Hermione Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> Oh, my goodness me! Non-Egyptologist though I am,
Don't be modest.
> I'd still venture to disagree with you on this
> one!
I'd be miffed if you didn't.
> If the reason for the use of the conical
> pots could be found, couldn't it potentially shed
> a great deal of light on questions such as the
> sorts of grain used
We know this from other sources.
> (and when and how it might
> have been harvested),
We know this from other sources.
> the sort of fuel used,
We know this from other sources.
> the
> sort of materials of which ovens were made, etc.
We have the ovens, just as we have the pots.
> etc. etc? And that in turn could perhaps have a
> bearing on all sorts of other questions ...
Ah, but thinking back on it, this is why I chose the pots. I apologize for my rushed answer earlier, but I was on my way out the door. The texts, offerings, and any number of other pieces of evidence that we have already document all these factors. We're not going to find out anything remarkably new by asking why the pots are conical. Our level of understanding of the basics, such as diet, harvesting, and cooking is decades deep. Look at the honey we have from Tut's tomb, for example... or the samples of grain and such that have been recently rediscovered.
If I had to hazard a guess, I would say the conical shape allowed heat to flow up past the sides of the pot in a way that baked the bread more thoroughly than would a flat-bottomed container. The clay would also probably be thicker at the bottom of the cone, thus making it bake more slowly at the spot closest to the fire.
Unless somebody can show that the cone represented something significant to the ancient Egyptians, then we really are left with a "mystery" that is just not worthy of investigation.
That's what I mean by cultural impact. That is what is lacking from pyramid construction theories, and generates the lack of interest among serious Egyptologists.
Anthony
You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him think.