Money for old rope

Some rope facts

Although the origin of rope is unknown, the Egyptians were the first people to develop special tools to make rope. Egyptian rope dates back to 4000 to 3500 BC and was generally made of water reed fibres.

Leonardo da Vinci drew sketches of a concept for a rope making machine in the 15th Century.

By the late 1700s several working machines had been built and patented.

Rope continued to be made from natural fibres until the 1950s when synthetic materials such as nylon became popular.

Despite the changes in materials and technology, rope making today remains little changed since the time of the ancient Egyptians.

Money for old rope: this expression goes back to the days of public hangings. The hangman was entitled to keep the rope used to hang his 'customer'. Macabre crowds had a hankering for a bit of the rope, however, so the hangman would often cut it up to sell in sections.

More than half the rope manufactured today is used in the fishing and maritime industries (you probably could work that out).

A Moonraker Fact
She needs to stop wasting time on the internet, looking up facts about rope, and get back upstairs to give the landing a second coat of paint.


There will be a short test on 'facts about rope' on Wednesday.