Marriage formed a central social construct of ancient Egyptian culture. It provided the normative framework for producing children, who would act as one’s rightful heirs. The latter were responsible for performing one’s funerary cult, thereby securing one’s eternal life. The economic effects of marriage were also notable. The husband, wife, and children were all perceived as having equal rights to the conjugal joint-property consisting of a 1/3 share each. In addition to this, the spouses might own private property of their own. As marriage modified many aspects of daily life such as social status, domicile, and the intricate network of interpersonal rights and obligations, it was not a relationship entered into at random. A sequence consisting of a choice of partner followed by an exchange of gifts and assets preceded the actual marrying. Once the marital status was a fact, both parties were expected to abstain from extramarital relationships. However, it was possible for men to have several wives.

The site of Deir el-Medina, located in a desert valley on the west bank of Luxor, was conceived as sacred ground. Tombs were built there as early as the Middle Kingdom and a village settlement housing the royal-tomb builders was founded on the site in the early New Kingdom. The workmen’s village gradually became surrounded by chapels and temples. Although the settlement was abandoned by the end of the New Kingdom, the site was still used for burials and for religious devotion. During the Ptolemaic Period a sandstone temple dedicated to the goddess Hathor was built there. A small chapel was added to it in Roman times. The Copts later converted the temple into a church and a monastery, to which the Arabic name of the site refers.