Arabic-language social media pages and accounts recently shared an image purporting to display an engraving depicting an ancient Egyptian electric lamp, predating Thomas Edison's discovery by thousands of years.
The circulated image featured an engraving resembling a snake within a tube, with comments suggesting it represented "the lamp that consistently illuminated ancient Egypt."
Publications accompanying the image claimed, "Lamps existed in ancient times, and Edison's invention was just one of many falsehoods prevalent in textbooks and educational courses."
However, experts dismiss this assertion as merely one among various myths attributed to ancient Egyptians. The inscription depicted in the circulated image does not showcase an electric lamp but rather represents a symbolic illustration embodying the ancient Egyptian belief system regarding the universe's creation.
Contrary to the claims made in these publications, Ayman Hindi, director of the Qena Governorate Antiquities District in Upper Egypt, clarified to Agence France-Presse that the depiction has no association with electricity. Instead, it symbolizes the ancient Egyptian theory concerning the universe's origin.
Iman Abu Zeid, an Egyptian archaeology professor, echoed Hindi's perspective, stating, "The engraving does not portray an electric lamp but rather depicts a snake within a lotus flower."
Elaborating on the symbolism, Abu Zeid highlighted, "This inscription embodies the concept of the universe's creation." Referring to the snake's representation of the god Hor Samatawi nestled within a lotus flower, she elucidated, "It signifies the notion that the earth was once submerged in water, followed by the emergence of an eternal hill, leading to the appearance of the creator god and the commencement of the creation process. The eternal hill depicted in the engraving symbolizes the lotus flower."