Missouri Botanical 
Garden Bulletin 
Vol. VII St. Louis, Mo., November, 1919 No. 9 
EGYPTIAN PAPER PLANT 
One of the most popular aquatic plants in the Garden col- 
lection is the Cyperus Papyrus, commonly called the Egyp- 
tian paper plant, since it was one of the first plants used by 
the ancient Egyptians in the manufacture of paper. The spe- 
cies which affords the material used for writing purposes is of 
genuine African origin, establishing itself in marsh lands and 
in sluggishly flowing water. It is also found in the southern 
part of western Asia and Syria, on the shores of the Jordan, 
the lake of Tiberias, and in certain localities in Sicily. At the 
time of construction of the pyramids the papyrus must have 
been utilized, for it is represented by hieroglyphic inscrip- 
tions of book rolls prepared from the pith. Other monuments 
dating from the time of the Pharaohs frequently show at- 
tempts to reproduce the luxuriant growth of papyrus thick- 
ets combined with the diversified fauna of the region. 
Up to the sixth century the papyrus was still used for writ- 
ing material and was a source of wealth to the Egyptians. 
Upon the advent of the parchment, however, the cultivation 
of papyrus was abandoned, the ground gradually being more 
‘profitably employed until finally the last plant disappeared 
from the cultivated area in the upper Nile region. At the 
present time in order to see natural papyrus banks one must 
ascend the Nile to Khartoum and follow up the White Nile 
where island clusters rise to a height of over fifteen feet, form- 
ing impenetrable thickets of mop-like foliage and producing 
such luxuriant growth as to obstruct the flow of the river in 
many places. According to Stanley and others, the region 
of Victoria Nyanza is occupied by enormous forests of papy- 
rus, particularly in the shallow places of the Sobart. 
The word paper is directly derived from papyrus, and the 
word Bible from biblyos, the Greek name of the papyrus 
plant. During the period of the Byzantine empire papyrus 
was used in the copying of legal works. The statement of the 
time of the court sitting was glued on the report of the prose- 
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