Explore a Pharaoh's Boat
Style
The Khufu boat is known as a papyriform vessel, because the high ends resemble those of papyrus boats. Papyrus is a tall sedge that the Egyptians relied on to make boats as well as cordage, sandals, mats, and other products. Papyriform boats, commonly seen in paintings and carvings of the dynastic period, were ceremonial: They were used for journeys to sacred sites and by the gods. As can just be made out here, in the ship's prow stood a second, wood-framed canopy. Again, its intended use is unknown.