This 21-foot-wide (6.5-meter-wide) grain silothe largest ever found in an Egyptian town centerwas part of an open courtyard that included at least eight storage bins, according to experts who revealed the Edfu discovery in July 2008. Grain was used to pay taxes to governors of provincial towns such as Edfu.

Bordered by enemy cultures and in need of allies, pharaohs used the taxation system to gain influence with local rulers during ancient Egypt's 17th dynasty, which lasted from approximately 1570 to 1540 B.C.

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