Ancient Egypt: Occupations Trivia Quiz

Answer: King

Narmer is considered to be the first pharaoh of ancient Egypt. He took the title, meaning "great house", after unifying the ancient kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt. The all-powerful pharaoh was both the political and religious leader of ancient Egypt; he and the royal family comprised the highest ranking social class.

Answer: Priest

The priest or priestess was usually from the class of nobles. Their principal job was to perform the rituals in the temples, however they also oversaw the businesses that were part of the temple complex. A high priest, usually appointed by pharaoh, could become very wealthy, powerful and influential. Documents from the New Kingdom indicate that the priests of the sun god, Amun, had over 80,000 people working for them!

Answer: Supervise the running of the country, hear reports, and sit in the high court.

All of the other government officials, such as the general or chief treasurer, reported to the vizier, who then reported to pharaoh, who had the final say. Of course, it was impossible for the pharaoh to run everything by himself, so the vizier was an extremely important palace official. Sometimes a member of the royal family, the vizier was chosen for his loyalty and ability. A document from the New Kingdom states that the vizier is to "Act by the law, Judge fairly, and to not act willfully or headstrong."

Answer: General

Ancient Egyptians really didn't see much of a need for a standing military organization; natural protection provided by the desert kept most people out! Nevertheless, outposts were built in strategic areas, and they were usually garrisoned by a small number of soldiers.

After expelling the Hyksos, however, the organization of the army changed. While the pharaoh was considered to be the commander-in-chief, the general, who was often one of pharaoh's sons, was second in charge.

Answer: Scribe

Most of the time the people who were educated as scribes were the male children of scribes. They went to a special school for four or more years and had to work very hard to learn how to read the complicated scripts of ancient Egypt. Ancient scribes left records of many aspects of daily life; their writings have been very important in telling us about life in ancient Egypt. Scribes were exempt from paying royal taxes, did not have to serve in the military, and were considered to be part of the royal court.

Answer: Artisan

Considered to be a member of the middle class, a talented, hard-working artisan could nevertheless make a good living in ancient Egypt. Many were highly skilled and left behind the fine artifacts that are admired today. When looking at the different crafts made by artisans in ancient Egypt, one can see that a strict conformity to style was expected from generation to generation.

Answer: Brewer

All ancient Egyptians drank beer daily; it was a very important part of a nutritious meal for them as it contained minerals, protein and vitamins. Modern historians believe ancient Egypt beer had the consistency of gruel and is described as being almost non-alcoholic.

The making of beer was viewed primarily as a woman's job and was typically done in the home; however, many temples operated large-scale breweries and generated a large income.

Answer: Embalmer

It was customary for the chief embalmer to wear the mask of Anubis, the jackal god who helped the dead souls find the afterlife in Egyptian mythology. Before mummification was used to preserve the body, the ancients were buried in cemeteries. Wild jackals would dig up the bodies and eat them, which, of course, caused much concern. Consequently the jackal god, Anubis, became associated with the dead, even helping Osiris with the weighing of the hearts ceremony, which determined if a person would enjoy eternal life or face eternal death.

Answer: Farmer

Ancient Egyptian farmers worked hard. The climate allowed for two seasons of planting and harvesting each year, however, they could not work while the land was inundated during flood season. It appears they had a bit of a vacation at that time, repairing farming equipment and waiting for the waters to recede; some modern historians, however, believe they also supplemented their income by working on building projects. Farmers were considered to be the backbone of Egyptian society and grew the food upon which all others relied, however, their status was low. Nevertheless, it appears that they believed that when they died, if they were judged well, they went on to an afterlife just like their life in Egypt.

There they continued to grow food for the wealthy, in the same way they had during life.

Answer: Slave

In ancient Egypt, slaves were typically taken during war or inherited the position from their parents. It was also possible to become a slave if a person was unable to pay his debts; some people, believing that slaves lived better than they did, even sold themselves into slavery to have better food and shelter!