What was everyday life like for Egyptian royals? In a word: busy. Though they lived in the lap of luxury and enjoyed a standard of living that most other ancient Egyptians didn't, Egyptian royalty generally didn't have much downtime.

From around 3150 to 30 BC, Egypt was ruled by kings and queens called pharaohs. As supreme heads of a complex kingdom, pharaohs spent their days overseeing the religious, economic, cultural, and political life of Egypt. But pharaohs didn't just have to manage Egypt's affairs - they also had to manage the affairs of their families. The life of the royal family was undeniably political.