Based on the author's excavations, new analyses of older evidence, and legal and other texts written by men from the period, this volume investigates the role of women in ancient Egyptian society. Hawass describes how women were legally equal, less active that men in the public sphere, and played a key role in the family. He provides historical context, and discusses queens and other royals; palaces and harems; aspects of women's lives relating to love and marriage, motherhood and childrearing, dress and adornments, work, religion, death and the afterlife; representations of them in art; and findings about the women in the workmen's community at Gaza, with many color photos of artifacts. The book was written to present to the delegates of the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women. Hawass is the secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities. Distributed in the US by International Publishers Marketing (IPM). Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)