Well-known as a writing material in ancient Egypt, papyrus had many more uses, according to ecologist Gaudet in this encyclopedic history of the swamp-dwelling plant. Indeed, Gaudet maintains that ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Here we see a photo of a section of the Book of the Dead. Hieroglyphics are on the bottom and illustrations of people doing ...

Long before it filled our notepads and books, paper was an idea locked up inside the tall, slender, and sturdy stalks of a grass-like plant that grew abundantly along the muddy banks of the Nile in ...

Why do readers love books? For wisdom and wit, the lift of comedy and the noble pain of tragedy; for advice, comfort and entertainment. But content and sentiment apart, they are loved as objects. Most ...

Scientists have finally unlocked the secrets of a mysterious 2,000-year-old papyrus document. The strange artifact, which has mirror writing on both sides, has baffled experts for centuries. Written ...

“PAPYRUS: The Plant That Changed the World — From Ancient Egypt to Today’s Water Wars,” by John Gaudet. Pegasus Books. 279 pages. $28.95. Ask sixth graders what they know about papyrus and you get the ...

The University of Basel has dozens of ancient papyrus texts in its collection, but one has been known for centuries as the Basel Papyrus. The 2,000-year-old work has been in the university’s ...

Since the 16th century, Basel has been home to a mysterious papyrus. With mirror writing on both sides, it has puzzled generations of researchers. A research team has now discovered that it is an ...