/lit/ - Literature

>>15173753
Due to the annual possibility of the Nile overflooding, Egyptian settlements were located on land above the level of the Nile which were largely safe from environmental calamity. The Nile is a meandering river however, and as a natural preservation process the vast majority of settlement remains have been destroyed from erosion. In predynastic times, settlements were based around the desert edge, whilst from the Old Kingdom onwards the necessity of space demanded that towns be built closer to the riverbank.

Towns can be divided between those which are ‘naturally’ grown and royal foundations created by the ruling class, usually for the purpose of establishing a monumental centre and location for the mortuary cult- (Akhetaten, Deir el Medina, “Pyramid towns (devoted to the construction of pyramids” these have survived better, being located towards the desert. This has caused an archaeological bias towards thinking of Egypt in terms of a desert society where death was at the centre. What survives today is only a small fraction of what was built in the pharaonic period. The population of Egypt has been estimated by Butzer to have reached 816,000 by the start of the 1st Dynasty (~3000 BC), 1.6 million towards the end of the Old Kindom, 1.9 million during the Middle kingdom, 3 million around the peak of the New Kingdom and towards 5 million by the time of the Roman conquest.

The economy of these towns was somewhat variable, with certain urban hubs being the centre of specific industries. The Faience industry for example was centred at Lisht during the Middle Kingdom, whilst Amarna and Qar were became the main (discovered) areas for faience and glass production. Specialist towns such as Deir el Medina were dedicated to the production of tombs like those in the Valley of the Kings and were comprised of a highly literate population engaged in both labour tied to the state and private enterprise. Professions were hereditary for the majority of Egyptian history, including the filling of administrative positions. These administrative positions were wide ranging, with translations revealing titles from “Overseer of construction projects”, “Overseer of the treasurey” “King’s seal bearer” “Mayor of the city” “Royal scribe” “Soul priest” “Servant of the God” and over a thousand others. By the New Kingdom, the concept of “Temple economy” takes hold, where, similar to pre-reformation Tudor England, around a 1/3rd of all land was owned by the temple priesthood, which owned and leased land to its inhabitants.