Ancient World: History of Dress
Evidence about dress becomes plentiful only after humans began to live together in greater numbers in discrete localities with well-defined social organizations, with refinements in art and culture, and with a written language. This happened first in the ancient world in Mesopotamia (home of the Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians) and in Egypt. Later other parts […]
Traders And Merchants
Ancient Egypt enjoyed well-trodden trade links with surrounding cultures in Mesopotamia, Africa and the Mediterranean. Consequently, trade and its merchants was a significant employer in ancient Egypt. Some traders ventured on caravan expeditions to buy and sell fine wares. Other merchants acted as distributors and retailers for imported goods, establishing shops to sell their goods. […]
Agriculture
Farming was the foundation of the ancient Egyptian economy. It was the most common occupation and was often carried down from father to son. Many farmed their local noble’s land, while more affluent farmers worked their own land that was passed down through the generations. Typically, farming their land occupied the whole family. After the […]
Ancient Egyptian Labourers And Farmers
Traditionally, the Egyptian economy was based on a barter system right up until the Persian invasion of 525 BCE. Based predominantly on agriculture and herding, the ancient Egyptians employed a monetary unit known as a deben. A deben was the ancient Egyptian equivalent of the dollar. Buyers and sellers based their negotiations on the deben […]
Contemporary Fashion from the Land of Pharaohs
Egypt is a country of kingship and divinity. Ancient Egyptians loved fashionable clothes and other accessories. Clothing style was simple and elegant. They took a lot of care in grooming their appearance, and their garments were designed, crafted, and worn with great thought and care. Their clothing style gave them a unique cultural look in history. Egyptians […]
Cultural & Theological Background of Mummification in Egypt
Many myths and falsehoods concerning the Egyptian practice of mummification have been promoted to the general public in movies, television shows, and documentaries. While these offerings are entertaining and fascinating to watch, the purposes and details regarding the ancient preparation of the dead were quite complex, technically and culturally. Mummification was not merely done to protect the […]
Neith
Neith (aka Net, Neit or Nit) and is one of the oldest deities of ancient Egypt who was worshipped early in the Pre-Dynastic Period (c. 6000 – 3150 BCE) and whose veneration continued through the Ptolemaic Dynasty (323 – 30 BCE), the last to rule Egypt before the coming of Rome. She was a war goddess, goddess of creation, mother goddess who invented […]
Festivals in Ancient Egypt
The gods of the ancient Egyptians were always apparent to the people through natural events. The sunrise was Ra emerging from the underworld in his great ship, for example, and the moon was the god Khonsu traveling across the night sky. When a woman became pregnant, it was through the fertility encouraged by Bes or Tawaret, and […]
Tattoos as Symbolic Protection
These tattoos are thought to have been worn by a priestess to honor Hathor who, among her many duties, was also goddess of fertility. They were worn by other women as symbolic protection of a child in the womb and during child birth (although these are not mutually exclusive since priestesses could marry and have […]
Tattoos in Ancient Egypt
Tattoos are an ancient form of art appearing in various cultures throughout history. One of the earliest (and possibly the oldest) pattern of tattoos in the world was discovered on the frozen remains of the man known as Otzi the Iceman who was buried in a glacier on the Austrian-Italian border c. 3250 BCE and […]
