Separation of the Grain and Chaff

This painting in the Tomb of Nakht (TT52), shows several men winnowing grain. Winnowing is the process of getting rid of the chaff, or inedible, part of grain. Ancient Egyptian civilization, like all civilizations, was dependent on sophisticated agricultural techniques like winnowing. Using irrigation, winnowing, and crop rotation, civilizations allowed fewer farmers to produce more food.

New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, reign of Thutmose IV, ca. 1401-1391 BC. Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, West Thebes.

Photo: Thomas J. Abercrombie