Either - A game of preference

Be a slave in the pre-Civil War south

Plantation agricultural work, while brutal, generally did not involve quarrying and hauling the massive stone blocks required for monumental construction
Some slaveholders had a financial incentive to maintain their enslaved workers' health, providing at least basic sustenance and medical attention

Be a slave in Ancient Egypt

Historical and archaeological evidence increasingly suggests many pyramid builders were paid workers who received food, medical care, and burial rights rather than chattel slaves
Workers under Egyptian pharaohs were kept in reasonable condition because large-scale construction required sustained physical capability over years
The cultural narrative surrounding Egyptian bondage includes one of history's most celebrated mass liberations, a collective path to freedom the antebellum system deliberately denied

Historical Slaves