Life and Society in Deir el-Medina

Vocabulary flashcards covering social structure, occupations, religion, legal systems, gender roles, burial customs, and modern conservation at Deir el-Medina.

Deir el-Medina

Purpose-built New Kingdom workers’ village on Thebes’ west bank that housed the craftsmen who constructed royal tombs.

New Kingdom (18th–19th Dynasties)

Era during which Deir el-Medina flourished and royal tombs in the Valleys of the Kings and Queens were built.

Mud-brick house

Typical four-room dwelling in Deir el-Medina with flat palm-trunk roofs, shared walls, and sparse furnishings.

Communal well

Shared water source located outside the village; villagers had no internal plumbing or sanitation.

Foreman

Senior workman who supervised crews cutting and decorating royal tombs; enjoyed larger houses and higher status.

Scribe

Literate official who recorded work attendance, rations, legal matters, and correspondence in the village.

Kenbet

Local village court of elders and officials that settled civil and criminal disputes among villagers.

Paneb

Notorious villager accused of theft, assault, adultery, and abuse of authority, illustrating social conflict.

Tomb robbery

Illegal plundering of royal or private burials for valuables such as gold and jewelry, sometimes aided by village workers.

Paser vs. Pawero

Rival officials whose political struggle came to light during investigations into tomb robberies.

Legal rights of women

Ability of women to own, inherit, buy, sell property, make contracts, and live independently in New Kingdom Egypt.

Spinning and weaving

Household industries by which Deir el-Medina women supplemented family income, producing textiles for barter.

Personal piety

Individual devotion expressed through household shrines, stelae, and private prayers to gods and ancestors.

Amenhotep I and Ahmose-Nefertari

Deified royal patrons uniquely revered as protective gods of Deir el-Medina’s workforce.

Amun-Re

Principal state god frequently worshiped by villagers alongside Osiris, Hathor, and Thoth.

Meretseger

Local cobra-goddess of the Theban hills who protected tomb workers and punished wrongdoers.

Bes

Dwarf-like protective deity invoked in homes for safeguarding childbirth, sleep, and family.

Taweret

Hippopotamus-shaped goddess associated with childbirth and household protection, popular in domestic cult.

Ka

Spiritual double of a person that required sustenance offerings in the afterlife.

Ba

Soul aspect depicted as a human-headed bird capable of moving between the living world and the tomb.

Ushabti

Small funerary figurine intended to perform labour for the deceased in the afterworld.

Tomb of Sennedjem

Well-preserved burial of a village captain showcasing vivid art, multiple family interments, and rich decoration.

Valley of the Kings

Royal necropolis where Deir el-Medina craftsmen carved and decorated pharaonic tombs.

Valley of the Queens

Burial site for royal women; also serviced by Deir el-Medina work crews.

Household shrine

Domestic altar or niche containing figurines and stelae for daily worship within the home.

Religious festival

Community celebration featuring music, dance, beer, and processions honoring gods and ancestors.

Draughts (Senet)

Board game enjoyed by villagers as a popular pastime alongside storytelling and pet keeping.

Conservation efforts

Modern measures such as lowering groundwater, installing drainage canals, and managing tourism to protect the site.

Groundwater lowering

Strategy to reduce rising moisture that threatens mud-brick houses and rock-cut tomb paintings.

Drainage canal

Engineered channel diverting irrigation water away from archaeological remains to curb erosion and salt damage.

Child mortality

High rate of infant and child deaths that shaped large family sizes and social structures in the village.