The pig has been a part of the diet of ancient Egyptians since before the Pre-Dynastic
period. Despite ample material evidence, in the form of bone findings, the pig is rarely depicted in Egyptian iconography or noted in records or literature. This study’s goal is to discover why the pig was rarely depicted or recorded focusing mainly on the Dynastic period covering the Old Kingdom through to the New Kingdom. The theories that will be discussed target potential economic, social and cultural reasons for the absence of historic record.
Sources used consist of earlier research and excavation reports focusing on settlement areas with an emphasis on workmen’s villages. The scarce findings of Egyptian texts and depictions, relevant to the pig, will also be analyzed.
Evidence from the settlements studies suggest that the pig was important on a local level providing a protein supplement to the lower working classes of artisans and peasants. There are no reliable findings to support theories of a religious or cultural taboo. The absence of the literary and pictorial reference suggests that swine was not an animal of value among the elite literary class thus was not worthy of record.