In the manufacture of bricks, after foreign substances were removed from the mud or clay, it was generally mixed with finely chopped straw or other vegetable matter. This is borne out by a statement in the Anastasi Papyri, from ancient Egypt, that reads: “There was no one to mould bricks, and there was no straw in the neighbourhood.” (Life in Ancient Egypt, by A. Erman, 1894, p. 117) Although bricks made without straw have been found in Egypt, this was evidently an exception and provides no valid basis for concluding that the Israelites resorted to making bricks without straw when forced to obtain it themselves. Experiments conducted in recent years indicate that adding straw to clay makes it easier to work and triples the strength of the bricks produced therefrom.

Bricks varied considerably in size and shape. In Egypt the rectangular shape was common, and wedge-shaped bricks were used in the construction of arches. Egyptian bricks were approximately 36 to 51 cm (14 to 20 in.) in length, 15 to 23 cm (6 to 9 in.) in width, and 10 to 18 cm (4 to 7 in.) in thickness.