Ancient Egypt - five places, five stories University of Cambridge

Overview

The Ancient Egypt - five places, five stories course from the University of Cambridge is easy to see the impressive sites and monuments of ancient Egypt, whether in person, through books or virtually. We tend to see temples, tombs, pyramids and glorious artworks — the material traces of the state and the wealthy. 

These places prompt questions, however, about what they actually meant and how they functioned in a living society, especially in relation to the ordinary person:

• are there sites where we can see the beginning of the ancient Egyptian state?
• what can pyramids tell us about society at the time they were built?
• what did a city look like and how did it function?
• how did people make a living —  who worked for whom and how did the wheels of the economy turn?
• was there scope for women to achieve autonomy?
• what were the relationships with other countries and other peoples?

Questions such as these will be discussed, with the tutor and peer-to-peer, by using one site or monument each week as a starting point. The course will also introduce comparable material to extend participants’ knowledge of the place or time period.