About Copper
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The Name Copper
In their hieroglyphics (picture writing), the ancient Egyptians used the Ankh sign to represent copper. The Ankh was also the symbol of Eternal Life, which is appropriate for copper since it has been used continuously by people for 10,000 years.
Homer, following the Greek practice of around 1000 B.C., called the metal Chalkos. This is why the Copper Age is lso known as the Chalcolithic Era.
A thousand years later during the Early Christian Era, the words "aes Cyprium" appeared in Roman writings about copper, because much of the metal at the time came from Cyprus. The word "copper" is an Anglicized term of this Latin phrase.
