Archive for July, 2009

Cleopatraâ€šÃ„Ã´s Carpets â€šÃ„Ã¬ Shakespeare Explained.

Monday, July 6th, 2009

The barge she sat on, like a burnished throne Burned on the water. The poop was beaten gold.
Purple the sails, and so perfumed that the winds were lovesick with them.
Cleopatraâ€šÃ„Ã´s silken bed would have been laid over a large rug or carpet. The ancient Egyptians made rugs out of the materials to hand â€šÃ„Ã¬ in their case, papyrus. They dyed it in bright colours â€šÃ„Ã¬ yellows, reds and blues â€šÃ„Ã¬ and wove floor and wall coverings from it. The word â€šÃ„Ã²papyrusâ€šÃ„Ã´ has given us â€šÃ„Ã²paperâ€šÃ„Ã´, so would this qualify the Egyptian rugs on the walls as the first â€šÃ„Ã²wallpaperâ€šÃ„Ã´?