The Tears of Re: Beekeeping in Ancient Egypt

Abstract

According to Egyptian mythology, when the ancient Egyptian sun god Re cried, his tears turned into honey bees upon touching the ground. For this reason, the honey bee was sacrosanct in ancient Egyptian culture. From the art depicting bees on temple walls to the usage of beeswax as a healing ointment, the honey bee was a pervasive cultural motif in ancient Egypt because of its connection to the sun god Re. Gene Kritsky delivers the first book to examine the relationship between the honey bee and ancient Egyptian culture, through the lenses of linguistics, archeology, religion, health, and econo. Beekeeping begins -- The delight of Re: beekeeping during the Old Kingdom -- Instability and reunification: beekeeping during the Middle Kingdom -- The age of empire: beekeeping during the New Kingdom -- The Saite period -- The Greco-Roman period -- The honey bee hieroglyph -- The administration and economics of Egyptian beekeeping -- Bees and food -- Honey and healing -- Bees, gods, and feasts -- The magic of beeswax -- The afterlife of ancient Egyptian beekeeping.