Amazing Facts You Didn't Know About Ancient Egypt!
Did you know that the Egyptians basically worshiped cats?!
Learn more about why they love cats and other amazing facts you didn't know about ancient Egypt!


Here are the most amazing facts you probably didn’t know about ancient Egypt!
9 – Equality has been around, I told you!
Seems like the society of ancient Egypt was well ahead of its time on this issue because men and women were equal under the law! That meant women were free to live without a legal male guardian and could make their own decisions.
There were, however, certain limits in occupations. For example, a woman wouldn’t be allowed to hold a position in the army nor would a man be expected to be in charge of a household. However, everything else was equal. For example, women could marry whomever they wanted and later on divorce if things didn’t work out. Women could also buy and manage their own property, meaning a woman could inherit things down the female line in her family. Another fun fact was that neither six was favored when it came to childbearing, as both sixes were seen as equal.
The Ancient Egyptian gods and goddess are another proof of how far the equality went, as each six was determined to be as important as the other, and that each six had a unique set of skills. Hey, that makes total sense to me, I KNEW men and women are different! Also, you might be surprised to learn that both sixes wore make-up, something that was more of a social norm rather than gender right.
8 – Who really built the pyramids?
The pyramids are as grand and mesmerizing as they can be. Majestic establishments of up to 455 feet built in order to offer shelter for the part of the dad king’s soul that stayed behind. Let’s just keep in mind the different technology available at the time, so it’s just utterly amazing how these structures were built. Having structures as grand as pyramids proves just how advanced of a civilization existed on earth back in those times.
If you try and think about the construction process, you probably get instant flashes of that Cleopatra movie where solves are laboring their lives away while a supervisor slashes his whip on their backs. As it turns out, that is an extremely common misconception, and the one responsible for conjuring the myth is the Greek historian Herodotus, all the way back in the fifth century BC. While it is true that there were slaves in ancient Egyptian society, they were mostly used for domestic labors or for field work, tasks fairly easier compared to the tiring construction of the pyramids.
Actual construction workers who were rather skilled were used for the pyramids – it was considered a huge honor to work on the pyramids and workers took pride in their work. Most of them were paid workers who took two or three-month shifts at the construction site and used to sleep and eat near the building area. In fact, they were entitled to so many rights, that they actually could do labor strikes if they didn’t get paid on time. One method of payment included beer, meaning that a day of work was worth almost a gallon and a half of beer! Hey, I think I know a few people nowadays who’d still sign up for this agreement!
7 – Hair?! Get outta here!!
In many paintings and hieroglyphs dating back from Ancient Egypt, Egyptians are depicted with thick black shoulder-length hair, very often garnished with some golden details. However, don’t get it twisted, because it turns out that they actually despised hair!
In fact, they hated hair so much that they removed every single hair on their bodies except for their eyebrows. Fun fact, they even removed their eyebrows in times of great grief, such as the occasion of a beloved pet cat dying! Ancient Egyptians, especially those in the upper layers, shaved off their heads and wore wigs instead. A pharaoh didn’t allow for anyone to see him without his what are called ‘nemes’ on, a headpiece that covered his hair. Some data suggest that Egyptians shaved off their hair and opted for wigs instead in order to protect their head from the blazing sun. Wigs acted as hats and were made either from natural human or horse hair – how did a wig made from other’s people hair make them feel less hot rather than their own hair is still a mystery to me, so I’m not quite sure I’m buying this one.

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