Abstract
This paper explores the function and dating of two rectangular flint tools found at different positions along the Darb el-Tawil caravan route. This route directly connecting the Dakhla Oasis with the Nile Valley has seen caravan transport during almost 4500 years from the Old Kingdom to the 20th century. The two flint objects are a rarity along this route but are also not well-known from archaeological sites elsewhere in Egypt. In bringing together the evidence from the site contexts of the current flint tools with parallels related to morphology and technical aspects of types of flint tools known from Egypt or beyond, it is concluded that these artefacts are likely to be interpreted as a sickle element in the one case and a gunflint in the other.
Highlights
The current paper seeks exploring the functional significance and cultural background of two enigmatic flint tools found during the survey along the Darb el‐Tawil caravan route
Sherds of about 1000 ceramic vessels allowed the first comprehensive chronological sequence of this route to be established. It shows that the Darb el‐Tawil was firmly established already during the Old Kingdom, as previously supposed in earlier papers on the basis of the rich Old Kingdom remains excavated at Dakhla Oasis (e.g., Giddy 1987: 208)
Stone artefacts found directly on the tracks of the caravan route were not collected, because the danger of pseudo-flaking on flint pieces or older blank products resulting from trampling by pack-animals is so high that we presume that 100% of the flint pieces there would be affected by this process
Summary
The current paper seeks exploring the functional significance and cultural background of two enigmatic flint tools found during the survey along the Darb el‐Tawil caravan route. Sherds of about 1000 ceramic vessels allowed the first comprehensive chronological sequence of this route to be established It shows that the Darb el‐Tawil was firmly established already during the Old Kingdom, as previously supposed in earlier papers on the basis of the rich Old Kingdom remains excavated at Dakhla Oasis (e.g., Giddy 1987: 208). Caravan transport along this route lasted for more than 4000 years until the 20th century, when it ceased during the 1970s. It is attempted to apply these rules to both flint objects individually in order to establish a best-fit statement on their dating and function
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