Page 60 - Western Civilization A Brief History, Volume I To 1715 9th - Jackson J. Spielvogel

IMAGES OF EVERYDAY LIFE
The Egyptian Diet
THE DIETS OF the upper and lower classes in ancient Egypt differed considerably. Various types of meat and fowl, including beef, goat, pork, goose, and pigeon, were on the tables of the rich. Fish was also an important part of the upper-class Egyptian diet. Although done for sport as well as food, hunting waterfowl in the stands of papyrus reeds that grew along the river’s banks was a favorite pastime of the Egyptian upper classes. Shown below in left column is a hunting scene from the Eighteenth-Dynasty tomb of Nebamun in Thebes. Nebamun, a nobleman, is seen standing in his boat using his throwstick to hunt birds. He holds three birds in his right hand while a cat retrieves two in its claws and holds the wings of another in its teeth.
The basic diet of the poor consisted chiefly of bread, beer made from barley, and onions. The baking of bread was an important task in all households. The tomb painting at the right from the Eighteenth- Dynasty tomb of Mennah shows two men carrying grain while slave girls fight over leftovers in the background.
Vegetables and fruits were also part of the Egyptian diet. Among the vegetables were lettuce, radishes, squash, and cucumbers. Fruits included figs, dates,
and grapes, which were mainly used by the upper classes for making wine. The third illustration (below right) shows peasants harvesting grapes from grapevines that have been attached to a trellis. Both sweet and dry wines were produced from a variety of dark and pale grapes.
22 Chapter 1 The Ancient Near East: The First Civilizations
Copyright 2017 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s). Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
British Museum, London// Werner Forman/Art Resource, NY
Tombs of the Nobles, Thebes, Egypt// Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY Tombs of the Nobles, Thebes, Egypt// Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY