Lionel Casson offers a comprehensive introduction to the people of
ancient Egypt. He describes the structure of Egyptian society--the
levels from peasant to pharaoh, the nature of the family, and the role
of women. He reviews the professions, from the lowliest scribes to the
architects and engineers who built the pyramids, and examines the work
of sculptors, painters, cabinetmakers, jewelers, and smiths whose hands
turned out the sculptures, murals, and objects of beauty that are so
prized today. He deals with that key factor in Egyptian life, religion:
the nature of the gods; the powerful role played by belief in the
afterlife; and the career of one pharaoh, Akhenaten, who attempted to
put heretical views into practice.
Originally published in 1975 as The Horizon Book of Daily Life in
Ancient Egypt, this revised edition includes a new chapter as well as
full documentation of the sources.