ABSTRACT
Our knowledge of the lives of children in Late Antique Egypt is illuminated by archaeological evidence from Thebes, Aswan, Kellis and the Hermopolite area. Shenoute’s writings, in combination with surviving Coptic monastic literature from Egypt, provide a vital literary counterpart. Yet, as this material derives from different places, time and religious communities, it is difficult to draw general conclusions about the lived experience of children. Furthermore Coptic terminology is imprecise and the different stages of childhood are blurred. While we can seek to complement the Coptic evidence with contemporary Greek sources, the question of how far we can generalise our conclusions remains.
