Archaeology In Egypt Research Articles

“There Really Are 50 Eskimo Words For ‘Snow’”: 1177, Big Data, and the Perfect Storm of Collapse

“There Really Are 50 Eskimo Words For ‘Snow’”: 1177, Big Data, and the Perfect Storm of Collapse

Excavating the Archive / Archiving the Excavation: Archival Processes and Contexts in Archaeology

ABSTRACTThis article focuses on the production of archaeological knowledge within the fieldwork archive. Archaeological archives do not always reflect the reality of evidence uncovered during fieldwork processes or even the fieldwork processes themselves. This includes the many different agents and agencies, which are crucial to the construction of archaeological knowledge and their representation—or lack of representation—in the archive. Archaeological archives impose restrictions on how knowledge is included in a collection, the way it is recorded, and the fieldwork processes used. Therefore, this article considers the way in which the processes of archival documentation produce, transform, and construct archaeological knowledge. The main examples are from the British School of Archaeology in Egypt's excavations at Abydos between 1921 and 1922, often referred to as the Tombs of the Courtiers and directed by Flinders Petrie. Looking at the different contexts of an excavation archive, from before its creation to its ongoing curation and use, can reveal significant aspects not just of the history of archaeology but also on many of the ongoing recording methods and processes still used in the field today.

التصویر المساحى الفوتوغرافی التحتمائى (الفوتوجرامترى): نموذج رقمى ثلاثى الأبعاد لدراسة الموقع الأثری المغمور تحت الماء لفنار الإسکندریة القدیم بجوار قلعة قایتباى.

يعد التصوير المساحى الفوتوغرافي التحتمائى (الفوتوجراميترى) احد التقنيات الجديدة في مجال الآثار الغارقة في مصر, حيث تم تطبيقه لأول مرة على الموقع الأثري المغمور تحت الماء والمعروف باسم موقع فنار الإسکندرية القديم الذى کان يقع على الطرف الشرقي لجزيرة فاروس القديمة بجوار قلعة قايتباي من الجهة الشرقية على عمق يتراوح بين 2 إلى 9 أمتار. وفي عام 2009/2010، قام المرکز الفرنسى للدراسات السکندرية CEAlex بوضع برنامجا لجمع بيانات باستخدام تقنية المساحة التصويرية (الفوتوجراميترى) لعمل نموذج للقطع الأثرية المکسورة , کالأعمدة وبعض التماثيل , ومحاولة اعادة تجميعها باستخدام الواقع الافتراضي فى شکل نموذج رقمى ثلاثي الأبعاد. ولکن في عام 2013 وبداية عام 2014 ، وبدعم من مؤسسة هونور فروست Honor Frost Foundation، تم تطوير وتحسين الأساليب المستخدمة فى التوثيق الفوتوجراميترى التحتمائى للحصول على صورة فوتوغرافية متکاملة للموقع المغمورتحت الماء بجوار قلعة قايتباي بالمجهودات اليدوية البسيطة وذلک باستخدام کاميرا DSLR وبعض المواد والأدوات البسيطة ومنخفضة التکلفة للحصول على نموذج رقمي ثلاثى الأبعاد لموقع الفنار المغمور، وأيضا لعمل نماذج ثلاثية الأبعاد لبعض القطع الأثرية، مثل التماثيل، وقواعد التماثيل وکذلک بعض العناصر المعمارية. نقدم في هذه الورقة البحثية أهمية طرق التصوير التحتمائى فى مجال الآثار الغارقة ثم کيفية معالجة البيانات من أجل إنشاء نموذج رقمى ثلاثى الأبعاد للموقع المغمور لفنار الإسکندرية القديم . حيث ان هذا التوثيق يعد مرحلة مهمة ومتقدمة فى دراسة الموقع الأثرى. حتى عام 2016 قد تم تصوير حوالي 7200 متر مربع فقط من مساحة الموقع المغمور ، والذي يتجاوزمساحته أکثر من 13000 متر مربع. Underwater photogrammetry: 3D Model for studying the submerged archaeological site of the ancient lighthouse of Alexandria near Qaitbay fort Abstract: Underwater photogrammetry is completely a new experience in underwater archaeology in Egypt, applied for the first time on the submerged archaeological site of the lighthouse of Alexandria situated on the eastern extremity of the ancient island of Pharos at the foot of Qaitbay Fort on a depth of 2 to 9 meters. In 2009/2010, the CEAlex launched a 3D photogrammetry data-gathering programme for the virtual reassembly of broken artefacts like columns and some statues, But In 2013 and the beginning of 2014, with the support of the Honor Frost Foundation, methods were developed and refined to acquire manual photographic data of the entire underwater site of Qaitbay using a DSLR camera, simple and low cost materials to obtain a digital surface model (DSM) of the submerged site of the lighthouse, and also to create 3D models of the objects themselves, such as statues, bases of statues and architectural elements. In this paper we present the methodology used for underwater data acquisition, data processing and modelling in order to generate a DSM of the submerged site of Alexandria’s ancient lighthouse. Until 2016, only about 7200 m2 of the submerged site, which exceeds more than 13000 m2, was covered

The Petries and the Pre-Raphaelites: Hilda Urlin and Henry Holiday

<span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12pt; font-family: Garamond, serif;">The Petrie Museum of Egyptian and Sudanese Archaeology, University College London (UCL) has recently received a generous donation of a framed pencil study of a young woman’s head, identified as Hilda Petrie (n</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12pt; font-family: Garamond, serif;">é</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12pt; font-family: Garamond, serif;">e Urlin). Over the past 12 months, the biography of this intriguing sketch has been reconciled from archival and art historical sources in preparation for its display as the centrepiece of the Petrie Museum’s newly refurbished entrance gallery. Three key characters are associated with this drawing: the Pre-Raphaelite artist Henry Holiday, Hilda Urlin, and her husband William Matthew Flinders Petrie, whose life stories are closely linked. Here, the background to the artist, the sitter, and her well-known husband will be presented in the contemporary context of late 19^th&nbsp;and early 20^th&nbsp;century archaeology in Egypt.</span>

Appropriation and Its Consequences: Archaeology under Colonial Rule in Egypt and India

Abstract The beginnings of archaeology in Egypt and in India are the subject of this paper. In both countries, antiquities were carried away by the powerful. Moreover, the hubris of the colonial powers ruling both countries made it inevitable that not only antiquities, but knowledge about the past, were appropriated in different ways. For modern Egyptians, the Pharaonic past was remote in culture and distant in time. The people themselves were until fairly recently prevented from learning the Pharaonic writing, once it was deciphered, by various ways and means. In contrast, in India the colonial administration relied on Indian scholars to teach British personnel the ancient languages, texts, and religion. In neither country was the history of the ancient period taught in schools until the foreign rulers had left. But Indian archaeology became involved in Indian identity and in the framing of the nation as Hindu, and thereby acquired an ugly twist. Self-identification in Egypt in the earlier twentieth century, on the other hand, was possibly more with the Arab world than with the pyramid builders.

UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAMMETRY DIGITAL SURFACE MODEL (DSM) OF THE SUBMERGED SITE OF THE ANCIENT LIGHTHOUSE NEAR QAITBAY FORT IN ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT

Abstract. Underwater photogrammetry in archaeology in Egypt is a completely new experience applied for the first time on the submerged archaeological site of the lighthouse of Alexandria situated on the eastern extremity of the ancient island of Pharos at the foot of Qaitbay Fort at a depth of 2 to 9 metres. In 2009/2010, the CEAlex launched a 3D photogrammetry data-gathering programme for the virtual reassembly of broken artefacts. In 2013 and the beginning of 2014, with the support of the Honor Frost Foundation, methods were developed and refined to acquire manual photographic data of the entire underwater site of Qaitbay using a DSLR camera, simple and low cost materials to obtain a digital surface model (DSM) of the submerged site of the lighthouse, and also to create 3D models of the objects themselves, such as statues, bases of statues and architectural elements. In this paper we present the methodology used for underwater data acquisition, data processing and modelling in order to generate a DSM of the submerged site of Alexandria’s ancient lighthouse. Until 2016, only about 7200 m2 of the submerged site, which exceeds more than 13000 m2, was covered. One of our main objectives in this project is to georeference the site since this would allow for a very precise 3D model and for correcting the orientation of the site as regards the real-world space.

Credibility, civility, and the archaeological dig house in mid-1950’s Egypt

This article argues that forms of civility governing who possessed the credibility to carry out archaeological fieldwork in Egypt changed during the post-Second World War era of decolonization. Incorporating Arabic sources, the article focuses on the preparation of a dig house used during an excavation run by the Egyptian Department of Antiquities and the University Museum of the University of Pennsylvania at the site of Mit Rahina, Egypt, in the mid-1950s. The study demonstrates how the colonial genealogies of such structures converged with political changes heralded by the rise of Egypt's President Nasser. Preparing the dig house, Euro-American archaeologists involved with the excavation had to abide by social norms practiced by the Egyptians who had recently taken charge of the Department of Antiquities. Given that these norms often perpetuated older hierarchies of race, gender, and class, however, the article questions what the end of colonialism actually meant for archaeology in Egypt and elsewhere.

Crossing Borders: Settlement Archaeology in Egypt and Sudan

Some of the Egyptian New Kingdom towns in northern Sudan known today as Upper Nubia (Kush) are well preserved (e.g., Amara West and Sai) and offer the unique chance to conduct a detailed analysis o...

Common Ground: Community Archaeology in Egypt, Interaction Between Population and Cultural Heritage

This paper discusses community archaeology in the Egyptian context and the importance of the stakeholders’ involvement in the specific case study of Tell Timai, a Graeco-Roman settlement (the ancient city of Thmuis) in the Northeast Egyptian Delta. This article examines the results of two small, yet interconnected projects conducted with the help of the local community, and their effects on it. These two projects include archaeological data, oral histories, and public outreach focusing on the interaction between community, archaeological heritage, and public perception of archaeology. Additionally, this paper critically analyzes the preliminary outcomes of the project and discusses how the project team faced and overcame the different challenges.

(De)queering Hatshepsut: Binary Bind in Archaeology of Egypt and Kingship Beyond the Corporeal

The representations of Egyptian female king Hatshepsut are, as a consequence of a binary heteronormative sex/gender bind, continuously queered in scholarship. Statements on her body and identity are often made by directly equating her representations with the corporeal. This paper offers a critique of the heteronormative interpretations of Hatshepsut, which often identify her as a cross-dresser, gender-bender or “woman with a beard.” An alternative approach will be attempted with the discussion of her imagery in the context of queer and Actor Network theoretical encounters. This paper argues that the binary bind of the sex/gender system can be traversed through a complex network of actants, including bodies, ancestors, relatives, gods, and material culture.

“Nubian” Archers in Avaris: A Study of Culture-Historical Reasoning in Archaeology of Egypt

The archaeology of Egypt is in world archaeological circles widely regarded as non-theoretical in a negative sense. The consequence of such a state of the discipline are often uncritical uses of concepts and models which were under heavy critique in archaeology since the 1960s. This paper examines the culture-historical reasoning in archaeology of Egypt by analysing the arguments provided for the presence of “Nubian” archers in Avaris (Tell el-Dabca). Their presence in Tell el-Dabca is often argued with the presence of Nubian pottery, arrowheads and skeletal remains. This paper analyses the way these finds of different date and contexts, are brought together in a coherent archaeological narrative. It is argued that the finds were identified as Nubian and mutually related because of the cultural-historical reasoning taken as an unquestionable interpretative model, a hidden theory.

Artefacts of excavation

Abstract This paper explores the collection of artefacts from British excavations in Egypt and their dispersal to institutions across the world between 1880 and 1915. The scope, scale and complexity of these distributions is reviewed with a view to highlighting the complex, symbiotic relationship between British organizations that mounted such excavations on the one hand and museums on the other, and also to providing a basis from which to argue that both field and museum collecting practices were enmeshed within the same processes of ‘artefaction’. These shared processes together created a new form of museum object, here referred to as the ‘excavated artefact’. It is further suggested that the collection of artefacts for museums was one of the primary motivating factors in the establishment of a scientific archaeology in Egypt. Case-studies of the activities of the Egypt Exploration Fund and Flinders Petrie’s work are presented in order to throw these arguments into relief. An online Appendix tabulates the original distribution of objects from eef excavations to other institutions.

PUBLICISING PETRIE: Financing Fieldwork in British Mandate Palestine (1926–1938)

The cost of archaeological fieldwork has always been high, even for someone as notoriously parsimonious as Flinders Petrie. Money was constantly needed to finance his excavations, bring objects back to England and organize publication of the results. Over the course of his career Petrie developed a range of fundraising strategies, including setting up the British School of Archaeology in Egypt to coordinate efforts. Moving his base of operations to British Mandate Palestine brought a whole new series of challenges, not the least being how to generate public interest in this new endeavour. This paper will explore the various methods by which funds were generated to support Petrie’s research, including use of newspaper and radio coverage, public lectures and exhibitions, merchandising and appeals to the generosity of individual patrons. It will also consider how the purposes of fundraising developed over time, and ways in which we can measure the success of the tactics used.

Underwater Archaeology in Egypt and the Protection of its Underwater Cultural Heritage

After many years of individual attempts to explore the underwater cultural heritage (UCH) of Egypt, the Supreme Council for Antiquities (SCA) established a department specializing in the field during the last decade of the twentieth century. The collaboration between this department and foreign missions led to the discoveries of a number of underwater sites and projects focusing on their protection, including mitigation work. This article presents the most important discoveries and displays the efforts of the SCA in the management of the UCH.

Education in Maritime Archaeology: The Egyptian Case Study

The investigation of archaeological sites of maritime nature started in Egypt more than a century ago, with the discovery of the Dahshur boats (Haldane 1998) and the ancient harbour of Pharos (Jondet 1912); however, education in maritime and underwater archaeology in Egypt is still in its infancy. This paper will look at the development of maritime archaeology in Egypt as a scientific discipline and the progress achieved to date in providing Egyptian archaeologists with education and training in aspects of maritime archaeology and underwater cultural heritage.

Archaeologies of Social Life: Age, Sex, Class et Cetera in Ancient Egypt

List of Figures.Acknowledgements. Prologue. 1. Individuals, Selves and Bodies. 2. Feminisms, Gender Trouble and Sexuality. 3. Body and Soul in the Archaeology of Egypt. 4. Mapping Age, Sex and Class at Deir el Medina. 5. Accessing Individuals at Deir el Medina. Epilogue. Notes.References.Index.

The practice and politics of archaeology in Egypt.

Archaeologists working in Egypt have rarely considered the local/global ramifications and responsibilities of their field practices: many continue to operate under what might be termed the residual effects of colonialism. Taking an explicitly postcolonial stance I argue that there is much more at stake than the intellectual enterprise. This paper outlines the ways in which scholars could undertake a more engaged archaeology and how we might more closely be involved with the people and pasts of modern Egypt. The connected tensions of tourism and terrorism are foregrounded, demonstrating that heritage issues are salient to both spheres. Finally, I explore the nation's relationship to its pharaonic past over the past few centuries and include some contemporary articulations and representations.

Book Review: Monastic Archaeology in Egypt

Book Review: Monastic Archaeology in Egypt

Monastic Archaeology in Egypt

Monastic Archaeology in Egypt

Black-Topped Pottery

Like all great excavators, George Andrew Reisner allowed no observation of his own times to escape its possible application to the work to which he devoted his life. Such a case, a footnote, really, to archaeology and the history of archaeology, occurred at Kerma in 1913. He had just made one of the most spectacular discoveries in the history of the archaeology of Egypt. Many years later he prepared the following note which he meant to have published in the Illustrated London News, to which he contributed regular accounts of the Harvard University-Boston Museum of Fine Arts Expedition in Egypt. From his camp at Giza, he sent the manuscript to England in 1940 but for reasons too obvious to mention, it was never published. It is printed here, exactly as he wrote it and with the same illustrations he had meant to have included with it. It will be remembered that the