Ancient Egypt had a municipal lifestyle, meaning that the civilization was locally governed. Each of the cities were assigned a prefect/mayor whose job was to provide for the necessities of the Egyptian citizens. Egypt was also split into three social classes: the aristocrats and the official ruling class, the class of priests, and finally, the rest of the citizens who were entitled to work of every kind. There was not however, a middle class that transitioned the upper classes to the lower class until the Middle Kingdom(2040-1640 BCE). The main difference between the administrative and the working class was literacy. The administrative class was also given land grants that were not tended to by slaves(slaves had only come about in the Middle Kingdom), but by people of the working class/peasants. The lower-ranking officials worked in the smaller villages and district capitals unlike the higher-ranking officials, who worked in the royal capital. The high-ranking officials were considered to be of such high social standing, that they were even buried alongside the Pharaoh to help and serve him in the afterlife.
This video explains the social classes in detail. It gives visuals to support the explanations.
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Most peoples' everyday lives were centered around agriculture. The main agricultural areas in Ancient Egypt were along the fertile banks of the Nile River. In fact, the entire Ancient Egyptian society was centered along the Nile River itself, for the Nile River flooded each year and enriched the soil and helped bring plentiful harvests and wealth to the civilization. Not only did they grow their own food, but they also traded food in the villages for the essentials and resources that they themselves could not produce on their own. The citizens also used the muddy banks of the Nile River to build houses using mudbricks in the villages and in the rural areas of society. Most Ancient Egyptians worked as either field hands, farmers, or craftsmen and scribes, for not may people were of noble classes.
Noblemen led fairly lavish and prosperous lifestyles. They slept on fine linen sheets, had cabinets to store clothes and other items, and even lamps for lighting the house at night. Most noble families also had servants (servants, not slaves) who helped the men with things like shaving and washing. Most of their clothing made of fine linen and their shoes out of leather. They usually ate small morning meals consisting of bread and some fruits. Families of nobility owned large portions of land and regularly had meeting with the overseers of the land to tell them what the harvest would be like for that specific year and also how many cattle had been spotted in the fields that previous day. Banquets between the upper class families were quite common and extremely rich and lively.
However, on the other hand, the lower class families had no such affluence. Their clothes and bed-sheets were made of coarse linen sheets that were woven at home, usually by the wife/mother in the family. Servants did not exist in such families; the chores were to be done by the family members themselves. Their shoes were not made of leather, but of reeds. Food was not pre-made and so, the families had to wake up early to make their own food. They had to grind the wheat to make the bread, and had to grow their own fruits and vegetables. The extra harvest was then collected and taken to the temple to pay for the use of the temple's land. After returning home, the rest of the day was usually spent grinding wheat and making bread, or collecting water from the Nile.
Pottery making was common in Ancient Egypt and the picture to the right shows a type of pottery during that time period. The design depicts how the everyday environment was in Ancient Egypt.
Noblemen led fairly lavish and prosperous lifestyles. They slept on fine linen sheets, had cabinets to store clothes and other items, and even lamps for lighting the house at night. Most noble families also had servants (servants, not slaves) who helped the men with things like shaving and washing. Most of their clothing made of fine linen and their shoes out of leather. They usually ate small morning meals consisting of bread and some fruits. Families of nobility owned large portions of land and regularly had meeting with the overseers of the land to tell them what the harvest would be like for that specific year and also how many cattle had been spotted in the fields that previous day. Banquets between the upper class families were quite common and extremely rich and lively.
However, on the other hand, the lower class families had no such affluence. Their clothes and bed-sheets were made of coarse linen sheets that were woven at home, usually by the wife/mother in the family. Servants did not exist in such families; the chores were to be done by the family members themselves. Their shoes were not made of leather, but of reeds. Food was not pre-made and so, the families had to wake up early to make their own food. They had to grind the wheat to make the bread, and had to grow their own fruits and vegetables. The extra harvest was then collected and taken to the temple to pay for the use of the temple's land. After returning home, the rest of the day was usually spent grinding wheat and making bread, or collecting water from the Nile.
Pottery making was common in Ancient Egypt and the picture to the right shows a type of pottery during that time period. The design depicts how the everyday environment was in Ancient Egypt.