Emery in his excavations at Saqqara discovered a set of 45 disks in the first Dynasty tomb of Hemaka. He states
“The purpose of these disks of stone, copper, wood, horn and ivory is at present unknown, but the evidence yielded in their discovery suggests some form of game, possibly they were spinning tops.”
Emery tells us the disks were found stored in a wooden box lined with ivory along with some small sticks, some in situ within the disks. Around 5 of the disks were decorated, with no notes of decoration for the remaining disks. It is these circumstances plus some apparent numerical markings that lead Emery to put forth his theory that these disks formed a game.
Whilst not ruling out Emery’s game theory, I would like to put forward an alternate theory for consideration and discussion which is that these disks and their associated sticks could represent a development in the understanding of circular motion which could be applied to the development of simple spinning machines.
According to Newtonian physics,
Force (f) = mass (m) x acceleration (a)
An object undergoing circular motion at a constant rpm is constantly accelerating towards the centre and is subject to centripetal force.
Momentum (p) = mass (m) x velocity (v)
Momentum applied to circular motion is known as the moment of inertia and in simple terms for a cylindrical object:
I (moment of inertia) = m (mass) x (radius of gyration) k2. This formula does vary by shape or form of the rotating object.
In each of these equations, you can see that varying the mass of the disk produces higher centripetal force for the same rotational velocity and higher moment of inertia which effectively stores more kinetic energy in the spinning object.
The people of Hemaka’s time did not need to know or understand these equations, but in the 45 disks, they have demonstrated a practical knowledge of the principles. They vary the mass by executing disks in different materials (copper, schist, dolarite, crystal, horn), diameter and shape. They also varied the shape or form from disks with flat sides to flat/convex. The net effect would be that these heavier disks spin for longer given they achieve the same initial rotational speed.
Emery in explaining his game theory discusses an experiment on at least one disk he undertook “Experiment has proved that if this is held between the palms of the hands and turned quickly it will spin for a considerable period.”
This effect is used in simple rotating machines in the form of a flywheel. Unfortunately, Emery doesn’t define what is a considerable period, nor does he specify the mass or weight of the disks which may provide additional support for this theory.
One possible objection raised by Thanos5150 is that Hemaka was seal-bearer to the 1st dynasty Pharoah of lower Egypt Den. As such, Hemaka is a wealthy individual and these objects are found as grave goods implying a potential use in the afterlife.
Nakano in his analysis of Abydos Ware posits “The reason why a great amount of Abydos Ware was deposited in the reign of King Den may be because his reign was long and stable, and because he had strong connections with Palestine, as is suggested by the Palermo Stone and the ivory tag from Abydos in the British Museum”
A feature of Abydos Ware is that some of it is wheel turned instead of handmade (refer to examples on p111 of the Manual of Egyptian Pottery). Wheel turning enables the technique of throwing which requires the development of a flywheel based potters wheel known as the fast potters wheel. Given Dens relationship with Palestine, it is possible these disks were imported by or for Hemaka.
Therefore, my alternative theory is that the spinning disks are developed for a practical purpose such as instruction in circular motion or in the development of the flywheel.
References:
Emery, WB - Excavations at Saqqara The tomb of Hemaka (1938) accessed from [archive.org]
And
[archive.org]
Manual of Egyptian Pottery Vol 2 p111 accessed from [www.aeraweb.org]
ABYDOS WARE AND THE LOCATION OF THE EGYPTIAN FIRST DYNASTY ROYAL TOMBS
Tomoaki NAKANO* accessed from [www.jstage.jst.go.jp]
Edit:
This thread is breaking out the discussion from the following (now closed) thread and posts:
[grahamhancock.com]
[grahamhancock.com]
[grahamhancock.com]
“The purpose of these disks of stone, copper, wood, horn and ivory is at present unknown, but the evidence yielded in their discovery suggests some form of game, possibly they were spinning tops.”
Emery tells us the disks were found stored in a wooden box lined with ivory along with some small sticks, some in situ within the disks. Around 5 of the disks were decorated, with no notes of decoration for the remaining disks. It is these circumstances plus some apparent numerical markings that lead Emery to put forth his theory that these disks formed a game.
Whilst not ruling out Emery’s game theory, I would like to put forward an alternate theory for consideration and discussion which is that these disks and their associated sticks could represent a development in the understanding of circular motion which could be applied to the development of simple spinning machines.
According to Newtonian physics,
Force (f) = mass (m) x acceleration (a)
An object undergoing circular motion at a constant rpm is constantly accelerating towards the centre and is subject to centripetal force.
Momentum (p) = mass (m) x velocity (v)
Momentum applied to circular motion is known as the moment of inertia and in simple terms for a cylindrical object:
I (moment of inertia) = m (mass) x (radius of gyration) k2. This formula does vary by shape or form of the rotating object.
In each of these equations, you can see that varying the mass of the disk produces higher centripetal force for the same rotational velocity and higher moment of inertia which effectively stores more kinetic energy in the spinning object.
The people of Hemaka’s time did not need to know or understand these equations, but in the 45 disks, they have demonstrated a practical knowledge of the principles. They vary the mass by executing disks in different materials (copper, schist, dolarite, crystal, horn), diameter and shape. They also varied the shape or form from disks with flat sides to flat/convex. The net effect would be that these heavier disks spin for longer given they achieve the same initial rotational speed.
Emery in explaining his game theory discusses an experiment on at least one disk he undertook “Experiment has proved that if this is held between the palms of the hands and turned quickly it will spin for a considerable period.”
This effect is used in simple rotating machines in the form of a flywheel. Unfortunately, Emery doesn’t define what is a considerable period, nor does he specify the mass or weight of the disks which may provide additional support for this theory.
One possible objection raised by Thanos5150 is that Hemaka was seal-bearer to the 1st dynasty Pharoah of lower Egypt Den. As such, Hemaka is a wealthy individual and these objects are found as grave goods implying a potential use in the afterlife.
Nakano in his analysis of Abydos Ware posits “The reason why a great amount of Abydos Ware was deposited in the reign of King Den may be because his reign was long and stable, and because he had strong connections with Palestine, as is suggested by the Palermo Stone and the ivory tag from Abydos in the British Museum”
A feature of Abydos Ware is that some of it is wheel turned instead of handmade (refer to examples on p111 of the Manual of Egyptian Pottery). Wheel turning enables the technique of throwing which requires the development of a flywheel based potters wheel known as the fast potters wheel. Given Dens relationship with Palestine, it is possible these disks were imported by or for Hemaka.
Therefore, my alternative theory is that the spinning disks are developed for a practical purpose such as instruction in circular motion or in the development of the flywheel.
References:
Emery, WB - Excavations at Saqqara The tomb of Hemaka (1938) accessed from [archive.org]
And
[archive.org]
Manual of Egyptian Pottery Vol 2 p111 accessed from [www.aeraweb.org]
ABYDOS WARE AND THE LOCATION OF THE EGYPTIAN FIRST DYNASTY ROYAL TOMBS
Tomoaki NAKANO* accessed from [www.jstage.jst.go.jp]
Edit:
This thread is breaking out the discussion from the following (now closed) thread and posts:
[grahamhancock.com]
[grahamhancock.com]
[grahamhancock.com]