One of the greatest mysteries of all time is the stones vases of Egypt. Thousands of stones vases have been found in and around the pyramid of pharaoh Djoser in Saqqara, about 30 km south of Cairo. These stone vases originate from before 2800 BC. They are made of hard rock materials such as diorite, gneiss and granite and require heavy-duty machinery such as diamond drills, diamond saws, cylinder bores, grinders etc., all of which did not exist in those days. The wheel had not yet been invented and iron was still unknown. Yet many of these vases are perfectly shaped and are often fully symmetric. In 1880 Professor Petrie, who has done excavations in Egypt for years, noted that the ancient Egyptians really must have had these tools and pointed out saw and drill marks which undoubtedly prove this. However, only a few of Petrie's investigations were followed up. These mysterious vases are now housed in prominent museums such as the Louvre, the British museum and the Petrie museum. 

However, the most bizarre objects are the bent disks. They look like ashtrays and one museum defines them as ‘oil lamps’ but it is not conceivable that such a precious object could have such a menial function. The form suggests an entirely different manufacturing process than mechanical working. It seems more likely that these forms were made by folding relatively soft material. But how were they able, more than 5000 years ago, to soften hard stone and bend it into the desired shape?

More information on these mysterious objects, see “Weird Ancient Technology”