9. Ancient Egyptians don’t seem to have used pillows to sleep.
While pyramids, mummies and the River Nile may be hot topics in Egyptian history, the sleeping habits of the ancient Egyptians don’t seem to feature much in classrooms, probably because it is taken for granted they weren’t much different from our own. However, while archaeologists have discovered one 4000-year-old, wax-covered linen pillow, pictures and hieroglyphs suggest that most Egyptians slept resting their heads on uncomfortable-looking headrests. Egyptians made the headrests from wood, ivory or even marble, and consisted of a curved upper section supported by a high base. Often carved with the names of their owners, depictions of the headrests give no sign of any padding.
