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A cursory glance at ancient Egyptian art shows that they valued the idea of marriage. Couples are depicted together in tombs and among the most popular items found in tombs by modern archaeologists were pair statues, which were meant to portray the tomb owner and his wife. Modern scholars know that the Egyptians practiced a form of marriage, but was it like the modern concept? Much like modern marriage, ancient Egyptian couples lived together, formed households, and were eventually buried next to each other.

The above text is rare, but indicates that Egyptians in the New Kingdom were cognizant that not all marriages would work. Like with marriage, the Egyptians had no equivalent word for “divorce,” but their legal system did recognize the end of marriages and the wife’s right to some of the family’s property. Beginning in the seventh century BC, a number of texts were written in the demotic script of the Egyptian language that modern scholars refer to as “marriage contracts.” The contracts, most of which were written long after the couples had been married, are economic in nature, outlining what the wife is entitled to if her husband “repudiates” her. In most contracts, the wife is entitled to one-third of the couple’s property, as mentioned above. <ref> Robins, p. 60</ref> The family was truly at the core of Egyptian non-noble society, but evidence shows that not all Egyptians followed the traditional route of marrying young and raising a family.

====Dating and Sex in Ancient Egypt====

Among the vast majority of Egyptians, marriages were arranged for economic and social reasons, but there is evidence that some Egyptians eschewed their familial help to find them a spouse and instead struck out on their own. This is not to say that there was a “dating” scene in ancient Egypt that was anything like what exists today, but there are a number of extant “love charms” that indicate some Egyptians preferred to choose their own mates. Most of the preserved love charms are dated to the Ptolemaic Period (332-30 BC), but one from the New Kingdom shows that some Egyptians loved the pursuit as much as some people do today. The follow text invoked the power of Hathor, the Egyptian goddess of love:

====Marriage among the Egyptian Royals====

The theological reasons for royal marriage was much the same as it was for the non-royals and the process by which couples were matched was also similar. Marriage arrangements were done to keep wealth in a family, or bring more to it, and most importantly royal marriages were a way to cement political alliances. There is a common misconception that the ancient Egyptians were ardent practitioners of consanguineous marriage and that incestuous sex in general was quite common, but the evidence shows that is was almost unheard of among commoners and relatively rare among the nobility, with it happening the most during the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Dynasties of the New Kingdom (ca. 1539-1306 BC). <ref> Middleton, Russell. “Brother-Sister and Father-Daughter Marriage in Ancient Egypt.” <i>American Sociological Review.</i> 27 (1962) p. 604</ref>