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Context statement: Authors Pauline Harris and Leanne Iselin are modern historians and educators who have published multiple books on Ancient History.

Reference: Iselin, L., & Harris, P. (2004). Heinemann Ancient and medieval history: Everyday Lives. Heinemann.

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Context statement: Dr. John Baines is a Professor of Egyptology at Oxford University and has published and translated multiple texts on Ancient Egypt. Jaromir Malek also has a doctorate in Egyptology and has also published multiple books on Ancient Egypt.

Reference: Hurley, T., & Murray, C. (2008). Antiquity 1 : past perspectives. Oxford University Press.

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Scene from daily life, Tomb of Nakht, Luxor, TT52. It depicts some things that women did- this includes mainly house duties.

Reference:

Hansen, N. (2020, March 22). The Role of Women in Ancient Egyptian Civilization. TheCollector. https://www.thecollector.com/ancient-egyptian-civilization/

Egyptian Women

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Context Statement: The below excerpt is from a history textbook called 'Humanties Alive' and was written by Robert Darlington, who is an author and humanities expert and teacher.

Women in Ancient Egypt did not have the same rights as men. In all lower-class families, women were responsible for preparing food, including making bread and beer, and caring for children. In peasant families, they also worked in the fields. They were usually not taught to read and write. Apart from work as singers, dancers, musicians, servants, nurses and funeral mourners (people paid to weep and wail at a funeral), few careers were open to women. Despite this, they had more freedom than in most other ancient societies, where women were treated as the property of men.

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Context Statement: Below is an image from a tomb found in Thebes, showing a man hunting birds in the marshes with his wife, daughter, and cat. As this was buried in his tomb, it indicates that he held a high significance to cats, hunting, and his wife, who is seen hunting beside him and caring for the child.

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Context Statement: This is an excerpt from a textbook summarising the duties of women across different wealth classes.

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Context Statement: Below is a translated caption of a scribe describing his work in the Middle Kingdom era, approximately 1200BCE.

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Context statement: This following excerpt from an online resource was written by Jenny Hill who received her certificate in Egyptology from the University of Glasgow. It outlines the rigorous training process for becoming a scribe in ancient Egypt. The Egyptian hieroglyphic language, known for its complexity, required scribes to undergo extensive education that could last up to ten years. Training typically began at temple schools around the age of five.

Reference: Hill, J. (2010). Scribes in ancient Egypt | Ancient Egypt Online. Ancientegyptonline.co.uk. https://ancientegyptonline.co.uk/scribe/

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Context Statement: Below is an excerpt from a textbook describing a scribe's importance.

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Context Statement: The below is image is of a wall painting from the tomb of a soldier in Thebes, Egypt. It depicts a man during war, trampling his enemies. This is often seen as a pose of power over their enemies.

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Context statement: Toni Hurley has over 30 years' experience teaching history and is presently a tutor in the University of Technology Bachelor of Teaching program. In this excerpt she discusses the image of the pharaoh over time.

The mighty ‘warrior pharaoh’ is one of the most enduring images of ancient Egypt and dates to the beginnings of Egyptian civilisation around 3000 BC. It was both a political and a religious statement and emphasised the king’s role as the divine upholder of maat, the Egyptian concept of order. The king is shown triumphing over the forces of chaos, represented by foreign enemies and bound captives. In earlier times, the king, a distant and mysterious being, was held in godlike awe by his subjects. However, by New Kingdom times he was a more earthly, vulnerable figure who fought alongside his troops in battle. The militarism of the New Kingdom gave birth to a new heroic age… Another aspect of the warrior pharaoh image that developed over time was the pharaoh as elite athlete and sportsman, a perfect physical specimen.

Reference: Hurley, T. (2008). Antiquity 2: interpreting the past. Oxford University Press, pp. 47-48.

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Context Statement: Below is translated section of wisdom that an ancient pharaoh passed down to his son in approximately the 9th or 10 dynasty. It outlines how to be a successful pharaoh and leader, and was found on papyrus (ancient paper/books) named 'The Teaching for Merikare'. Merikare is said to be the name of the pharaoh's son.

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Context Statement: Below is a limestone panel that has the first known pharaoh of Egypt, Narmer, conquering his enemies and unifying Egypt

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Context Staatement: Ramses II is often regarded as the greatest of all pharaohs. Below is a painted limestone panel showing the great New Kingdom pharaoh Ramses II striking bound prisoners of war, which was commissioned by the king himself to strike fear in his people and opponents.

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Context Statement: Below is a translated excerpt from King Ramses II found on a tomb wall. He was very famous for his warrior spirit and engaging in many battles, the one he is referencing is one of his most famous, the Battle of Kadesh.

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Context Statement: Below is an excerpt from a history website, detailing some of the roles that soldiers had before an official army was constructed. The Invasion of Hykos was when a foreign army took over Egypt for almost a century.

Until the invasion of Hykos in the Second Intermediate Period, a proper army remained absent in ancient Egypt. Prior to it, there were only palace guards and trade escorts. When Egypt established a well-built army, the need for Egyptian Soldiers emerged. The Ancient Egyptian soldier had either decided that this was a good career choice and could lead to security and advancement or the other type of soldier was the conscript who joined the armed forces of Egypt against his will. This was because people were often forced to join the military.

Reference: Vaijayanti Joshi, Prasad Mahabal and Debajit Ghosh (2024), Ancient Egyptian Facts https://ancientegyptianfacts.com/ancient-egyptian-soldiers.html

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Context Statement: Below is an excerpt from a history website detailing the different aspects of being an Ancient Egyptian soldier, and what rewards or benefits there were in relation to doing well in the army.

The Ancient Egyptian soldier was expected to achieve a high level of fitness and was under the authority of the drill master.

Wrestling, Sand-bag lifting, Archery, Knife-throwing, Stick-fighting- all formed a part of the training. An Ancient Egyptian soldier was expected to be able to cover 32 kilometres in one day. Discipline was strict and punishments, by beatings, were severe.

The role of the Ancient Egyptian soldier was to either defend the country or be prepared to make pre-emptive strikes against their enemies. A series of fortresses were built on strategic locations on each of the borders of Egypt.

Many of the Egyptian Soldiers were sent to these forts, a boring, monotonous but relatively safe role which brought little reward. The rewards to a brave soldier included not only promotion and medals but also goods, grants of lands, pensions on retirement and even slaves.As the economy of Ancient Egypt was based on a barter system, a low-ranked Egyptian soldier was paid ten loaves of bread and jugs of beer a day. Wages increased with the higher rank of the soldier. Egyptian Soldiers were allowed to plunder the enemy when they won a battle.

The soldier was equipped with a variety of different weapons which, by the period of the New Kingdom included the clubs and maces, as well as axes, knives, and swords; they were also handy with projectile weapons such as spears, bows and arrows, and javelins.

Reference: Vaijayanti Joshi, Prasad Mahabal and Debajit Ghosh (2024), Ancient Egyptian Facts https://ancientegyptianfacts.com/ancient-egyptian-soldiers.html

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Context statement: A limestone stela (upright monument containing text and images) of a priest adoring Osiris. The two processions under the top image show the deceased with their wives at burial feasts, c. 1420 BCE.

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Context statement: A limestone stela (upright monument containing text and images) of a priest adoring Osiris. The two processions under the top image show the deceased with their wives at burial feasts, c. 1420 BCE.

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Reference: Bradley, P. (2013). Ancient Egypt reconstructing the past. Cambridge University Press. 

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Context statement: This is an excerpt from P. Bradley's book 'Ancient Egypt Reconstructing the Past' about areas of the priesthood in Ancient Egypt.

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Reference: Unknown. (n.d.). Head of a Priest [statue]. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

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Context Statement: Around 360 BCE, a high-ranking Egyptian clergyman commissioned a statue of himself to be placed in one of the temples of Memphis, near present-day Cairo. The statue would serve as a place where the priest’s immortal spirit could manifest itself to share in daily offerings to the gods. In 343 BCE, the temple was sacked by invaders, the statue broken in pieces, and the building left in shambles. The priests collected the remnants of shattered statues, including this head, and, during a nationwide program of repair and renewal, buried them in the foundations of another temple as an act of piety.

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Context Statement: Ancient Egyptians also did graffiti on walls and tombs, and those who wrote sentences or words were most likely scribes, as they were some of the very few who could read or write. The below excerpt is from an Australian Museum website detailing graffiti found on a wall, discussing his contempt for a fellow scribe.

‘My heart sickens when I see the work of their hands ... I have seen scandal, they are no scribes such as Thoth has enlightened...’.

Reference: https://australian.museum/learn/cultures/international-collection/ancient-egyptian/the-scribe-and-heiroglyphs/

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Context statement: Leo Conti is Head of Humanities at South Fremantle Senior High School and a Big Ideas author. Mark Easton has taught Geography, History and English for over 20 years and during the last 15 years has been a contributing author to many geography, humanities and atlas titles. Maggy Saldais brings fifteen years’ experience in educational publishing to her role as a History author. Maggy has a strong academic background in the discipline of History. Richard Kostecki has been a teacher for 29 years and is currently Head of Humanities and Social Sciences at Mazenod College in Western Australia. He has also lectured and tutored undergraduate teachers at Notre Dame University Fremantle.

Reference: Conti, L., Saldais, M., Easton, M., Kostecki, R., & Dumovic, V. (2017). Oxford Big Ideas Humanities Western Australia 7. Oxford University Press.

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Context Statement: Ramses II was probably born about 1303BCE. He held [the role of pharaoh] for longer than any other pharaoh. Because of his military campaigns and building projects, including temples and cities, he became known as Ramses the Great. Below is a poem inscribed on a temple dedicated to Ramses II

In the midst of many peoples, all unknown,

Unnumbered as the sand,

Here I stand,

All Alone;

There is no-one at my side;

My warriors and chariots afeared [frightened],

Have deserted me…

… two thousand and five hundred pairs of horses were around,

And I flew into the middle of their ring,

By my horse-hoods they were dashed

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Context statement: The below excerpt is from the Royal Ontario Museum, which is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year, making it the most-visited museum in Canada.

Ancient Egyptians, like modern Egyptians, loved children, and took good care of them. Mothers nursed their babies for three or four years. Little ones were carried by their mothers in a soft sling, so that they felt her body's warmth and her presence always. There are many images of mothers taking their babies with them to work... Even after they began to eat solid food, young children ate with their mothers, who looked after them constantly.

The names given to children also tell us of the affection parents had for their little ones: Nakht, which means strong, and Nefer, which means beautiful, were common names. Merit, which means beloved, was popular, too...

Reference: Royal Ontario Museum. (n.d.). Childhood. Royal Ontario Museum. https://www.rom.on.ca/en/learning/activities-resources/online-activities/ancient-egypt/life-in-ancient-egypt/childhood#:~:text=In%20the%20warm%2C%20dry%20climate

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Context Statement: Below is an excerpt from the text book 'Ancient Egyptians: The Kingdom of the Pharaohs Brought to Life', by Anton Gill. He details the occupation of soldier in Ancient Egypt, and what warfare looked like. Anton Gill is a historical writer of both historical fiction and historical non-fiction.

There was no standing army for much of Ancient Egypt's history, though from early on the king was surrounded by a small, elite professional troop of bodyguard. At times of war, armies were levied from the population and young men from the villages were preassigned into service.

Prior to Egyptian armies becoming a known occupation in Ancient Egypt, professional soldiers were very often of foreign origin, either slaves who had been enabled to buy their freedom by enlisting, or mercenaries who, attracted by the high standard of living in Egypt, wished to remain there. In the Late Period, the Egyptian army and navy depended very much on Greek and Phoenician soldiers and sailors.

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Context Statement: Below is an image of a common scribe, detailing how it usually took almost 11 years to become an official scribe. Most statues of scribes present them sitting with relaxed features.

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Context Statement: Below is an excerpt from a male Vizier in the Fifth Dynasty detailing how men should treat their wives. The law was that a wife is protected legally if they were to divorce, but marriage was often used as a means of business.

If you are excellent, you shall establish your household and love your wife according to her standard:

Fill her belly, clothe her back;

Perfume is a prescription for her limbs.

Make her happy as long as you live!

She is a field, good for her lord.

You shall not pass judgement on her, remove her from power, supress her.

Her eye when she sees anything is her stormwind.

This is how to make her endure in your house:

You shall restrain her. A female who is in her own hands is like rainwater: she is sought, and she has flown away

Reference: Gill, A (2004). Ancient Egyptians: The Kingdom of the Pharaohs Brought to Life.

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Context statement: The following excerpt from an online resource is written by Jenny Hill who received her Certificate in Egyptology from Glasgow University. It outlines the rigorous training process for becoming a scribe in ancient Egypt. The Egyptian hieroglyphic language, known for its complexity, required scribes to undergo extensive education that could last up to ten years. Training typically began at temple schools around the age of five.

Reference: Hill, J. (2010). Scribes in ancient Egypt | Ancient Egypt Online. Ancientegyptonline.co.uk. https://ancientegyptonline.co.uk/scribe/

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Context statement: John Lewis Romer is a British Egyptologist, historian and archaeologist. He has created and appeared in many TV archaeology series

Reference: Greer, V., Iselin, L., & Zarmati, L. (2004). Heinemann ancient and medieval history. Heinemann, ≪&Gt.

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Reference: Greer, V., Iselin, L., & Zarmati, L. (2004). Heinemann ancient and medieval history. Heinemann

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Reference: Greer, V., Iselin, L., & Zarmati, L. (2004). Heinemann ancient and medieval history. Heinemann

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Context statement: Leo Conti is Head of Humanities at South Fremantle Senior High School and a Big Ideas author. Mark Easton has taught Geography, History and English for over 20 years and during the last 15 years has been a contributing author to many geography, humanities and atlas titles. Maggy Saldais brings fifteen years’ experience in educational publishing to her role as a History author. Maggy has a strong academic background in the discipline of History. Richard Kostecki has been a teacher for 29 years and is currently Head of Humanities and Social Sciences at Mazenod College in Western Australia. He has also lectured and tutored undergraduate teachers at Notre Dame University Fremantle.

Reference: Conti, L., Saldais, M., Easton, M., Kostecki, R., & Dumovic, V. (2017). Oxford Big Ideas Humanities Western Australia 7. Oxford University Press.

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Context statement: Leo Conti is Head of Humanities at South Fremantle Senior High School and a Big Ideas author. Mark Easton has taught Geography, History and English for over 20 years and during the last 15 years has been a contributing author to many geography, humanities and atlas titles. Maggy Saldais brings fifteen years’ experience in educational publishing to her role as a History author. Maggy has a strong academic background in the discipline of History. Richard Kostecki has been a teacher for 29 years and is currently Head of Humanities and Social Sciences at Mazenod College in Western Australia. He has also lectured and tutored undergraduate teachers at Notre Dame University Fremantle.

Reference: Conti, L., Saldais, M., Easton, M., Kostecki, R., & Dumovic, V. (2017). Oxford Big Ideas Humanities Western Australia 7. Oxford University Press.

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Context statement: Leo Conti is Head of Humanities at South Fremantle Senior High School and a Big Ideas author. Mark Easton has taught Geography, History and English for over 20 years and during the last 15 years has been a contributing author to many geography, humanities and atlas titles. Maggy Saldais brings fifteen years’ experience in educational publishing to her role as a History author. Maggy has a strong academic background in the discipline of History. Richard Kostecki has been a teacher for 29 years and is currently Head of Humanities and Social Sciences at Mazenod College in Western Australia. He has also lectured and tutored undergraduate teachers at Notre Dame University Fremantle.

Reference: Conti, L., Saldais, M., Easton, M., Kostecki, R., & Dumovic, V. (2017). Oxford Big Ideas Humanities Western Australia 7. Oxford University Press.

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Context statement: TCI is a K-12 publishing company that creates science and social studies curriculum to enable educators to improve their ability to engage students.

Artisans specialized in any one of a number of crafts. Workers in this class included carpenters, jewelers, leatherworkers, metalworkers, painters, potters, sculptors, and weavers. Artisans made many beautiful objects, including stunning jewelry and elegant furniture. Painters portrayed scenes of Egyptian daily life. Most artisans were men, but some women wove fabric, beaded clothing, and made perfume. The most skilled artisans were the stone carvers. They produced the statues, engravings, and reliefs found in Egyptian temples, tombs, and monuments. Stone carvers played an important role in tomb building... Stone carvers helped equip the tombs with artwork to honor and preserve the dead... Stone carving was hard, time-consuming work. The carvers often worked with very hard rock, such as granite...

Artisans were a class in the middle of Egyptian society. They and their families lived in modest homes... Artisans typically worked side by side in large workshops. They usually worked for 10 days at a stretch before taking time off. The workers depended entirely on their employers for food. In hard times when food was in short supply, artisans often went hungry. Pharaohs called upon hundreds of artisans at a time to work on royal projects. Artisans created the fine artwork that often covered temples, royal tombs, and other monuments. They worked in large groups to complete engravings, paintings, and hieroglyphics. Despite artisans' skill and creativity, the upper classes often viewed them as little more than common laborers. Even the most talented artists were almost never allowed to sign their work. But some artists did receive recognition. Employers sometimes threw a banquet for their favorite artist. Occasionally they honored an artist by letting him portray himself in a painting or an engraving.

Reference: Frey, W., Hart, D., & Teachers' Curriculum Institute. (2017). History alive! Tci.

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Context statement: Potters and workers, detail from the frescoes in the Tomb of Rekhmire, Sheikh Abd el Qurnah Necropolis, Luxor, Thebes.

Reference: Frey, W., Hart, D., & Teachers' Curriculum Institute. (2017). History alive! Tci.

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Context statement: The scribe Amennakht is the author of this papyrus in the hieratic script. It is a report concerning a strike held during the reign of King Ramesses III. The Museo Egizio or Egyptian Museum is an archaeological museum in Turin, Italy, specializing in Egyptian archaeology and anthropology.

The scribe Amennakht is the author of this papyrus in the hieratic script. It is a report concerning a strike held during the reign of King Ramesses III in the village of Deir el-Medina. The workers protested because they had not received their regular food rations, which constituted payment for their work in the Valley of the kings.
“Year 29, secondo month of the Inundation, day 10. Today the work squadron passed the control post shouting “we are hungry!” It is 18 days this month that (the men) go and sit at the back of the funerary temple of Tuthmosis III”. Despite various attempt at conciliation, the protest lasted a number of days. To the officials who tried to persuade them to return to work, the workers replied: “We are here because of the famine and thirst. We are not accustomed to not having unguents, fish, and greens. Write to the pharaoh our perfect lord, take note of our words, and write to the vizier, our superior, because we are in need of our provisions”

"We have gone on strike not from hunger but because we have a serious accusation to make: bad things have been done in this place of Pharaoh."

Reference: Museo Egizio. (n.d.). Collection online - The so-called “Strike Papyrus” written by Amunnakht. Collezioni.museoegizio.it. https://collezioni.museoegizio.it/en-GB/material/Cat_1880

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Context Statement: This excerpt discusses Ancient Egyptian priests. It was written by Cristian Radu who has a university degree in Medieval History.

The defining feature of an ancient Egyptian priest was his one single duty: To take care of the god of their temple. Compared to priests from other faiths, priests in ancient Egypt did not perform any functions or preach, nor did they convert the unfaithful.

The high priest was always assigned by the pharaoh. He would perform the most important rituals, was seen as the prime mediator between men and gods, and managed the business of the temple. Consequently, high priests were seen as figures of both political and religious authority…Priests play a vital role by honouring and caring for the gods daily.

What Types of Priest Were There?

The priests who had medical training were known as the swnw (general practitioner) and sau (magical practitioner),trained in both the ways of magic and medicine. A priest paid by a family to perform the daily offerings at the tomb of a deceased relative was known as a Ka-priest (or ka-servant). Sem priests were tasked to preside over mortuary rituals and conducted funeral services. They were the embalmers who performed the mummification of a corpse and recited magic incantations while wrapping the deceased. They were held in high esteem for their service and spells, which would guarantee eternal life to the dead.

Reference: Radu, C. (2024). How Did a Priest’s Day at the Temple of Ra Look? [online] TheCollector. Available at: https://www.thecollector.com/priest-day-temple-of-ra/.

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Context Statement: This excerpt discusses the roles of Priests in Ancient Egypt.

…their sole responsibility was to care for the god in the temple. Men and women could be clergy, performed the same functions, and received the same pay. Women were more often priestesses of female deities while men served males…

High priests were chosen by the king, who was considered the high priest of Egypt, the mediator between the people and their gods, and so this position had political as well as religious authority…

Throughout Egypt's history, the priesthood would serve a vital role in maintaining religious belief and tradition while, at the same time, consistently challenge the authority of the king by amassing wealth and power which at times rivalled that of the crown.

Reference: Mark, J.J. (2017). Clergy, Priests & Priestesses in Ancient Egypt. [online] World History Encyclopedia. Available at: https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1026/clergy-priests--priestesses-in-ancient-egypt/.

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Context Statement: Tomb painting from the 14th century BC depicting two priests, one holding a papyrus roll and the other a vase for libations (liquid offerings).

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Context Statement: A relief with traces of original paint. Amenhotep, his wife Rennut, and a sem-priest performing a purification ritual before an offering table, Limestone, about 1280 BCE, Dynasty 19.

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Context Statement: This excerpt discusses the roles of Priests in Ancient Egypt.

Priests played an important role in ancient Egypt. The priesthood was responsible for ensuring the earth and heavens remained as the gods created them. Priests accomplished this through a series of rituals they performed each day in the temple. Members of the priesthood performed these ceremonies in the name of the King.

Many people served as part-time priests in their local temples and were rewarded for their service with a share of the food and drink offered to the gods. The king may have been involved in the naming of some high-ranking priests, especially to politically powerful positions. Many priestly positions were passed down from father to son…

The most powerful priests in a temple complex were attached to the cult of the god. These priests served the deity’s physical needs, like food and dress. They often held powerful non-religious positions as well.

In large temples, a hierarchy sometimes developed among the priests. Many of the upper level priests came up through the ranks, but sometimes they were appointed by the king as a means of keeping a check on priestly political power. For instance, during the Third Intermediate Period, the high priest of Amun in Thebes was often one of the king’s sons.

Other priests had technical roles in temple, such as caring for clothing on the gods’ statues and other cult objects. Some were responsible for reading the ritual texts aloud on a daily basis. They were masters of hieroglyphs and other forms of Egyptian writing. They worked in the temple library and cared for books on medicine herbs, magic, and theology.

Reference: Albany Institute of History and Art (n.d.). Priests in Ancient Egypt. [online] Available at: https://www.albanyinstitute.org/ [Accessed 17 May 2025].

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Context Statement: This textbook excerpt discusses the duties of Priests in Ancient Egypt.

Reference: TCI Advisory Board (2016). History Alive! the Ancient World. Teachers; Curriculum Institute.

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Context Statement: Hilary Wilson is a British Egyptologist.

Egyptian scribes regularly appear in tomb depictions of everyday activities; recording the biennial cattle census, measuring the fields for taxation purposes, checking deliveries of harvested grain, weighing precious metals. The ancient Egyptians placed huge significance on the written word. They believed that committing speech to writing made the words real and true, a belief shared by all Egyptians, literate or not. Those unable to read themselves employed scribes to draw up contracts, letters, inventories and wills. Scribes were required to make agreements and intentions permanent and binding. When the scribe read back his work, his client trusted him to honestly recite the words he had written, trusting he would not abuse his calling. Unsurprisingly, every father hoped to see his son become a scribe: they were highly respected members of society.

Reference: Wilson, H. (2019). Scribe Like an Ancient Egyptian | History Today. [online] www.historytoday.com. Available at: https://www.historytoday.com/miscellanies/scribe-ancient-egyptian.

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Context Statement: Sonja Anderson is a writer and reporter based in Chicago. Papyrus is a material similar to thick paper that was used in ancient times as a writing surface.

In ancient Egypt, scribes held one of the most desired professions. These literate men—rare in a society with low literacy—spent their lives putting pen to papyrus.

Reference: Anderson, S. (2024). Ancient Egyptian Scribes Were Worked to the Bone. [online] Smithsonian Magazine. Available at: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ancient-egyptian-scribes-were-worked-to-the-bone-180984628/.

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Context Statement: The Australian Museum is the oldest natural history museum in Australia and the fifth oldest natural history museum in the world, with an international reputation in the fields of natural history and anthropology.

Scribes, along with the foremen, were captains over workers in a village and were the liaison between the community and the higher authorities. Their duties included recording the activities of the village, overseeing the use of material from the royal storehouses, receiving and distributing wages, recommending candidates for vacancies in the workforce, as well as being chief magistrates in the local court and chief witnesses for any oaths.

Reference: The Australian Museum (2023). The Scribe and Hieroglyphs. [online] The Australian Museum. Available at: https://australian.museum/learn/cultures/international-collection/ancient-egyptian/the-scribe-and-heiroglyphs/.

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Context Statement: Dr. Sutthi Suntharanurak is the Director of International Affairs, Office of State Audit Office of the Kingdom of Thailand.

Scribes in ancient Egypt were much more than mere recorders of numbers and transactions. They were the backbone of administrative processes, ensuring the accurate maintenance of financial records, the smooth operation of governmental functions, and the prevention of corruption. Their expertise in writing and knowledge of hieroglyphics made them indispensable in a society that valued precision and accountability…One of the primary responsibilities of scribes was meticulous record-keeping. This included documenting transactions, inventories, and tax collections.

Reference: Suntharanurak, S. (2024). Auditing in Ancient Egypt and the Role of Scribes. [online] Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/@sutthisun/auditing-in-ancient-egypt-and-the-role-of-scribes-037620d2830a.

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Context Statement: This excerpt discusses the role of scribes in Ancient Egypt.

Just 1 percent of the population was literate when the nation’s pyramids were being built, researchers say. Scribes in ancient Egypt were privileged members of society who often performed a range of administrative roles and secretarial tasks, such as keeping official records, managing households and recording taxes. Art and writing from the time suggest that scribes often sat cross-legged or in a kneeling position for extended periods while they wrote with thin, brushlike rush pens (and later reed pens), recording important notes on sheets of papyrus, pottery notepads called ostraca or wooden boards…

Although this work was not considered physically demanding—and was likely a sought-after job at the time…

Reference: Graham-Shaw, K. (2024). Ancient Egyptian Scribes Suffered Back Pain, Too. [online] Scientific American. Available at: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ancient-egyptian-scribes-suffered-back-pain-too/.

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Context Statement: A fragment of a wall relief showing scribes intent on writing, probably under dictation, holding their tablets in their left hand and their pens in their right. The relief was part of a more elaborate composition from the memphite tomb of Horemheb at Saqqara. New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty, ca. 1336-1292 BC.

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Context Statement: A primary source tomb wall-painting of scribes: a fragmentary tomb-painting on plaster. The painting comes from the walls of an unknown Theban tomb, similar in style to, though not identical with, the mid-18th Dynasty tomb of Nebamen.

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Context Statement: Scribes record the harvest, Tomb of Menna, 18th Dynasty. The Tomb of Menna is a well-preserved ancient Egyptian tomb located on the west bank of the Nile in Luxor, Egypt.

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Context Statement: Relief of skilled artisans who lived and worked in a workers village in the Valley of the Kings.

Reference: Nweke, B. (2021, May 6). The First-Ever Labour Strike in History. Lessons from History. https://medium.com/lessons-from-history/the-first-ever-labour-strike-in-history-2a87df5bb7dc

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Context Statement: This excerpt discusses the roles of Ancient Egyptian Artisans.

Ancient Egyptian artists talents were highly regarded, as evidenced by the images on the walls of many tombs depicting artists and craftsmen sculpting and polishing statues, producing intricate jewellery, and carving wooden furniture, among other artistic pursuits. The artworks they produced served a range of functions—given as gifts to their gods as acts of worship, placed in tombs to aid the dead in the afterlife, and used in daily life.

Draftsmen, sculptors, and painters usually worked in teams attached to the royal court or one of Egypt’s many temples. They sometimes lived in distinct workmen’s villages, such as Deir el-Medina in modern Luxor.

Reference: The Art Institute of Chicago (n.d.). Ancient Egyptian. [online] The Art Institute of Chicago. Available at: https://www.artic.edu/artists/37541/ancient-egyptian?page=36 [Accessed 17 May 2025].

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Context Statement: Some of the complaints from artisan workers in the time of Ramses III, recorded on papyrus by the scribe Amennakht.

‘We are impoverished*. All the supplies for us that are from the treasury, the granary, and the storehouse have been allowed to be exhausted… One and a half hundredweight of grain has been taken away from us… [i.e. is missing from the ration**]… we are dying, we do not live at all.’

…’This day… twenty days have elapsed in the month and rations have not been given to us.’

…’We are hungry,… eighteen days have passed this month’ and they had still not received their proper rations.

‘I will go to Thebes and to the High Priest of Amun and there accuse the Mayor of Thebes of not giving us the bread of the divine offerings from the temple of Ramesses II. He has committed a great crime!’

very poor
*an amount of something (e.g. food) allowed to each person during a time of shortage

Reference: McCorquodale, K. (2010). Ancient and Medieval History: Egypt. Heinemann, p. 34.

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Context Statement: A carpenter squatting at work on scaffolding and working on a wooden object with his adze. New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, ca. 1550-1292 BC. From Deir el-Medina, West Thebes.

Reference: Egypt Museum (2022). Relief of a carpenter at work on a scaffolding - Egypt Museum. [online] Egypt Museum. Available at: https://egypt-museum.com/carpenter-at-work/ [Accessed 17 May 2025].

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Context Statement: This excerpt discusses the roles of Ancient Egyptian Artisans. The author, Nicole B. Hansen received her PhD and MA in Egyptology from the University of Chicago and her BA in Egyptology from UC Berkeley.

Artists in ancient Egypt were not celebrated in the way they are today. Artists would work in assembly-line situations, just like the tomb builders, and most of the artwork that decorated the Valley of Kings was attributed to the person who commissioned the work, not the artist.

Most artists were high-ranking workers or artists’ sons and they collaborated with sculptors to complete specific designs.

Reference: Hansen, N. (2019). How Ancient Egyptians Lived and Worked in the Valley of Kings. [online] TheCollector. Available at: https://www.thecollector.com/how-ancient-egyptians-lived-and-worked-in-the-valley-of-kings/.

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Context Statement: This excerpt discusses the role and importance of Ancient Egyptian Artisans.

Artisans in ancient Egypt were highly respected and held a vital place in society. Unlike many contemporary societies where craftsmen might be viewed as lower-class laborers, Egyptian artisans enjoyed a degree of social status. Their work was often commissioned by the elite, including pharaohs and nobles, for whom they created intricate goods intended for both daily use and burial with the deceased. This respect was reflected in the meticulous care artisans took in their work, as their creations were not just functional items but also served religious and ceremonial purposes. For instance, the construction of elaborate burial goods—such as canopic jars, decorated chests, and exquisite jewelry—demonstrated the artisans' skill and the value placed on their craftsmanship in ensuring a successful afterlife for the elite.

Reference: Jenniejohnson.com. (2025). Ancient Egyptian Artisans and Their Economic Influence. [online] Available at: https://jenniejohnson.com/bestjobs/the-art-of-craftsmanship-ancient-egyptian [Accessed 17 May 2025].

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Context Statement: A copy of a Scene of Metal Workers from the Tomb of Rekhmire, Dynasty 18, New Kingdom, ca. 1504–1425 B.C.

Reference: The Metropolitan Museum of Art. (2024). Nina de Garis Davies | Scene of Metal Workers, Tomb of Rekhmire | New Kingdom | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [online] Available at: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/544645 [Accessed 17 May 2025].

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Context Statement: Egyptian wall reliefs depicting craftsmen. The tomb-chapel of Rekhmire TT100

Reference: The tomb-chapel of Rekhmire TT100. (n.d.). Available at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/manna4u/31854363713 [Accessed 17 May 2025].

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Context Statement: This textbook excerpt discusses Artisans in Ancient Egypt.

Reference: TCI Advisory Board (2016). History Alive! the Ancient World. Teachers; Curriculum Institute.