1,720,997 research outputs found
H. Franzmeier – Ein Brunnen in der Ramses-Stadt. Zur Typologie und Funktion von Brunnen und Zisternen im pharaonischen Ägypten. (Forschungen in der Ramses-Stadt, 7). Gerstenberg Verlag, Hildesheim, 2010
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How the Unseen of Egyptian Society Are Made Visible in Private Tomb Imagery
No full textInternational audienceIt is generally acknowledged that ancient Egyptian society was hierarchical. Sources suggest that society may have been organised around two main social classes: the upper and the lower classes, each being structured by different categories of people who presumably also followed a certain internal hierarchisation. The lower social class was composed of a wide range of disparate categories of poor people who, until recently, have not been the subject of much extensive research. It has thus often been argued that the poor cannot be studied due to a lack of records, rendering them virtually invisible. However, is this truly the case? Are the poor genuinely invisible, or is it rather that researchers do not really want to see them?To address the visibility of the poor, this paper will focus specifically on the private tomb imagery of the Old and Middle Kingdoms. The decorative programme of these tombs was subject to strict conventions and included scenes that glorified the tomb owner and presented an idealised image of the world order. These scenes, although commissioned by and primarily depicting the elites (while featuring their narratives), nevertheless made the unseen members of Egyptian society visible. It is well known that the way in which the representations of the lower social classes are different from those of the owner of the tomb and his immediate circle. However, the criteria used to distinguish the poor remain somewhat vague, and there has been no systematic study of this subject. Based on a few examples, this paper will consequently bring together the various criteria that enable the poor to be distinguished. Beyond the fact that such depictions served to reinforce the social hierarchy, the examination of these figures helps us to better define how the elites perceived the poor and behaved toward them
Analysis of a Form of Poverty in Ancient Egypt: A Lexicographical and Sociological Study of šwȝw
No full textInternational audienceThis article presents a comprehensive examination of the term šwȝw, traditionally translated as “poor man” within ancient Egyptian texts. Combining both linguistic and sociological approaches, it traces the usage of šwȝw and its related verb forms from the Old Kingdom to the Graeco-Roman period. The study aims to determine whether šwȝw and similar terms reflect distinct nuances of poverty and social status. The research indicates that šwȝw signifies more than just economic deprivation; it denotes a sudden shift in social standing caused by external circumstances, setting it apart from other terms that convey different aspects of inferiority and dependency. Furthermore, the article explores societal responses to šwȝw, which reveal broader cultural attitudes, including both the provision of assistance and the marginalisation of this group. It concludes that a nuanced understanding of šwȝw and its variations offers valuable insights into the social hierarchy and conceptualisations of poverty in ancient Egypt, demonstrating it to be a complex and multi-dimensional issue
Issues and Challenges of a Study on Poverty in Ancient Egypt. Introduction and Presentation of the First Results.
No full textInternational audiencePoverty is a subject that remains largely unexplored and the poor have so far occupied only a limited place in the social history of ancient Egypt. Egyptological literature bases a large part of its theories on the so-called elites of Egyptian society, particularly because of the abundance and quality of vestiges they left behind. Yet elites – those social categories that hold economic, politico-religious, cultural power or have close ties to it – represent only a small percentage of the population. What about those people who do not belong to the elites, those ordinary people (peasants, manual workers, etc.) who constitute a large part of the population and who may be considered poor because of their precarious social status, professional skills, material resources, but also their lack of power or influence? How can we write a social and economic history of ancient Egypt if we do not take into consideration those who constitute the majority of society?This subject, which is still largely unexplored in Egyptology – especially compared to the numerous studies on elites – is currently the focus of a new research program carried out at the Institute of Egyptology, at the University of Vienna. This paper will therefore provide a short overview of the study of poverty in ancient societies, and specifically, in Ancient Egypt. It will then focus on the presentation of the first results and, in particular, on what the texts tell us
How the Unseen of Egyptian Society Are Made Visible in Private Tomb Imagery
No full textInternational audienceIt is generally acknowledged that ancient Egyptian society was hierarchical. Sources suggest that society may have been organised around two main social classes: the upper and the lower classes, each being structured by different categories of people who presumably also followed a certain internal hierarchisation. The lower social class was composed of a wide range of disparate categories of poor people who, until recently, have not been the subject of much extensive research. It has thus often been argued that the poor cannot be studied due to a lack of records, rendering them virtually invisible. However, is this truly the case? Are the poor genuinely invisible, or is it rather that researchers do not really want to see them?To address the visibility of the poor, this paper will focus specifically on the private tomb imagery of the Old and Middle Kingdoms. The decorative programme of these tombs was subject to strict conventions and included scenes that glorified the tomb owner and presented an idealised image of the world order. These scenes, although commissioned by and primarily depicting the elites (while featuring their narratives), nevertheless made the unseen members of Egyptian society visible. It is well known that the way in which the representations of the lower social classes are different from those of the owner of the tomb and his immediate circle. However, the criteria used to distinguish the poor remain somewhat vague, and there has been no systematic study of this subject. Based on a few examples, this paper will consequently bring together the various criteria that enable the poor to be distinguished. Beyond the fact that such depictions served to reinforce the social hierarchy, the examination of these figures helps us to better define how the elites perceived the poor and behaved toward them
Le Grand Puits de Deir al-Medîna et la question de l’eau : nouvelles perspectives
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Overview of six years (2016-2022) of archaeological work in the necropolis of el-Sheikh Fadl.
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Thinking and defining poverty in ancient Egypt
No full textAncient History from Below. "The Subaltern and the Popular in Antiquity" Research Group Bloghttps://en.subalternosblog.com/post/thinking-and-defining-poverty-in-ancient-egyp
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