CHAPTER IX.
Introductory.
he social life of ancient peoples has for many greater interest than their political development. Before the days of Greece self-government was unknown, and the king embodied in himself the government. Upon his personal character, his foresight and statesmanship, the weal of the country depended. For this reason, as we trace the political fortunes of one nation and another in antiquity, we find that the story consists largely of the doings of the monarch. When kings were strong and ambitious, wide activities characterized their reigns; when they were weak, unprincipled and selfish, their periods were less brilliant. In any case, one feels how powerless were the masses—how utterly at the will of the sovereign. To be sure, even in antiquity, it ill behooved a ruler to disregard his subjects altogether, but conditions had to be extreme before they would assert themselves against him.
Apart from a nation's political life, however, there is always a greater life—the life of the people, regardless of their political relations. One never exists without the other, and one is influenced by the other; but the social body includes each and every one, whether of low or high estate, while the political body may include but a portion of a nation's people. Again, in spite of bad government, the selfishness of kings, even in spite of invasions of the enemy, the daily life of the great majority of early people varied but little. They procured food and clothing, cared for their children, worked at their various callings, as civilized beings have done in all ages. Certain peculiar customs are to be found among each nation, and it is these very peculiarities, probably, that relieves what might otherwise become a monotonous repetition.
We cannot too often recall that the recorded history of ancient Egypt extended over three thousand years. The manner of life, dress, customs, etc., changed considerably in that long period, and just as we divide the social life of England into various epochs—such as social conditions under Saxon kings, during Norman rule, in Elizabethan years, etc.—so, for any protracted investigation of social Egypt, we would find it necessary to make several divisions of the subject.
The greatest source of knowledge for Egyptian social life is of course the tombs. From their contents and from the pictures that adorn their walls much has been ascertained. To be sure, many details are yet lacking, and Egyptologists seek still for answers to unanswered queries. Many recovered remains have not yet been classified, and rolls of papyri lie still untranslated, so undoubtedly the future will make many contributions to what has already been worked out. Nevertheless, even now many aspects of the life of the old Nile-dwellers have been reconstructed with considerable degree of certainty. These recent conclusions have proven the ancient Egyptian to have been quite a different creature from what he was long supposed. Until late years it was believed that he was a solemn, serious individual, overwhelmed with an ever-present thought of death, for which many of his acts in life prepared him. This idea was mistaken. The religion of the ancient Egyptian led him into many curious ways, beyond a doubt, but he was withal a contented person who found some humor in life. The happenings of his earthly career were as potent to him as ours are to us. The study of history should do one thing for us at least: it should teach us to find strong similarities between the people we see around us today and those of whom we read and study in antiquity. The normal human being has in all ages been governed by certain controlling interests, passions and desires, has pulsed with the vigor of life and its manifold interests—as we do now and as the Egyptian did, five thousand years ago.
Houses.
In strong contrast with the solid, substantial tombs and temples were the private dwellings. No need was felt to make these enduring. Rather, they were constructed in such a way as to allow free circulation of air and to preserve coolness. The walls were thin, being made of stucco, mud brick, or wood. The outside of the house was decorated in gay colors, and was hung with brightly tinted carpets or mattings. Similar coverings adorned the inner walls.
Many pictures of ancient Egyptian houses have been found in tomb pictures. It is apparent that the well-to-do citizen desired seclusion for his home. An outer wall usually surrounded the house and out buildings. The general plan of houses for people of comfortable means was this: a gateway, often of cedar, gave entrance into a court. The gate was kept locked, save when the keeper opened it to allow visitors to enter or depart. Crossing the court—of varying size—one entered a vestibule, guarded by a porter. This vestibule led directly to the dining hall, the largest and most important room in the house. Sleeping apartments for the family were reached through a second vestibule and the kitchen, store-rooms, and servants' apartments, though joined on one side, were separated from the main portion of the house by an inner court. Often the houses were two stories in height. Generally a stairway led to the roof, which was used for many purposes when the heat of the sun was passed.
The wealthy required many buildings. One would be set aside for the women; another contained reception halls for distinguished guests; a third, store-rooms and supplies; and besides these there might be several stables and separate quarters for slaves and servants. Service was cheap and slaves plentiful, so people of even moderate means had numerous assistants.
The elaborate estate of the wealthy was exceeded by the magnificence of the pharaoh, who frequently constructed his own city, as it was called. Here the king might have plenty of land and surround himself with as many buildings as he chose, enclosing the whole by a wall. In bitter contrast to this royal splendor was the squalor of the poor, whose shelter was a tiny hut built of sun-dried mud.
For those whose incomes permitted, the garden was the favorite spot. This we would naturally expect in a country where out of door life is interrupted only in the middle of the day by the intense heat. In the garden, trees, shrubs, and many kinds of flowers were planted. Its size depended upon the prosperity of the owner. Sometimes the court, however tiny, provided all the garden plot he possessed; sometimes extensive grounds included flower-gardens, date orchards, and sycamore groves, while summer houses and artificial ponds were scattered over wide areas. Small wonder was it that the "pious Egyptian hoped his soul, as its supreme felicity, would return to sit under the trees he had planted, by the side of the ponds he had dug, there to enjoy the refreshing breeze from the north."
The Egyptians were passionately fond of flowers. They grew them in their gardens, filled their houses with the blossoms, used them lavishly at their feasts and carved them on their tombs and in their temples. They sought ever to increase their varieties, originally few, and we have seen that the kings often prized new specimens found in other lands above their tribute.
"Everywhere on the monuments we meet with flowers; bouquets of flowers are presented to the gods; the coffins are covered with wreaths of flowers; flowers form the decoration of the houses, and all the capitals of the pillars are painted in imitation of their colored petals. The Egyptian also loved shady trees. He not only prayed that the 'Nile should bestow every flowering plant in their season' upon his departed soul, but also that his soul might sit 'on the boughs of the trees that he had planted, and enjoy the cool air in the shade of his sycamore.' The arable fields, the shadeless woods of palms, the bare mud soil, scarcely provided the scenery which he most admired; he therefore tried to supply the want by landscape gardening. In the oldest periods there were parks and gardens; and the gentleman of ancient Egypt talked with pride of his shady trees, his sweet-smelling plants, and his cool tanks. All the sentiments with which we regard the woods and meadows of nature, the Egyptian felt towards his well kept garden; to him it was the dwelling place of love, and his trees were the confidants of lovers.
"On the 'festival day of the garden,' that is on the day when the garden was in full bloom, the wild fig-tree calls to the maiden to come into the shade of the fig leaves as a trysting place:
"The little Sycamore,
Which she planted with her hand
She begins to speak,
And her (words are as) drops of honey.
She is charming, her bower is green,
Greener than the (papyrus).
She is laden with fruit,
Redder than the ruby,
The color of her leaves is as glass,
Her stem is as the color of the opal....
It is cool in her shadow.
She sends her letter by a little maiden,
The daughter of her chief gardener
She makes her haste to her beloved:
Come and linger in the (garden) ...
The servants who belong to thee
Come with the dinner things;
They are bringing beer of every (kind),
With all manner of bread,
Flowers of yesterday and of today,
And all kinds of refreshing fruit.
Come, spend this festival day
And tomorrow and the day after tomorrow
Sitting in my shadow.
Thy companion sits at thy right hand,
Thou dost make him drink,
And then thou dost follow what he says....
I am of a silent nature
And I do not tell what I see
I do not chatter."[1]
Having attractive grounds as a setting, the houses of the wealthy Egyptians were also attractive indoors. The dining room was the important room of the house. Guests generally sat on stools when dining. When ladies gathered for a banquet, they frequently sat on costly rugs spread upon the floor. Servants or slaves served those assembled from a large table loaded with tempting viands.
The Egyptian seems no longer far away and mummy-like when we learn that he was fond of good things to eat. Roast goose was a favorite dish; bread and beer were constantly in demand, quite as they are in Germany today. In naming over the dishes he hoped to supply his departed, in a tomb we may read: five kinds of birds, sixteen kinds of bread and cake, six varieties of wine, and eleven different fruits. The bread, molded into fancy shapes, was made of barley and wheat. Grapes were generally grown, and fig trees too. Tame monkeys were trained to go into the high branches of the fig trees and throw down the fruit.
Many specimens of ancient household furniture have been found in Egyptian tombs, such as chairs, couches, tables and bedsteads. In the sleeping apartments, high couches were reached by steps. Wooden headrests took the place of pillows. These were used in order that the wigs and elaborate head dresses might not be disturbed while the wearers slept.
The student who would make an exhaustive study of the Egyptian house and its contents must go to the museums where discovered articles have been preserved, or at least to the detailed descriptions of these given by Maspero and other Egyptologists. We could not well leave a consideration of the subject however, without giving brief attention to the dwellings of the poor, who in every age and country have made up a large part of the population.
The fellah of today lives much as did the peasant of antiquity. His dwelling was a hut built of mud and roofed with palm leaves. While the poorest had but one room, those who were more industrious, perhaps, might have two or three. Once or twice in a century, rain would fall. Then these huts would dissolve and flow away. When the storm ceased, all the family would set to work, level off the spot and construct a new dwelling from sun-dried mud, which after being exposed to the heat of a few days, would be as good as ever. This leveling of huts, whether caused by storms, or because it was easier to build a new house than cleanse the old one, has elevated the land in many parts of Egypt. Frequently it is the case that peasants have dwelt so long on the sites of buried cities, that the explorer who today would reach the original settlement must tunnel down through many layers of sun-dried mud, once the dwellings of the poor.
Family Life.
It is frequently said that the test of a nation's civilization is the position accorded to woman. Applying this test to Egypt, her civilization would rank well with nations of modern times as well as with those contemporaneous with her. From the earliest times of which we have record, Egyptian women were the companions and trusted counsellors of their husbands. During the New Empire it was the boast of one of the Ramessides that any woman might go alone and unveiled as far in any direction as she wished, confident that she would not be accosted nor disturbed.
Two customs prevailed in ancient Egypt that are contrary to the moral standards of our day: one was the practice of a brother marrying his sister; the second, a husband having more than one wife. Early peoples did not regard these practices in the light of modern opinion. The Hebrews, for example, frequently took two or more wives, and the same habit obtained among the Babylonians and Assyrians. Among pastoral tribes of the present day this custom survives. In all cases, one woman was regarded as the legitimate wife, and her children were heirs to their father's estate, while children by his other wives might or might not be recognized by the father as his heirs, according to his pleasure. As a rule, only the well-to-do Egyptian could afford the luxury of two wives, so that polygamy was not common among the lower classes. There seems to have been little friction in the Egyptian household between the several wives. Stories have come down to us of women who cared enough for other wives of their husbands to name children for them. Certain marks of honor were the right of the first wife and were conceded as a matter of course.
The marriage of those close of kin was quite usual. The word sister in Egypt came to be used interchangeably for wife or sister. In this land it appears to have frequently resulted that a boy and girl, brought up in the same family, having similar ideas and interests, married and lived happily together in their married life.
Multifarious were the duties of a wife of the middle class. She cared for the family, spun and wove, sent the little ones to school and took them a lunch at mid-day. She drew water at the nearest pool, ground corn into meal and made the meal into cakes; she drove the cattle to pasture and collected the fuel. What did not this mother do? It is little wonder that from lack of care and nourishment, large numbers of children died before they became ten years of age. Those who lived were indeed the survival of the fittest, and aside from a disease of the eye—brought on by the glaring sand and burning sun—they were generally healthy and equal to any hardship. Marrying young, women were often grandmothers at thirty. Although they faded early, they did not suffer in their position in the family on that account. Great respect was shown them while they lived, and after their death they were worshipped—for the Egyptian always worshipped his ancestors. Believing that the soul lived on, it might work harm for the surviving relatives and friends unless appeased with marked consideration. This desire to escape possible harm by satisfying the departed appears to have been the strong motive inducing ancient peoples to worship the dead.
Tourists Scaling the Great Pyramid.
The children were left with the mother until almost four years of age. Dolls and other toys found buried in the tombs with little ones show that they, in those far away times, were quite like children who have lived since. When four, they were sent to an elementary school. If at ten the son had evinced any special ability that would justify educating him, he was put into a school maintained by the priests. Here he was trained for a scribe unless his early promise was borne out by rapid progress, in which case he was educated for the priesthood. If by the age of ten he had given no special evidence of ability, he was taught a trade.
The old idea that caste was strongly marked in Egypt is not only misleading but untrue. Class distinctions were closely drawn in Egypt, as they are today, even in America. The average child born in the slums of a city seldom comes to importance. The son of a day laborer rarely marries into the wealthy or so-called "old families." The reason for this is not so much that there is objection in America to the humblest born rising to any height, but that the opportunities for progress to one born into such surroundings are few. It was somewhat similar in Egypt. Chances for rapid advance were by no means as favorable then as now, but nevertheless, there are many cases on record where men attained high official position in spite of great social disadvantages.
The affection of the Egyptians for their children was almost universal. Large families were desired, even by those in moderate circumstances. Indeed it was necessary that families be perpetuated, for thus alone would family tombs be kept up and respect be shown those who had departed. Among all people who worship ancestors, children are especially desired and to be bereft of them is the greatest hardship and affliction.
In spite of all that has been said of the respect paid to women, the happy domestic relations in Egypt and the affection for children, it is doubtful whether or not there was much home life as we today understand the phrase. The importance of the individual is a modern conception. The will of the king was paramount in Egypt and all citizens were first of all subservient to his wishes. Less security, less freedom in pursuing one's own course probably resulted in brief periods of family unity. Surely such must have been the result of early marriages which took children from their parents at a tender age.
Dress.
Suppose for a moment that some unforseen catastrophe should wipe out the inhabitants of England, and future generations attempted to reconstruct their history, from the age of King Arthur and his knights to the peaceful days of Edward the Seventh. After working out an outline of their political development, suppose it should be asked, But how did these people dress? Think of the variety of costumes that have been popular since the Round Table days! Who could describe them all? The task would be disheartening indeed. And yet, far more years sped over Egypt than England has yet known.
Living in a warm country, the Egyptian required simpler raiment than the Englishman. In early times a short, scant skirt was worn by both men and women—the children were generally not clothed at all. This skirt, which formed the foundation of all the later, more elaborate dress, changed in style from one age to another. Sometimes it was scantier than at other times and it varied in length. During the Sixth dynasty, either by means of pressing, or by some device, the front of the skirt was made to assume a stiff, triangular appearance. As pictured on the tombs, it looks like a three-cornered apron. In the Old Empire, the great lords threw a panther skin across their shoulders, when, as Erman expresses it, "they wished to appear in full dress."
In the Middle Empire people of high position wore two skirts, the under one short and of heavy linen; the outer skirt so sheer that the contour of the body was quite visible.
By the Eighteenth dynasty it had become customary to clothe the upper portion of the body. Even now the arms were left free. The king appeared occasionally in a mantle and the nobles also donned mantles for festival days.
Working people always clothed in the simplest fashion. All garments were frequently discarded in the field, as they impeded rapid movement. The supersensitive modesty of our day which cries out against a low bodice or lace hose, even raises objection at undraped marble statues, had no part in the thought of these simple-hearted, pure-minded people; yet they showed a fitting sense of decorum and dignity.
It was the men in Egypt who delighted in finery and showy costumes, while the dress of the women was plainer and remained almost wholly unaltered for centuries together. Their usual garment during the later periods was a close fitting gown reaching from under the arms to the ankles, and mistress and maid were dressed much alike. In the New Empire a cloak was added, but it and the gown beneath were of sheerest linen procurable. As time went on, garments of both men and women were elaborately embroidered.
The ancient Egyptian desired to preserve absolute cleanliness. Scenes characteristic of washing day have been pictured on many a tomb. The chief washer was assisted by others who beat the clothes, wrung them out, bleached and dried them. It was the desire to be clean which led these people to shave their heads and beards. Wigs of curled wool and others of long hair are constantly seen in the old pictures, although it sometimes appears that these covered heads already crowned by a natural growth. While they shaved off the beard as something unclean, the Egyptians still shared in the idea common to oriental peoples that a beard gives added dignity, hence the king and men of rank wore artificial beards on state occasions. Even Queen Hatshepsut assumed one when she wished to appear regal.
Sandals and foot gear were not popular at any time, although men of the higher classes wore them when they walked abroad. Men and women alike donned necklaces and bracelets, while women wore anklets also. Earrings were introduced by foreigners and rings seem to have been confined to seal rings. Walking sticks were carried as badges of honor and each style of stick indicated a degree of social rank.
The Egyptians painted their faces, rouged their lips, blackened their eyes, and oiled their hair and bodies. At a feast a slave would bring a ball soaked in oil for each guest, place it on his head, in order that the oil might gently percolate through the hair of the banqueter during the meal. The dead were provided with many kinds of oil, perfumes, and rouges for use of the double, or ka.
Probably many allowed their hair to grow long, for we find physicians taxed to their utmost to supply concoctions which would produce heavy growths of hair, strengthen it and prevent it from turning grey. All these remedies are found in old papyri:
To prevent the hair turning grey: "The blood of a black calf, cooked in oil—a salve."
Or this: "Two parts of bloods, horn of a black cow, warm it up for a salve."
When the hair fell out: "Take fat of the lion, of the hippopotamus, the crocodile, the cat, the snake, and the ibex."
To strengthen the hair: "Anoint it with the tooth of a donkey crushed in honey."
Or try this: "Boil the hoof of a donkey in oil together with a dog's foot, and some date kernels."
VIEW OF MANSION, FROM THE TOMB OF ANNA, EIGHTEENTH DYNASTY.
[1] Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 193.