Everyday Life In Ancient Egypt
Key Terms
- Cosmetics – eye-paint
- Clothing – loincloth, linen kilt, bag-tunic
- Senet (or senat) – board game from predynastic and ancient Egypt
- Ostraca –a broken piece of pottery used as a writing surface
- Festivals – Opet, The Beautiful Feast of the Valley, Heb-Sed
Key Concepts
- Cosmetics
-Ancient Egyptians placed high values on hygiene and appearance.
-Majority of men shaved their heads and in some cases their whole bodies due to the North African Climate.
-Cosmetics were used by men, women and children of all ages and social classes on a daily basis. Most common being eye-paint (source A). Provided practical benefits – reduced the glare of the sun and its antiseptic qualities provided relief from irritations aggravated by sandstorms.
- Clothing
-Made from simple linen sheets which were bleached white.
-Typical male wore a linen loincloth or basic linen kilt (source B)
-Typical woman wore a full length linen garment also known as a bag-tunic.
-Both men and women wore richly decorated belts and girdles over their clothes as well as jewellery.
-Poorer Egyptians wore rings, earrings and bracelets made from copper while silver and gold were worn by the rich.
-Sandals were made from palm leaf, grass or papyrus.
-Upper class men and women may have also worn wigs made from sheep’s wool or human hair for protection against the heat and also for decoration. They were usually worn at official functions or at parties.
- Leisure Activities
-It allowed them to relax and socialise with their family and friends.
-Popular activity was fishing and fowling down at the Nile River and was often considered a family outing (source C).
-Other leisure activities included ball games, played mostly by children, wrestling matches and also quieter games, one of which was called senet.
-Evidence from the workers village of Deir el-Medina show that some Egyptians liked to draw for fun, on flakes or bits of broken pottery known as ostraca.
- Religion
-Was a focal point in Egyptian life.
-The worship of various gods became a significant ritual in Ancient Egypt.
-Their beliefs in the afterlife and divine were firmly established.
-Egyptians believed that the gods had supernatural powers and were called on for protection and guidance.
-Although, the Egyptians believed that the gods were not always kind and had to be pleased with numerous offerings and/or prayers.
-Many festivals held throughout the year were religious in nature.
-Festivals included The Beautiful Feast of the Valley, Opet and the Heb-Sed Festival.
-The highlight of these festivals was the parade that followed a set processional route from the temple of the god or goddess honoured by the holiday.
-Musicians, singers, dancers and offering bearers were part of the procession, which was noisy and most enjoyable (source D).
- Food
-Staple diet consisted of bread and beer, the beer being made from barley.
-Egyptians ate two main meals throughout the day.
-Vegetables such as onions and garlic and fruits such as dates and figs were also part of the common diet.
-Nile River provided an abundance of fish which was incorporated into a number of recipes.
-Fertile soil deposited by the River Nile also allowed the Egyptians to grow wheat in great quantities.
-With difficulty of raising livestock in the deserts, meat was considered a luxury as was wine and was only consumed on special occasions such as festivals.
-Upper class Egyptian society indulged on a more regular basis ( source E)