witness must be heard, then what about two witnesses ? Then we can establish truth, according to uMsindisi.
So when studying Herodotus, we can see that the lives of the Egyptians and the ancient Israelites, do come together and clash several times in ancient history as told in our Bibles. And remember these are two civilisations OF black skinned ancient peoples on the continent of Africa (in the southern parts of Africa), with similar features, but not similar customs, traditions and or culture. However, as we shall see they are more similar then they perhaps would like to admit. Anyways, That must be everyones base when understanding the information that we talk about in here. Culture is KEY. If you have a different view then you are welcome to have that, but it will complicate things very much from understanding most things we talk about in here. So then comes the big question: Who they are today, well thats when things get complicated. Because if we cannot even agree on the origins of the Xhosa (branched of Mpondomise, influx of amaMfengu, amaBhaca, amaBhele, amaHlubi, amaZizi - house of Phalo/customs of Pharaoh) and not even getting into the origin of the Zulu tribes (relatively modern tribes) Ngoni and Nguni, along with the Swati littered with Egyptian customs, all these movements are just Bantu migrations right? No, its not that simple. And we have 10 even more central tribes to map, as they have spread over all of Africa and indeed the whole world. So, to separate the Egyptians and the ancient Hebrews is not an easy task.
Not very well written the above, but if some of that can be understood, and we can agree that if we cannot agree on these rather modern historical happenings and migrations - how are we going to agree on ancient Biblical peoples? Well, turns out, its very very difficult. We will get there though. In time. We are not the only ones that are mapping, there is a literal ocean of people doing this now. Some are good, while others might be a little confused. Still, in the end each one is building on the research of the other. And from this, each and every tribe will come into their own.
Makubenjalo SoNiNi.
Now if you check Videos from Above the Clouds on youtube, you can start to create healthy images of what state arid places in Northern Africa used to look like. Now, we have no affiliation with this account, but looking at videos like this will give a better image of the Green past of the Sahara and Egypt. Get used to the idea of that part of Africa being Green and inhabited. The same would be true for the dried up places in Namibia and Botswana. They were green.
Now as we have said before - In far to many places the Old Testament and Herodotus narratives cross paths. Meaning they are talking about similar events and customs. In great detail. That for us, is very important. If you go to non believers, they say that the books from the Old Testament do not have ANY claims to antiquity, if you can believe that. They say that these books come from much later periods the claimed, or that they indeed, never happened. Well, that is partly true, is it not. Because, these stories do indeed not come from where they say they do. These events never went down in what we call modern day Israel or Middle East. Its simply not true. It is not the Cradle of Civilization, as all DNA research point to southern Africa being the origins of the oldest strains of humans we have. Check the historical facts, and people have been doing that, and they come up with the same answer. Check Biblical archeology, which is an absurd study and discipline seen as they are classifying what they find as something that was never there to begin with. Move the narrative to the correct location and people, then everything will begin to make sense. Go where the evidence indicates that these events went down, do not try to jam everything into a location that historically is not sound at all. Even the wrong side of Egypt, and way way closer to the Kings of ancient Babylon, Persia and ancient Asia...
Herodotus & Egypt
Now then, any student of our Scriptures knows that the activities of Egypt (Misri) and Israel (Isolele) clash multiple times in ancient history. From Abrahams time to the Exodus, Egyptians and Hebrews were very close. They even looked a like on the outside, but not on the inside as we will see. They were very different in nature. If we take a look at an example that gives The Bible great integrity is the fact that the use of Pharaoh as done many place like Genesis 39,1 and Exodus 5,1 in these Scriptures we are looking at the word Pharaoh as meaning The Great House (פַּרְעֹה (Parʿō) or Paro. House of Phalo? Anyone that knows a bit of Xhosa history will see this goes deep people. Understand that this is not the house of SoNiNi, but the House of Pharaoh - Paros House. A person that wanted to make himself father of a people. Now if we read Herodotus we will find an Egyptian ruler called Pheron, a name very similar to Pharaoh (ii.111):
111 Now after Sesostris had brought his life to an end, his son Pheros, they told me, received in succession the kingdom, and he made no warlike expedition, and moreover it chanced to him to become blind by reason of the following accident:—when the river had come down in flood rising to a height of eighteen cubits, higher than ever before that time, and had gone over the fields, a wind fell upon it and the river became agitated by waves: and this king (they say) moved by presumptuous folly took a spear and cast it into the midst of the eddies of the stream; and immediately upon this he had a disease of the eyes and was by it made blind. For ten years then he was blind, and in the eleventh year there came to him an oracle from the city of Buto saying that the time of his punishment had expired, and that he should see again if he washed his eyes with the water of a woman who had accompanied with her own husband only and had not knowledge of other men: and first he made trial of his own wife, and then, as he continued blind, he went on to try all the women in turn; and when he had at last regained his sight he gathered together all the women of whom he had made trial, excepting her by whose means he had regained his sight, to one city which now is named Erythrabolos, and having gathered them to this he consumed them all by fire, as well as the city itself; but as for her by whose means he had regained his sight, he had her himself to wife. Then after he had escaped the malady of his eyes he dedicated offerings at each one of the temples which were of renown, and especially (to mention only that which is most worthy of mention) he dedicated at the temple of the Sun works which are worth seeing, namely two obelisks of stone, each of a single block, measuring in length a hundred cubits each one and in breadth eight cubits.
So Pheron, son of Sesostris the Great ruler of Egyptian lands in the times of Dareios (Darius), remember this is a time when Egypts lands were cut up and divided. So is Pheron the same a Pharaoh? Well, maybe. If we read further in Genesis we can see that Pharaoh could dictate laws off the cuff, having great authority (Genesis 40,2-3):
2 Pharaoh was angry with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, 3 and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the same prison where Joseph was confined.
More in Genesis 41,34:
34 Let Pharaoh appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of abundance.
And more in 41,44:
44 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.”
In the same manner Herodotus describes the Egyptians rulers making laws and the people abiding them like they had no choice (ii. 136):
136 After Mykerinos the priests said Asychis became king of Egypt, and he made for Hephaistos the temple gateway[119] which is towards the sunrising, by far the most beautiful and the largest of the gateways; for while they all have figures carved upon them and innumerable ornaments of building[120] besides, this has them very much more than the rest. In this king's reign they told me that, as the circulation of money was very slow, a law was made for the Egyptians that a man might have that money lent to him which he needed, by offering as security the dead body of his father; and there was added moreover to this law another, namely that he who lent the money should have a claim also to the whole sepulchral chamber belonging to him who received it, and that the man who offered that security should be subject to this penalty, if he refused to pay back the debt, namely that neither the man himself should be allowed to have burial when he died, either in that family burial-place or in any other, nor should he be allowed to bury any one of his kinsmen whom he lost by death. This king desiring to surpass the kings of Egypt who had arisen before him left as a memorial of himself a pyramid which he made of bricks, and on it there is an inscription carved in stone and saying thus: "Despise not me in comparison with the pyramids of stone, seeing that I excel them as much as Zeus excels the other gods; for with a pole they struck into the lake, and whatever of the mud attached itself to the pole, this they gathered up and made bricks, and in such manner they finished me."
And more in the deeds preformed by another king or Farao in question, namely that of Amasis when prosperity was abundant in Misri (ii. 177):
177 In the reign of Amasis it is said that Egypt became more prosperous than at any other time before, both in regard to that which comes to the land from the river and in regard to that which comes from the land to its inhabitants, and that at this time the inhabited towns in it numbered in all twenty thousand. It was Amasis too who established the law that every year each one of the Egyptians should declare to the ruler of his district, from what source he got his livelihood, and if any man did not do this or did not make declaration of an honest way of living, he should be punished with death. Now Solon the Athenian received from Egypt this law and had it enacted for the Athenians, and they have continued to observe it, since it is a law with which none can find fault.
Moreover and again more Biblical, we can see in the story of Potiphars wife, who though married, sought out to seduce a prime Joseph (Genesis 39,7-10):
6 So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, 7 and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!”
8 But he refused. “With me in charge,” he told her, “my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. 9 No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” 10 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.
We all know this story, and it seems some is reflected in Herodotus examples of Pharaoh. Because we can see the story of an Egyptian ruler (Sesostris son Pheros or Pheron) that looked at length after a woman that had been faithful to her husband as we read previously in Book 2, chapter 111 (excerpt of ii.111):
....and that he should see again if he washed his eyes with the water of a woman who had accompanied with her own husband only and had not knowledge of other men: and first he made trial of his own wife, and then, as he continued blind, he went on to try all the women in turn; and when he had at last regained his sight he gathered together all the women of whom he had made trial, excepting her by whose means he had regained his sight, to one city which now is named Erythrabolos....
What an experiment, tried by either a King or Pharaoh, you could not do this today. And if you read on you can see even more stern measures were taken. Now if we go to Pharaoh´s chief of staff (Butler if you will), that shared a cell with Joseph while he was in prison. All he dreamed about was to return to his position and squeeze grapes into the Kings cup (Genesis 40,10-11):
9 So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream. He said to him, “In my dream I saw a vine in front of me, 10 and on the vine were three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes. 11 Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup and put the cup in his hand.”
If we read Herodotus we can see that the mentioned Priests (religiously excessive) were drinking wine made from the grape (excerpt of ii. 37):
37 They are religious excessively beyond all other men, and with regard to this they have customs as follows:—they drink from cups of bronze and rinse them out every day, and not some only do this but all: they wear garments of linen always newly washed, and this they make a special point of practice: they circumcise themselves for the sake of cleanliness, preferring to be clean rather than comely. The priests shave themselves all over their body every other day, so that no lice or any other foul thing may come to be upon them when they minister to the gods; and the priests wear garments of linen only and sandals of papyrus, and any other garment they may not take nor other sandals; these wash themselves in cold water twice in the day and twice again in the night; and other religious services they perform (one may almost say) of infinite number.
Further we can read about the African custom of carrying things on the top of your head, which we can see examples of by the chief baker in Genesis 40,16:
16 When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given a favourable interpretation, he said to Joseph, “I too had a dream: On my head were three baskets of bread.17 In the top basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”
As anyone who has travelled Africa and know African customs, will know it is indeed the women that carry things on the top of their head, Herodotus has other things to report, which hints to the feminine sides of Egypt and the Matriarchal nature of some of their customs (ii. 35):
35 Of Egypt however I shall make my report at length, because it has wonders more in number than any other land, and works too it has to show as much as any land, which are beyond expression great: for this reason then more shall be said concerning it.
The Egyptians in agreement with their climate, which is unlike any other, and with the river, which shows a nature different from all other rivers, established for themselves manners and customs in a way opposite to other men in almost all matters: for among them the women frequent the market and carry on trade, while the men remain at home and weave; and whereas others weave pushing the woof upwards, the Egyptians push it downwards: the men carry their burdens upon their heads and the women upon their shoulders: the women make water standing up and the men crouching down: they ease themselves in their houses and they eat without in the streets, alleging as reason for this that it is right to do secretly the things that are unseemly though necessary, but those which are not unseemly, in public: no woman is a minister either of male or female divinity, but men of all, both male and female: to support their parents the sons are in no way compelled, if they do not desire to do so, but the daughters are forced to do so, be they never so unwilling.
The men carries the burdens upon the head and the women on their shoulders, the men would even stay at home and weave while the ladies went to market to barter. Well, where has these customs survived today? Not that hard to find. Another fitting customs, is the washing of ones feet when entering a house (Genesis 43,24):
24 The steward took the men into Joseph’s house, gave them water to wash their feet and provided fodder for their donkeys.
In Herodotus we can read about the Egyptian ruler who had a golden foot-pan where his guests was provided water to wash their feet (ii. 172):
172 Apries having thus been overthrown, Amasis became king, being of the district of Saïs, and the name of the city whence he was is Siuph. Now at the first the Egyptians despised Amasis and held him in no great regard, because he had been a man of the people and was of no distinguished family; but afterwards Amasis won them over to himself by wisdom and not wilfulness. Among innumerable other things of price which he had, there was a foot-basin of gold in which both Amasis himself and all his guests were wont always to wash their feet. This he broke up, and of it he caused to be made the image of a god, and set it up in the city, where it was most convenient; and the Egyptians went continually to visit the image and did great reverence to it. Then Amasis, having learnt that which was done by the men of the city, called together the Egyptians and made known to them the matter, saying that the image had been produced from the foot-basin, into which formerly the Egyptians used to vomit and make water, and in which they washed their feet, whereas now they did to it great reverence; and just so, he continued, had he himself now fared, as the foot-basin; for though formerly he was a man of the people, yet now he was their king, and he bade them accordingly honour him and have regard for him.
Now if we read our Bibles, when Joseph returned from Kanaan with his brother Benjamin, the prince in charge made a decision to slaughter animals and have a feast (at noon) for his kin that was visiting (Genesis 43,16):
16 When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, “Take these men to my house, slaughter an animal and prepare a meal; they are to eat with me at noon.”
Now there are some that say Egyptians were vegetarian, which does not hold up to Herodotus descriptions of them, as we can see in ii. 37 and in ii.40, with detailed descriptions of how the animal is prepared (ii.40):
40but the manner of disembowelling the victims and of burning them is appointed among them differently for different sacrifices; I shall speak however of the sacrifices to that goddess whom they regard as the greatest of all, and to whom they celebrate the greatest feast.—When they have flayed the bullock and made imprecation, they take out the whole of its lower entrails but leave in the body the upper entrails and the fat; and they sever from it the legs and the end of the loin and the shoulders and the neck: and this done, they fill the rest of the body of the animal with consecrated loaves and honey and raisins and figs and frankincense and myrrh and every other kind of spices, and having filled it with these they offer it, pouring over it great abundance of oil. They make their sacrifice after fasting, and while the offerings are being burnt, they all beat themselves for mourning, and when they have finished beating themselves they set forth as a feast that which they left unburnt of the sacrifice.
Xenophobic nature of the Egyptians
Now in Genesis we can read that the Egyptians would not share or eat bread with the Hebrews, as it simply reads in the Scriptures as being detestable for them to share their plate with lowly Hebrew Shepherds (Genesis 43,32):
32 They served him by himself, the brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because Egyptians could not eat with Hebrews, for that is detestable to Egyptians.
Sound familiar? Remember Peter did not want to eat (share his house even) with anyone Non-Hebrew, Egyptians were the same.
This whole concept of unclean and the verses used by people that think they can eat anything - is rooted the confusion for people thinking Peter was talking about eating unclean animals. He was worried about unclean people (longer topic we know). So we can see that both Egyptians and Hebrews did not even want to share tables with outsiders. Now from this Scripture we see that Joseph, was served seated by himself, as were all his brothers. We can see the true nature of the Egyptians here, as is among most tribes today (most not all), xenophobia. We are the pure ones right? By stating this a person is only amplifying ones own impureness, the pure of heart will not say a thing like that. Their lips will not allow them to place themselves up like that, boasting is not becoming of the Children of SoNiNi.
So do not be like the Egyptians outwardly pious and believers in a system of gods, judgemental towards foreigners in their lands. Do not be like that, seek the higher understanding here. And it will be given. The one who puts himself above another person will by default end up beneath him. Let SoNiNi place you in rank among people, let Him give you the seat at the table. Do not give yourself the most important seat, let uMdali do that. Not your concern. Let The Most High go in before you, ahead of you and prepare a table, indeed set it for you among your enemies. Let Him do that for you.
Back to Herodotus, we can see that when comparing the Greek people with the ancient Egyptians, he wrote (ii.41):
41 The clean males then of the ox kind, both full-grown animals and calves, are sacrificed by all the Egyptians; the females however they may not sacrifice, but these are sacred to Isis; for the figure of Isis is in the form of a woman with cow's horns, just as the Hellenes present Io in pictures, and all the Egyptians without distinction reverence cows far more than any other kind of cattle; for which reason neither man nor woman of Egyptian race would kiss a man who is a Hellene on the mouth, nor will they use a knife or roasting-spits or a caldron belonging to a Hellene, nor taste of the flesh even of a clean animal if it has been cut with the knife of a Hellene. And the cattle of this kind which die they bury in the following manner:—the females they cast into the river, but the males they bury, each people in the suburb of their town, with one of the horns, or sometimes both, protruding to mark the place; and when the bodies have rotted away and the appointed time comes on, then to each city comes a boat from that which is called the island of Prosopitis (this is in the Delta, and the extent of its circuit is nine schoines). In this island of Prosopitis is situated, besides many other cities, that one from which the boats come to take up the bones of the oxen, and the name of the city is Atarbechis, and in it there is set up a holy temple of Aphrodite. From this city many go abroad in various directions, some to one city and others to another, and when they have dug up the bones of the oxen they carry them off, and coming together they bury them in one single place. In the same manner as they bury the oxen they bury also their other cattle when they die; for about them also they have the same law laid down, and these also they abstain from killing.
So we can see here, the Greeks were unclean in the eyes of the Egyptians as well. The Egyptians could not even share a knife with the Greeks. People will do well to start to see a pattern here. The Xenophobic nature of ancient peoples. Though we will say uncleanness is a thing, but depends on the state of the mans soul not hi outward appearance. And in all instances when a man places himself over another people fall on his own pride in the end. Now this is with exception of the ancient Hebrews themselves as SoNiNI has INDEED set them above all races (Deuteronomy 7,1):
For you are a holy people to SoNiNi naNiNI; uMdali has chosen you to be a people for His personal possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.
This is for the Hebrews, the 12 Tribes of which all black people do not partake. Anyone that says so has not done their research. And in this line of clean people in the eyes of SoNiNi we would add, those that have come to Christ (uMsindisi). A Royal priesthood as talked about by Peter, now THAT person that has overcome his generational sin, will be looked at different in the eyes of SoNiNi. But for SoNiNi, Greeks or Egyptians, Babylonians, Assyrians, or more modern Europeans or Asians, it is all the same. All He can see then is the sins of your ancestors, ever before Him. He cares not for current nation (unless you are of the Tribes). Its all just non believers, not wishing or wanting any change or redemption. On the other hand there is Believers. Thats all there is. Those that believe and those that do not. There is the man who seeks out his sin to evaporate it and there is the man that seek only to enjoy his short time on this earth. Adding sin unto sin. The mark of an unrepentant man. These ones, are indeed unclean, in the eyes of SoNiNi. So, if you followed this thread, who cares if the Egyptian calls you unclean? I care not, nor should you. Be clean in SoNiNis eyes, and seek out rather to of those spoken of as a Royal Priesthood.
Medical Doctors in Egypt
Back to Egypt and boy These guys, were highly advanced. They even used Willow Bark back in the day, which we know now contains Salicylic-acid (aspirin) which thins the blood enough to heal many diseases. Look it up, ancient Egypt (and Babylon) had natural aspirin. Aspirin is one of, if not the most researched modern compound on PubMed. There are over 10,000 articles on Aspirin and its positive health effects. They were so much advanced in Egypt that they had (much like today) specialised doctors, one treating each disorder, field specialists (ii. 84):
84 The art of medicine among them is distributed thus:—each physician is a physician of one disease and of no more; and the whole country is full of physicians, for some profess themselves to be physicians of the eyes, others of the head, others of the teeth, others of the affections of the stomach, and others of the more obscure ailments.
And this was known, because look at what Jeremiah said (Jeremiah 46,11):
“Go up to Gilead and get balm, Virgin Daughter Egypt. But you try many medicines in vain; there is no healing for you.
So we can see that this, which applies today, the use of medicine to further sin will not give ANY healing to your body. A very deep one. Meaning all the well meaning doctors and people trying to help - CANNOT if sin is not addressed.
Now when the Patriarch Jacob died, the Joseph commanded that he was to be embalmed (Genesis 50,2):
2 Then Joseph directed the physicians in his service to embalm his father Israel. So the physicians embalmed him, 3 taking a full forty days, for that was the time required for embalming. And the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days.
If we read Herodotus elaborate descriptions of the Embalming process, in which there was a procedure for the removal of the brain with an iron hook going in through the nostrils, with the remains flushed out with drugs. The cavity was filled with the purest of myrrh (bruised whatever that means), with cassia and other spices (ii. 86):
86 In this occupation certain persons employ themselves regularly and inherit this as a craft. These, whenever a corpse is conveyed to them, show to those who brought it wooden models of corpses made like reality by painting, and the best of the ways of embalming they say is that of him whose name I think it impiety to mention when speaking of a matter of such a kind; the second which they show is less good than this and also less expensive; and the third is the least expensive of all. Having told them about this, they inquire of them in which way they desire the corpse of their friend to be prepared. Then they after they have agreed for a certain price depart out of the way, and the others being left behind in the buildings embalm according to the best of these ways thus:—First with a crooked iron tool they draw out the brain through the nostrils, extracting it partly thus and partly by pouring in drugs; and after this with a sharp stone of Ethiopia they make a cut along the side and take out the whole contents of the belly, and when they have cleared out the cavity and cleansed it with palm-wine they cleanse it again with spices pounded up: then they fill the belly with pure myrrh pounded up and with cassia and other spices except frankincense, and sew it together again. Having so done they keep it for embalming covered up in natron for seventy days, but for a longer time than this it is not permitted to embalm it; and when the seventy days are past, they wash the corpse and roll its whole body up in fine linen cut into bands, smearing these beneath with gum, which the Egyptians use generally instead of glue. Then the kinsfolk receive it from them and have a wooden figure made in the shape of a man, and when they have had this made they enclose the corpse, and having shut it up within, they store it then in a sepulchral chamber, setting it to stand upright against the wall.
When reading the meticulousness of the way this was done, it is a reminder of what the caravan that Joseph was sold into (what it contained), bearing spices, balm and myrrh (Genesis 37,25):
25 As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt.
Again for anyone interested in mapping, we are going down to Egypt from ancient Israel, with spices and balm. The body was later places inside a wooden case carved into the figure of a man. Josephs body was placed in a coffin (Genesis 50,26) and when Jacob died the Egyptians wept for him 70 days (Genesis 50,3):
So the physicians embalmed him, 3 taking a full forty days, for that was the time required for embalming. And the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days.
In Herodotus we get descriptions like these, about mourning periods and beating of the breast (ii. 85):
85 Their fashions of mourning and of burial are these:—Whenever any household has lost a man who is of any regard amongst them, the whole number of women of that house forthwith plaster over their heads or even their faces with mud. Then leaving the corpse within the house they go themselves to and fro about the city and beat themselves, with their garments bound up by a girdle and their breasts exposed, and with them go all the women who are related to the dead man, and on the other side the men beat themselves, they too having their garments bound up by a girdle; and when they have done this, they then convey the body to the embalming.
Now, after Joseph had passed things changed and the ancient Hebrews were to be treated differently, so they became slaves in a distant land, taskmaster drove them and they started making bricks made of mud and clay as we can read in Exodus 1,14, and there is a parallel in Herodotus (excerpt of ii.136):
136 (..) This king desiring to surpass the kings of Egypt who had arisen before him left as a memorial of himself a pyramid which he made of bricks, and on it there is an inscription carved in stone and saying thus: "Despise not me in comparison with the pyramids of stone, seeing that I excel them as much as Zeus excels the other gods; for with a pole they struck into the lake, and whatever of the mud attached itself to the pole, this they gathered up and made bricks, and in such manner they finished me."
We will do one last parallel using thee example of Moses basket, his mother hid him for three months fearing the wrath and anger of Pharaoh, she hid Moses in a small boat (basket) made out of Bullrushes (papyrus plant or reed plant, or as we shall see Herodotus calls them Thorny Accaia), and placed the boat at the edge of the Nile River (Exodus 2,23):
The parallel we can find in Herodotus were the use of Papyrus plant and making of boats, caulking the boats and manufacturing of sails (ii.96):
96 Their boats with which they carry cargoes are made of the thorny acacia, of which the form is very like that of the Kyrenian lotos, and that which exudes from it is gum. From this tree they cut pieces of wood about two cubits in length and arrange them like bricks, fastening the boat together by running a great number of long bolts through the two-cubit pieces; and when they have thus fastened the boat together, they lay cross-pieces over the top, using no ribs for the sides; and within they caulk the seams with papyrus. They make one steering-oar for it, which is passed through the bottom of the boat; and they have a mast of acacia and sails of papyrus. These boats cannot sail up the river unless there be a very fresh wind blowing, but are towed from the shore: down-stream however they travel as follows:—they have a door-shaped crate made of tamarisk wood and reed mats sewn together, and also a stone of about two talents weight bored with a hole; and of these the boatman lets the crate float on in front of the boat, fastened with a rope, and the stone drag behind by another rope. The crate then, as the force of the stream presses upon it, goes on swiftly and draws on the baris (for so these boats are called), while the stone dragging after it behind and sunk deep in the water keeps its course straight. These boats they have in great numbers and some of them carry many thousands of talents' burden.
Now if you read Histories yourself, the book which we are quoting freely from, which is Herodotus monumental work on Egypt. And in Book II we find all these Egyptian descriptions of the Logoi. In which we find detailed accounts and partitions of Egyptians culture, society, geographical locations like the Nile with Upper and Lower Egypt, and a variety of religious practises and their form/use.
Geography & The River Nile
Now when Herodotus starts to describe and discuss Egypts geography, he puts great emphasise on the River Nile (Gihon) that according to him shaped the country. Does that make the River Nile of today, that goes in a straight line a likely candidate for being ancient Egypt? Well no, no it does indeed not.
That means the River nile could indeed be parts of the Congo River Today, Herodotus goes on to talk about the Gift of the Nile, noting that the annual floods deposited much fertile soil along its banks, allowing for specialised agriculture in an already green area. Hence Egypt was Rich in arable lands and these natural, lush and green areas were essential to Egypts widespread prosperity. They had land and they had food security. People like food security, they gravitate towards it. Now these regular flooding(s) created a predictable cycle for agriculture that sustained all of its people. We have a theory that the hairstyles will reveal these ancient areas, when mapping their origins. Many are from Misri (ancient Egypt).
Egyptian & Greek Culture
Now in the case study that is Herodotus and his interest in the peculiar ways of then Egyptian customs, which he compares to Greek customs, and even goes as far as saying they are reversed of one an other. Now his central theme in these writings is the Egyptians deep sense of religious (piety) life, the most pious he ever encountered. There are MANY descriptions of Pantheons, Temples, Rituals and various concepts of the afterlife. And more importantly Herodotus links the Greek worship to Egypt, suggestion quite rightly (just Like M. Bernal) that the Greeks borrowed several gods from Egypt. Example Dionysus, which translates to the Egyptian Osiris, Zeus-Ammon which translates to Amen (Jesus). And there are clear parallels between Greeks and Egyptians, Herodotus says its mostly all borrowed. Philosophy and science, basically them same empire. He even goes on to say that Pythagoras and Thales went to Egypt to study mathematics, astronomy and geometry. And we believe they did.
