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How were limestone and granite quarried in ancient Egypt?
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Egyptian art and architecture
Anubis weighing the soul of the scribe Ani, from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, c. 1275 bce.
In ancient Egypt, the quarrying of stone was a highly developed state-controlled process. While modern techniques like wire sawing and jet burners are used today, ancient Egyptian masons relied on manual tools and clever physical principles to extract limestone and granite.12
Quarrying Techniques
- Limestone Extraction: For sedimentary rock like limestone, workers used a masonās pickāa tool featuring a 2.5-kilogram metal head and a 45-centimeter haft. They cut vertical channels around rectangular blocks to expose five faces. To separate the sixth face, they drilled rows of holes into the rock using metal bow drills. Wooden wedges were then inserted into these holes and soaked with water; as the wood absorbed the moisture and expanded, the pressure caused the stone to break free from its bed.2
- Granite Extraction: Because granite is significantly harder and stronger than limestone, the process was more labor-intensive. In addition to using the masonās pick, workers utilized heavy balls of dolerite (weighing up to 5 kilograms) to pound and beat the rock. Granite was also shaped through drilling and sawing with the assistance of abrasives, and the same expanding wooden wedge technique was used to split the blocks.2