We often think of Ancient Egypt as a mysterious and enigmatic society. And this is largely due to the lack of knowledge centuries ago of its hieroglyphic writing, whose beauty aroused feelings of admiration and fear in equal parts. However, much progress has been made in the knowledge about the Ancient Egyptian societyThis has helped us to discover its surprising modernity. In these lines we will tell you about some habits that already existed thousands of years ago in Nilotic territory and that can also be seen in today’s world.
Strikes
In the Ancient Egyptian societyThe working conditions and the organization of work were, logically, very different from those of today. But what is known is that, if the agreed conditions were not met, workers could refuse to work as a method of pressure. In other words, a full-fledged strike, which could take the form of a protest or sit-in in some cases. This is deduced from papyri from Deir el Medina, the village of the artisans who worked in the tombs of the Valley of the Kings, in ancient Thebes (now Luxor).
Cosmetics
In the Ancient Egyptian society it was customary to wear make-up. Not only for aesthetic reasons, but also for medicinal, therapeutic and, of course, religious reasons, with a view to the life in the hereafter. The curious thing is that it was also used by men and even children, as attested by paintings and sculptures preserved in museums, tombs, temples and other spaces. The most commonly used cosmetic was black kohl, mainly to define the eye in a very characteristic way. But many other pigments and products were also used, which led to the emergence of numerous palettes and articles for the treatment and application of these cosmetics.
Beer
No, beer is not European or medieval. As much as it is said (and consumed) in countries of the Old Continent, in reality it was already being produced and drunk much earlier in other territories. For example, in Egypt. It is known to have been a very popular drink in the Ancient Egyptian societyIt was even used for medicinal purposes and as a bargaining chip. Also in a playful sense, in the so-called ‘beer houses’, a sort of old-fashioned tavern. And the variety of beers was surprisingly large: both sweet and salty, of different thicknesses reaching even cream, flavored with herbs and fruits, etc.
Satires ‘up-tempered’.
In some museums around the world, such as the Egyptian Museum in Turin, papyri are preserved in which you can see, in a very explicit way, drawings with satirical and erotic overtones. In them, we can guess certain sexual practices in the Ancient Egyptian societyalthough presented in a caricatured manner. Their true meaning is unknown, but they were probably conceived as moralizing documents or as mere methods of amusement for high society and courtiers.
