The Life of Ancient Egyptian Women

Still, they were not equal to men of the same social rank and were subjected to a stricter existence.

Of course their lives, compared to modern standards, were much more difficult. Egyptian girls married young (age 10) and spent the majority of their days in housekeeping, child bearing, nursing, and child rearing. They could hold jobs, but their choices were quite limited.

The Mistress

This is actually still the case for some women in Egypt these days.

Even though the man of the house reigned supreme, his wife usually was the main household administrator.

She was given the title of "Mistress of the House."

She either had to carry out most of the household chores herself, or had to supervise the servants who did. These chores included:

• Making sure everyone had clothes to wear.
• Preparing meals from scratch, including grinding the grains to make bread.
• Insuring the house was clean and in order.
• Making sure the laundry was sent out.
• Stocking the underground cellars.

Although in most western countries having maids and cooks is an expensive luxury, in today's Egypt it is considered quite normal. So the modern "Mistress of the House" may still have many helping hands, including live-in maids and nannies.

I myself had a beautiful nanny from Aswan when I was a child whom I still love and visit till today! We called her Zooba :-)

The Working Girl

However, there wasn't an actual market place or monetary system.

If you wanted to sell your goods in ancient Egypt you had to barter for the things you need from door to door. What a daunting task if you wanted to exchange large items and had to carry them around all day looking for a buyer!

There were other options available to the ancient Egyptian women as careers:

• Singing, dancing and playing music in social gatherings.
• Some forms of political administration.
• Becoming a priestess.
• Midwifery.
• Wet nursing others' children.

There's also been some evidence of prostitution back in those days.

In modern Egypt, women have legal rights to work in almost all the professions available to men. However, in the stricter families, women usually stay at home after marriage. There are also labor laws that protect working women's rights, but I'm not sure how well enforced they are.

Ancient Egyptian Women's Material Assets

She could own her property and manage it how she sees fit.

She can rent her land.

She can give her assets away to whom she pleased.

Inheritance was passed from mother to daughter.

She can sell her assets.

She could divide her assets in her will in whatever way she wanted, she was not obliged to give anything to her husband or children.

She can give loans and earn interest on them (even to her own husband!).

As a widow she was entitled to inherit a third of her husband's assets while keeping all her original assets too.

Personal Freedom

• They could come and go as they please without being chaperoned.
• They could file law suits.
• They weren't confined to particular quarters.
• They could act as witnesses to legalities.
• There were given privacy during times such as menstruation and childbirth.
• They were considered equals in contracts.
• They could marry for love (although there were arranged marriages too).

Royal Egyptian women however, had a completely different reality.

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