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The father in an Egyptian family was the one working all day long. The mother was in charge with everything related to the home. Naturally, cooking, cleaning and taking care of the children was part of her responsibilities. A couple who decided to marry in Ancient Egypt assumed these roles. Egyptians preferred lifelong monogamous relationships, close family and friends playing an important role for them, as well.

For Ancient Egyptians, 14 or 15 was believed to be the most appropriate age for a girl to get married. However, men wedded somewhere between 17 and 20. Only if the man or the woman were widows or divorced, marriages took place at older ages. It surely seems that Ancient Egyptians were expected to marry young. This aspect is also determined by the fact that commonly lifespan was short during this period of time.

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In most cases, marriages in Ancient Egypt were arranged by parents. When couples fall in love and chose their own partners, they need the consent of their families to be able to wed. There is no shock in this, as Ancient Egyptians wedded so young that they surely needed support from their families.

The wedding day was more simple than what you can imagine at first. The bride usually moved in with her husband, and if the case with his family, too. For the wedding, a bride commonly wore a long dress or tunic, made of linen. The bride adorned herself with gold or silver jewelry, in case she owned any. A wedding did not require an official ceremony. However, parties to celebrate the new couple’s life together were commonly held.

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Still, most couples had a contract signed between the two parties. This was most common among richer people, as the poorer class probably needed no contract at all, having few possessions. In most situations, marriages occurred between people of similar social classes. As you can see, the marriage was a very simple procedure. We can surely say the same thing about the divorce. A divorce could be asked by either the husband or the wife. For instance, a woman could ask the divorce due to abuse or domestic violence. Either way, this was considered to be a very private matter.

Daily life in Ancient Egypt was extremely interesting, too. Actually, Ancient Egyptians are the most developed and interesting civilizations that have ever lived.

Ancient Egypt Pyramids

Below you can find a list of some of the most fascinating facts about Ancient Egypt.

• Both Egyptian men and women wore makeup. They believed that makeup had healing powers. Having under consideration the high temperatures in the area, makeup has initially been worn to offer protection from the sun.
• Egyptians were among the first people to invent writing and paper.
• When a person was ill, physical, mental and spiritual treatment was required. Herbal and magic medicine was commonly used by Ancient Egyptians.
• Egyptians invented the 365 days calendar, as well as the 24 hour division of the day.
• They also invented the art of painting. 

Ancient Egypt Paintings

• Egyptians are the ones who invented cement.
• Egyptian workers organized the first strike in the world.
• The first glass and faience objects were invented in Ancient Egypt.
• Egyptian children wore no clothing at all, at least until their teens. Due to the hot temperatures men wore skirts and women dresses.
• Rich Egyptians wore wigs. The other classes wore their hair long or in pigtails. 

Clothing in Ancient Egypt

• Ancient Egyptians believed that the earth was flat and round. According to them, the Nile flowed through the centre of the earth. 
• Women in Ancient Egypt enjoyed legal and economical rights, just as men.
• When a body was mummified, the brain was removed. Intestines were also removed from the body.
• Ancient Egypt is the first monotheistic religious state.
• Pharaohs’ tombs included everything that might be needed in the afterlife. Water, food, clothing and even games were stocked into tombs.

Tutankhamun’s Tomb

• In Ancient Egypt, infections were commonly treated with mouldy bread. 
• Ancient Egyptians knew very well how to cure meat and preserve food. 
• The shape of the pyramids created by Egyptians are believed to be inspired by the spreading rays of the sun.
• Ancient Egyptian men usually lived up to 35, while women up to 30. Infant mortality was really high here.
• Ancient Egyptians loved beer. Even though the drink was slightly different from the way we know it today, it was part of the everyday diet of Ancient Egyptians.

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The body of a person, sometimes even an animal, was preserved after death. These persons were turned into mummies. Mummies were Egyptians whose bodies were preserved by their families. Not all Egyptians could afford to pay for this expensive and complex process. Preserving the body for the afterlife is something that only some Egyptians could afford doing. However, all Egyptians believed in life after death.

According to them, the soul would make a journey after death to another world. In this other world, the dead would need all types of things they used when they were alive. This is the main reason why Egyptians were buried with all kind of objects into their graves, including money.

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Mummification

The process of mummification is quite complex and it takes a lot of time. It is commonly believed that it took about 70 days to be completed. There are several steps to mummification that have to be mentioned:

1. For starters, the body is washed and purified.
2. Then, all the organs have to be removed.
3. The only organ that is left in the body is the heart.
4. The next step to the process of mummification is filling the body with stuffing.
5. Then, the body was dried with the use of a substance known as natron.
6. About 40 to 50 days after the stuffing was removed, it was replaced with linen or sawdust.
7. When this process was completed, the body was wrapped in strands of linen. Then, it was covered with a sheet.

The process of mummification was over when the body was placed in a stone coffin. This coffin is commonly known as sarcophagus.

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Ancient Egyptians believed that the heart was the center of intelligence and emotion. This is why this organ was left in the body during the process of mummification. All the other organs, including the brain, were removed from the body. For instance, the brain was extracted through the nose. The chest was opened for all the vital organs to be removed.

Ancient Egyptians were commonly buried with their personal belongings into the tomb. These objects included games, food, but even furniture. As already mentioned, not all Egyptians could afford mummification. Poor people were buried in the sand. It is safe to say that mummification was a process reserved to the richest and most powerful people in Ancient Egypt. It was a complex process and an expensive one that lasted more than two months.

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Facts about Ra:

• identified with the sun, which meant that he was a symbol of light, warmth and growth;
• Ra traveled in the underworld with the help of two solar boats;
• the sun disk with which he is represented is often associated with the body or with the eye of Ra;
• his followers at Heliopolis are deemed to have been developed through the creative powers of Ra.

Representations:

• the man with the hawk head, having a solar disk on top;
• the man with the beetle head;
• the man with the ram head;
• an old king with golden flesh;
• other images: heron, serpent, bull, beetle, ram, cat or lion.

Gods identified with Ra:

• Atum – linked to the sun and creator of the Ennead;
• Amun – member of the Ogdoad, as a symbol of creative energies;
• Khepri and Khnum – a scarab beetle in connection with the morning sun and an evening manifestation of the sun god;
• Ra-Horakhty – as Horus of the Horizons.

Gods created by Ra:

• Hathor and Sekhmet – the daughters of Ra;
• Bastet – the cat of Ra.

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Ra is one of the most fascinating deities of ancient Egypt and one of the most easily recognizable ones. With the creative powers that were assumed to him, Ra was a major part of the ancient Egyptian life and one of the deities that had numerous cults, manifestations and imageries, which Egyptians followed, respected and vowed to.

1. For Ancient Egyptians, death was much too important and an obsession. Actually, they were glorifying life. Mummies and gods found in pyramids symbolised that Egyptians continued their current duty afterlife. Mummifying was a technique to maintain the corpse lifelike, which was a form of everyday life.

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2. Many people believe that the Egyptians collaborated with aliens and the best proof of that were those huge pyramids. They think that pyramids were superhuman achievements, so only aliens could built them this way. Yes, the Great Pyramid of Giza is mathematically amazing, but this is not beyond the great mind of scholars, architects and astronomers who lived during that era.

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3. Cleopatra was a very beautiful woman is another myth. The beauty of Cleopatra VII, the last Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, has been perpetuated since Shakespeare. Nonetheless, Roman coins show something different: a woman with many masculine features such as a protruding chin, thin lips and a large nose.

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4. Pharaohs killed their servants by entombing with them. It’s true that two of them did that during the First Dynasty of Egypt, but this was not available for all Pharaohs. They used “shabtis” instead, which were figurines that would help the Pharaohs in their afterlife.

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5. Hieroglyphs were magical incantations and curses. Actually, hieroglyphs were used for historical depictions and inscriptions. Curses and magical incantations were very rarely found in tombs.

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6. The curse of the Pharaohs is the most popular myth about Ancient Egypt. The myth refers mainly to the curse laid by Tutankhamun that killed sponsor Lord Carnarvon and other members of his expedition team. In reality, only 8 of those 58 people who participated in the uncovering of the tomb died, but within several years. For example, Carter, the leader, lived on for 16 years after the expedition. It seems that many people tend to believe that any misfortune of someone from the team is a curse of the Pharaohs.

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Unfortunately, there are many digressions about Ancient Egypt, but maybe these things will make you understand more and have a better critical thinking.

The Egyptian pyramids are perhaps the best known landmarks of this country and are visited by millions of tourists every year. These pyramid-shaped masonry structures are one of the reasons why Egypt is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. As of 2008, there are 138 pyramids discovered in this country. Most of these pyramids were built as tombs for ancient Egypt’s rulers, called Pharaohs, and they consorts. 

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They were built during the Old and Middle Kingdom periods, the earliest ones dating back to 2630 BCE. Experts estimate that it took up to 100,000 workers to build a single pyramid. In those times, when technology was not nearly as advanced as it is nowadays, you can imagine how much hard work and dedication it needed for such a construction to be built. 

The pyramid shape is though to symbolize the primordial mound from which people in ancient Egypt believed the planet was created. The pyramid shape is believed to represent the descending rays of the sun. Since most pyramids were faced with polished, highly reflective white limestone, they have a brilliant appearance when viewed from a distance. Moreover, all the pyramids were built on the west bank of the river Nile, which is the site of the setting sun and was associated with the realm of the dead in Egyptian mythology. 

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Here is a list of the Egyptian pyramids and their location. 

Abusir (also spelled Abu Sir):

• Pyramid of Sahure
• Pyramid of Neferirkare
• Pyramid of Neferefre
• Pyramid of Nyuserre

Dashur:

• Bent Pyramid (Sneferu)
• Red Pyramid (Sneferu)
• White Pyramid (Amenemhat II)
• Senusret III
• Amenemhat is Beautiful (Amenemhat III)

Giza:

• The Great Pyramid of Giza (Khufu)
• Khafre’s Pyramid
• Menkaure’s Pyramid
• Knethkaus I

Saqqara:

• Step Pyramid (Djoser)
• Buried Pyramid (Sekhemkhet)
• Pyramid of Userkaf

South Saqqara:

• Mastabet el-Fara’un (Shepseskaf)
• Pyramid of Djedkare-Isesi
• Pyramid of Pepi I
• Pyramid of Merenre
• Pyramid of Pepi II
• Qakare Ibi
• Pyramid of Khendjer

North Saqqara:

• Perfect are the places of Unas (Unas)
• Pyramid of Teti

Abydos:

• Pyramid of Ahmose

Zawyet el’Aryan:

• Layer Pyramid (Khaba)
• Sanakht (also known as Nebka)

Meidum:

• Pyramid of Meidum (Sneferu)

South Mazghuna:

• Amenemhat IV (also known as Sobehneferu)

Hawara:

• Amenemhat Lives (Amenemhat III)

El-Lahun (also spelled Illahun):

• Senusret Appears (Senusret III)

Lisht:

• Pyramid of Senusret I
• The Places of the Appearances of Amenemhat (Amenemhat I)

Dara:

• Pyramid of Khui

Aby Rawash:

• Pyramid of Djedefre

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All the pyramids are simply breathtaking, so if you ever get to Egypt, make sure you do not miss seeing them. There’s nothing like them in the entire world!

Also known as mau, cats in Ancient Egypt were very important to the society. Moreover, it has been recently revealed that they were domesticated from the Middle Eastern subspecies of the Wildcat about 10,000 years ago.

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In addition to the pyramids and the kohl-painted eyes, the worship of cats is one of the most fascinating and intriguing facts about Ancient Egypt. Their status as sacred animals rose as time went by and cats were soon considered to be esteemed deities. And for good reason.

Cats were among the only animals which were able to keep pests away. They had the ability to kill mice, rats, and even snakes such as cobras. This is why ancient Egyptians believed that cats had the power of protecting their homes and their children against danger.

 
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They were not only kept for protection, though. Cats were symbols of respect, honor, grace and poise. The goddess Mafdet, depicted as a lion-headed deity, was the symbol of justice and execution. Mafdet was shortly replaced with Bast, the cat goddess, the deification of protection, motherhood, and fertility.

As cats were becoming more and more revered, they received the same mummification after death as humans. Upon mummification, they were offered to Bast. In 1888, an Egyptian farmer discovered a large tomb with about 80,000 mummified cats and kittens, allegedly dating back to 2000-1000 BC.

The rang of cats in Ancient Egypt was so high that those who killed one suffered severe punishments. Even if an Egyptian killed a cat accidentally, the death penalty was still incurred. When a cat died, the household mourned her as if it were a family member.

There are numerous myths and legends around cats in Ancient Egypt. Even if they were the most worshiped animals back then, they are now considered to be simply pets and modern Egyptians do not revere them anymore. However, there are some cults in which the cat has not lost all religious significance, especially in today’s modern Islamic population inhabiting Egypt.

Those who did want to get married usually wedded at the early age of 12 to 14. After getting married, women had to behave as good wives and mothers. As to any other culture, children were very important in the ancient civilization of Egypt. This may be hard to believe, but women also had the right of divorce, which was not very common in other ancient cultures. This means that every woman who was unhappy with her marriage could get a divorce. Moreover, she could even remarry someone else after getting divorced or remain single if that is what she wanted. However, a divorce was not given for no reason. Women who wanted to end their marriage needed to present a good reason in the court of law in order to be granted a divorce. If the court of law approved of the divorce, women gained custody of their children, not to mention all of her original dowry (considering that one was brought to the marriage), plus one-third of her man’s fortune.

Women were granted these benefits to be able to raise their children in a comfortable way. Besides her dowry and her husband’s fortune, a woman getting divorced was also entitled to any property she personally owned, including property that had been willed to her during the marriage. Even when men were the ones filing for divorce, women still gained custody of their children and her original dowry. Besides raising the children and running the household, women in Ancient Egypt were also able to get a paid job, run a business, own, buy ans sell property, and make a will. Women in Ancient Egypt did not have a hard life, after all.

She married them both, as the Egyptian law specified that she had to have a consort who was either a brother or a son. 18-year-old Cleopatra eventually became sole ruler. As the Roman Empire was rising and was conquering one city after another, no wonder that she allied with the Romans. The liaison she consummated with Julius Caesar solidified her grip on the throne. Cleopatra was becoming stronger and stronger. Julius Caesar fell in love with her and the two had a son together, Caesarion. Caesar was assassinated in 44 BCE. After this unfortunate event, Cleopatra joined forces with Mark Antony, in opposition to Caesar’s legal heir, Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (later known as Augustus). Marc Antony also fell in love with the beautiful Cleopatra and had three children with her: twins Cleopatra Selene II and Alexander Helios, and son Ptolemy Philadelphus. No children were produced from the union with her younger brothers.

Marc Antony committed suicide after losing the Battle of Actium to the forces of his rival, Octavian. Legend has it that Cleopatra followed suit and killed herself by means of an asp bite. Her death is recorded on August 12, 30 BCE. Her son Caesarion briefly outlived her and was even declared pharaoh by his supporters, but he was soon killed on Octavian’s orders, leading to Egypt becoming the Roman province of Aegyptus. Cleopatra was thus the last pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Her legacy survives in numerous artworks and story dramatizations, some of the most famous ones being William Shakespeare’s tragedy Antony and Cleopatra, and the 1962 film Cleopatra. She was without a doubt one of the most beautiful, powerful and dedicated women in history.

As the Ancient Egypt civilization evolved, the mummification process also knew a new dimension. So, Egyptian began burying their dead in coffins, to make sure that the bodies will be protected against animals. The initial habit of mummification was maintained, meaning that dead Egyptians were still buried into the desert sand. Even though the bodies were protected this way, the mummification process was much slowed, as bodies were no longer exposed to the increased heat or the hot sand of the desert. Still, these were the first attempts to Ancient Egypt mummification. The process of mummification as it is known today was actually developed over many years in Ancient Egypt. Since the days when dead were buried in sand, this civilization developed a new method of preserving bodies as they looked when being alive. This advanced mummification process included embalming bodies and then wrapping them in strips of linen.

Why was mummification so important in Ancient Egypt? Well, Egyptians used to believe that when someone died, the soul left the body. However, after the burying of the dead, the soul was to return to the body, which had to look as if it were alive, for the soul to be able to recognize it. The soul and the body will live forever from that moment on, people in Ancient Egypt believed. All Egyptians believed in afterlife. Still, Ancient Egypt mummification was not a simple process. Most likely it lasted around 70 days for the body to be prepared for preservation. During this period of time the soul was to make a journey in another world. Ancient Egypt mummification meant the purifying of the body including steps such as the removal of organs, except for the heart, and the coverage of the whole body with various substances.