Men in ancient Egypt were given 8ft-long prenups: 2,480-year-old papyrus reveals rights of women

Ancient Egyptians took their legal rights seriously - and when it came to drawing up marriage documents, women knew how to get their way. An 8-foot long (2.4 metres) contract, currently hanging at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, reveals just how far their nuptial agreements went.
The 2,480-year-old legal document is written in demotic script and was created to make sure that if a marriage didn't work, the

wife wouldn't want for food or money. The lady who drew up this documenthad a compensation which included '1.2 pieces of silver and 36 bags of grain every year for the rest of her life.'

'Most people have no idea that women in ancient Egypt had the same legal rights as men,' Dr Emily Teeter, an Egyptologist at the Institute told Atlas Obscura. Women in the Old Kingdom could manage, own, and sell private property, which at the time included slaves, servants and livestock. They could also resolve legal settlements, create marriage or divorce contracts and were entitled to sue, no matter their marital status.