Have you ever heard of scouts in the ancient Egyptian civilization?

Over the centuries, historians have told us in detail about the rise and fall of civilizations, the leaders and rulers of our world, old and new, dramatic battles and fascinating monuments, but the history of children and childhood was strangely absent.

The concealment of children in history and archeology is sometimes attributed to the scarcity of historical records relating to children and the absence of possessions that belonged to them. Perhaps it was also the view that children are somewhat marginal to the most important historical subjects, yet in the past few decades the understanding of childhood through the ages began to emerge And researchers began to shed light on this vital aspect of human history, according to what ancient-origins reported.

With regard to the ancient Egyptian civilization, the ancient Egyptian papyri in Roman Egypt revealed that 14-year-old boys joined a youth organization in order to learn to be good citizens, similar to the Boy Scouts of the modern era.

Only children born to free citizens - be they Egyptians, Greeks or Romanians - are eligible to join the youth organization in the city. For boys, the transition from childhood to adulthood began with enrollment in a "gymnasium". Some started working before reaching their teens and may have served a two to four year internship.

Child slaves could also become apprentices, and their contracts were of the same type as the boys of free citizens. Slaves lived with their owners, while free-born children generally lived with their parents. Life was different for the slave children though. The documents show that children as young as two years old have been sold and separated from their parents.