Most Egyptian homes lacked even primitive plumbing. Some middle - and upper-class homes had "earth closets": primitive toilets with limestone seats and a bucket of sand. Drainage went into sand layered beneath the house.
Some wealthy families had bathing rooms, which were recessed areas with limestone-slab floors. The bather stood in this "shower stall" while servants doused him with buckets of clean water. Drainage ran into a large earthenware bowl on the floor, or through a channel in the wall and out into a barrel outdoors. The practical Egyptians probably recycled the waste water into their gardens.
No one had running water. Water was carried, in large clay jugs and pots, from the nearest canal or the river. The backbreaking job of fetching a household's daily water supply was women's work. Some wealthy families had wells dug on their property, eliminating the need for constant water-hauling.
At one site, archaeologists found a stone bathtub with plastered sides and a drain. Water drained into a vase punched with holes and cemented into the earth. This bathtub was probably owned by a person who was so wealthy that he saw no need to conserve water.
Accessed by staircases or ladders became breezy outdoor sleeping places on hot nights.
Thick walls of mud-brick helped keep interiors comfortable. Tiny windows set high in the walls helped heat escape. Some homes had small, triangular roof structures (called “wind towers”) that funneled cooling north winds into the home. These were common features of Egyptian homes well into the 20th century. The few small openings were covered with linen hangings or wood shutters to help keep out dust and insects. Pots of scented oils sweetened the air.
Interiors were quite dark. They were lighted at night with small pottery oil lamps. (Herodotus found the scent of the Egyptians’ castor oil lamps unpleasant.) Fancier homes were lit with elaborate lamps of carved translucent stone, such as alabaster. Most cooking was done in outdoor kitchens on stone hearths or metal braziers. The most common cooking fuel, still used in rural Egypt today, was cow dung. Charcoal and wood scraps were also occasionally burned.
Egyptians were fond of plants and flowers, and grew a great variety for home decoration, personal adornment, and offerings to the gods and the dead. Many herbs and flowers were used in food, cosmetics, and medicines. Country villas of wealthy families boasted lush gardens, irrigated year round with water carried in stone jars from a canal or the river. The courtyard was a pleasant retreat from the dirt, insects, and noise of the street. It might have a pool of cool water surrounded by flowering and vining plants, date palm and fig trees, and other fruit and shade trees. Some families planted sycamore trees, sacred to the goddess Hathor.
Many families plastered their interior walls and had them painted with colorful designs, flowers, animals, and nature scenes. Many homeowners laid floors of pressed clay or brick paving tiles, coated with smooth plaster. Floor coverings woven of reeds, papyrus, or palm straw helped trap the ever-present dust and sand, and served as sleeping mats.
World History
