Chapter two of Bard’s Introduction to the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt discusses the language, media, and historical value of Ancient Egyptian writings. I am interested in the relationship between those concepts and the people who utilized them (or didn’t) to record aspects of their lives. Writing is special because in many cases it is permanent and will last beyond the author’s time on this Earth. The question is, though, how does writing as a tool for memory dictate how those memories go?

Bard talks about three different styles of writing. The two earlier forms of writing, hieroglyphics and hieratic, coexisted in an interesting dynamic for much of Ancient Egypt’s early existence. Hieroglyphics tended to be used for important and permanent writings; it would be chiseled in stone with great detail. Learning hieroglyphics was something that only a few were responsible for, and they in turn were hired by royalty and the upper class. Hieratic, on the other hand, was much faster to write down and was often written in ink on papyrus. It was the informal version of their writing, and since it was written on more perishable media, it is less often represented when people think of Ancient Egypt in general.

The permanence of hieroglyphics glorifies the mystery of Ancient Egypt in the public eye because it feels so far removed from how we think of everyday writing. Most people now read or write all day long about very mundane and ordinary things. Back then, it was all about religion and royalty and other grandiose parts of Ancient Egypt. What most people fail to realize is that hieroglyphics (as well as the other forms of writing) were only known and used by a select few people. Those people were hired by royalty and the upper class to make tomb inscriptions, formal announcements, and keep the most important records. Therefore, the majority of the historical context that we gain from hieroglyphics does not reflect what it was like to live in Ancient Egypt.

Ancient Egypt is remembered for its lavish palaces, mysterious religion, cryptic texts, and imposing monuments. That would be like today’s American civilization being remembered by who the Presidents were and how wealthy business owners spent their time, ignoring the everyday experiences of the middle and lower classes. I’d like to hope, however, that thanks to widespread literacy and the rise of social media, someday everyone’s voice will be remembered at least a little bit. So let the internet be your stone walls, preserving your thoughts and experiences for the next civilization to study.