Museo Egizio Research Articles

The Conqueror of the Riverline: on a Four-Legged White Cross-Lined Predynastic Bowl from the Museo Egizio (S.1825), Turin

Le présent article analyse la décoration tout à fait exceptionnelle d’un bol classe C (white cross-lined), qui se trouve au Museo Egizio de Turin. L’iconographie de sa face interne présente un très grand intérêt pour mieux comprendre les mentalités et les changements culturels des premières communautés de la vallée du Nil pendant la période prédynastique. La scène représentée dans ce bol doit être considérée comme une preuve, iconologiquement pertinente, du symbolisme animal associé à la domination de l’homme sur l’environnement du Nil, pendant la période de transition vers Nagada II. Le contrôle des animaux aquatiques hostiles, comme l’hippopotame, au-delà du conflit pour le contrôle du territoire, relève également de la confrontation avec un pouvoir surnaturel que ces groupes humains tentent de dominer et de soumettre.

Ceramic Offering Trays in the Museo Egizio, Turin: Establishing Typologies and Locating Unprovenanced Specimens

Attempting to re-organise and discuss a rich ensemble of pottery offering trays from the Museo Egizio, this article offers a new contribution to the study of this class of objects. The totality of published and unpublished trays from the Museo is taken into consideration and divided according to provenance. Three groups are identified: a considerable number of trays from Schiaparelli’s excavations in the Asyut necropolis; a group of trays from Gebelein; and a group of trays without provenance, and whose modalities of acquisition are uncertain. Each group is examined thoroughly and further subdivided based on stylistic and material characteristics. Common features and stylistic trends in trays from the same site and with the same provenance are identified. References to other trays from other museum collections or excavation reports help establish parallels and highlight common characteristics as well possible influences between neighbouring sites and regions. The attempt to reorganise the well-provenanced specimens within their archaeological context yields a better understanding of the distribution and popularity of this category of objects. Finally, the author proposes a plausible reassignment of a provenance to Museo Egizio specimens hitherto considered unprovenanced. ملخص تساعد هذه المقالة على دراسة مجموعة من الفخاريات الموجودة في المتحف المصري حيث هناك محاولة لإعادة تنظيم ومناقشة مجموعة غنية من الصواني الفخارية. تُؤخذ في عين الاعتبار جميع القطع الموجودة في المتحف التي تم النشر عنها أو تلك القطع التي لم يٌنشر عنها أي مقالة مسبقاَ، ويتم تقسيمها حسب المصدر. تم تحديد ثلاث مجموعات: عدد كبير من الصواني مصدرها حفريات سكياباريلي في مقبرة أسيوط، مجموعة من الصواني من جبَلَين ومجموعة من الصواني مجهولة المصدر وطُرق اقتنائها. يتم فحص كل مجموعة بدقة وتقسيمها على أساس خصائص الشكل والمادة. تُحدّد السِمات المشتركة للصواني من حيث الشكل ومن حيث الموقع والمصدر الواحد. تُساعد المقارنات مع صواني أخرى محفوظة ضمن مجموعات لمتاحف أخرى أو تقارير التنقيبات المختلفة في تحديد أوجه التشابه وإبراز الخصائص المشتركة بالإضافة إلى الكشف عن التأثيرات المحتملة بين المواقع والمناطق المجاورة. تؤدي محاولة إعادة تنظيم اللقى وتثبيتها بدقة ضمن سياقها الأثري إلى فهم أفضل لاستعمالاتها ومدى شعبيتها. أخيراَ، يَقترح المؤلّف إعادة تحديد مصدر عينات المتحف المصري التي كانت تُعتبر حتى الآن غير مؤكدة.

Identifying the Unknown Content of an Ancient Egyptian Sealed Alabaster Vase from Kha and Merit’s Tomb Using Multiple Techniques and Multicomponent Sample Analysis in an Interdisciplinary Applied Chemistry Course

This article highlights the multianalytical study of exuded liquid from an ancient Egyptian sealed alabaster vase by Master’s students in an applied chemistry for cultural heritage course. Master students are introduced to the field of Archaeometry that see the collaboration of experts in different areas of research such as conservators, curators of museums, physicists, chemists, etc. The sample is a residue exuded on the linen strip sealing an ancient Egyptian alabaster vase (inventory number S.8448) from the collection of the Museo Egizio in Turin (Italy). The students start to plan the noninvasive investigation by X-ray fluorescence (XRF), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) for the inorganic compounds characterization, followed by the extraction of the organic components (such as oils, fats, and waxes) to be analyzed by high-resolution 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and 2D NMR correlation spectroscopy (COSY), heteronuclear single quantum coherence (HSQC), and long-range heteronuclear correlation (HMBC) techniques and by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Reference standards, spectral databases, and published data on similar artifacts served as the basis for the interpretation of the instrumental results. The approach was introduced in the course of Applied Chemistry for Cultural Heritage for Master students in Archaeology (University of Palermo, Italy), where the need is to know how to approach the scientific investigation together with the conservation scientists and how to manage with a very low amount of sample. Pedagogically, the approach introduces students to the main techniques currently used in the field of Archaeometry while reinforcing fundamental concepts in sample collecting and multicomponent microsample analysis. This interdisciplinary approach provides a unique experience that demonstrates chemistry’s broad applicability outside of the traditional laboratory. Students are guided to identify the inorganic and organic components of the exudate liquid: the first one is ascribable to clay minerals iron oxides, which could impart the brown color to the sample; the second one is ascribed to triglycerides of various kinds, which probably comes from vegetable oil.

Below the surface of the coffin lid of Neskhonsuennekhy in the Museo Egizio collection

The multidisciplinary and multi‐technical study of the coffin lid of Neskhonsuennekhy (Turin, Museo Egizio, inventory number S.05245) datable to the 26th dynasty (664–525 BC) was launched in 2015 at the Centro Conservazione e Restauro La Venaria Reale during the conservation activities required by the Museo Egizio, as part of wider research on the so‐called red coffins. Widespread abrasions and gaps in the pictorial stratigraphy strongly impeded the reading of the decoration, and a reddish and locally blackened material was covering many areas. Integrating multispectral imaging (UV fluorescence, VIL, IR reflectography), MA‐XRF, radiography, and analyses on micro‐samplings (OM, SEM‐EDX, FT‐IR) allowed deepening the state of preservation, detecting previous intervention, and characterizing the blackened surface, necessary to define the cleaning intervention objectives. In particular, the IR reflectography allowed recovering the readability of the beautiful drawings and the ancient hieroglyphs hidden beneath the reddish blackened surface. Based on the analytical data and compatibility with the pigments known in ancient Egypt, it was possible to return to the public the original lost decoration with a descriptive and virtual reconstruction. The new LANDIS‐X scanning station equipped with a real‐time macro XRF was fundamental for studying pigments, glazes, and mixtures besides the presence of lead impurities in the copper source used to make the Egyptian blue pigment, encouraging the research on the sources of mineral supply. Finally, this study allowed understanding the technique of execution of the find, from the assembly of the wooden elements to the reddish finish, noticing analogies with the other red coffins.

Flawed and Fine? The Statue of Hel in the Museo Egizio, Turin (Cat. 7352)

The article is a study of a seated female statue held in the Museo Egizio in Turin (Cat. 7352), so far mentioned in scholarly literature only in passing. It depicts a woman named Hel, whose involvement in cult activity is emphasized by the menat collar she holds and by references to music-making in one of the two texts inscribed on the pedestal. The sculpture, acquired by the museum in 1824 with the Drovetti collection, dates from the Nineteenth Dynasty and originates in all likelihood from Saqqara. While it belongs squarely within a well-defined tradition of New Kingdom elite sculpture, it displays some apparently unique peculiarities, which raise some questions of interpretation. ملخص البحث تضم المقالة دراسة حول تمثال أنثى جالسة و محفوظ في المتحف المصري في تورينو (Cat. 7352) ، لم يرد ذكره حتى الآن في الدراسات العلمية إلا بشكل عابر. يُصوِّر امرأة تُدعى "هيل"، نعلم أنها كانت تشارك في نشاطات دينية و ذلك من خلال طوق الـ"مينات" الذي تضعه وأيضاً من خلال أحد النصوص المنقوشة على قاعدة التمثال والذي يشير إلى الموسيقى. حصل المتحف على التمثال في عام 1824 مع مجموعة دروفيتي، يعود تاريخه إلى الأسرة التاسعة عشرة ويرجع أصله غالباً إلى سقارة. أغلب الظن أنه ينتمي إلى تقليد محددة في نحت الشخصيات المرموقة لدى عصر الدولة الحديثة، غير أنه يعرض بعض الخصائص الفريدة والتي تثير بعض الأسئلة حول تفسيرها.

A Decorated Jar of the Byzantine Period in the Museo Egizio, Turin (Suppl. 15626)

The article analyses a previously unpublished painted jar from the Byzantine Period discovered by Ernesto Schiaparelli at Asyut, possibly in 1911, and presently kept at the Museo Egizio, Turin (S. 15626). The distinctive female figure represented on the upper half of the body of the vessel is rather rare in the Byzantine repertoire. The author compares it with similar figures found on different supports and in different contexts. Notably, she highlights parallels with painted pottery from the monastery of Abba Nefer the Hermit at Manqabad, as well as in pottery assemblages from Kellia, Saqqara, Esna, Tebtynis, Deir el Bachit (West Thebes), and especially towns in Middle Egypt such as Amarna (Kom el-Nana), El-Ashmunein, Antinoopolis and Wadi Sarga. The probably non-religious female figure may be an instance of the well-known tendency in Byzantine Egypt to draw on the Hellenistic repertoire, especially in depictions of figures of prosperity and good luck, which would have been easily recognizable by both Christians and pagans. ملخص البحث: حلل المقالة إناء ملون لم يتم نشره من قبل ويعود إلى العصر البيزنطي، إكتشفه إرنستو سكياباريلي في أسيوط، على الأرجح في عام 1911، محفوظ حالياً في المتحف المصري بتورينو (S. 15626). الشكل الأنثوي المميز المعروض في النصف العلوي من جسم الإناء نادر جداً ضمن مجموعات أعمال العصر البيزنطي. يقارن المؤلف الشكل الموجود على الجزء العلوي من الإناء بأشكال متشابهة موجودة على أدوات مختلفة. تجدر الإشارة إلى أن الشكل يُبرز أوجه التشابه مع الفخار الملون بدير الناسك أبو نفر في منقباد، وكذلك في مجموعات فخارية موجودة في منطقة كيليا وسقارة وإسنا وتبتنيس ودير البشت (غرب طيبة)، وبشكل خاص في مدن مصر الوسطى مثل العمارنة (كوم النعناع) والأشمونين وانطيونوبوليس ووادي سرجة. ربما يكون شكل الشخصية الأنثوية غير الديني مثالاً على النزعة المعروفة في مصر البيزنطية من خلال الإرتكاز على مجموعة أعمال العصر الهلنستي، لا سيما في تصوير أشكال الرخاء والحظ السعيد التي كان يمكن التعرف عليها بسهولة لكلٍ من المسيحيين والوثنيين.

A First Assessment of the Conservation of the Mummified Human Remains in the Museo Egizio in Turin in the Framework of the “Mummy Conservation Project”

The Museo Egizio in Turin holds a unique collection of 116 mummified or skeletal human bodies or body parts. This collection is currently under study by the "Mummy Conservation Project", a collaborative venture of the Museo Egizio, the Institute for Mummy Studies of Eurac Research, the Soprintendenza Archeologia del Piemonte, and the Horus Group, whose aim is to improve mummy conservation techniques. In the context of this project, an assessment of the state of preservation of the mummified human remains was carried out by monitoring basic physical parameters (temperature, relative humidity and water activity) and by performing a fungal survey. The latter revealed the presence on the mummified material of fungal spores and mycelia that could possibly pose a biodegradative threat. However, all the current physical parameters show that the mummies are stored under optimal environmental conditions, which will suppress any microbial up-growth. ملخص البحث: يحتوي المتحف المصري في تورينو على مجموعة فريدة تضمّ 116 قطعة ما بين مومياوات بشرية محنطة أو هياكل عظمية أو أجزاء بشرية محنطة. حالياً هذه المجموعة قيد الدراسة من قبل "مشروع الحفاظ على المومياوات"، هو مشروع تعاوني ما بين المتحف المصري ومعهد دراسات المومياء لأبحاث يوراك ومكتب الحفاظ على التراث الأثري في مقاطعة بييمونتي ومجموعة حورس، التي تهدف إلى تحسين تقنيات الحفاظ على المومياوات. في نطاق هذا المشروع، تم تقييم حالة الحفظ للبقايا البشرية المحنطة من خلال مراقبة العوامل الفيزيائية الأساسية (درجة الحرارة والرطوبة النسبية ونشاط الجزيئات المائية) وإجراء مسح للفطور. كشفت هذه الأخيرة عن وجود فطور وبكتريات فطرية على المواد المحنطة والتي يمكن أن تشكل تهديداً بالتحلل الحيوي. ومع ذلك تظهر جميع المقاييس الفيزيائية الحالية أن المومياوات يتم تخزينها في ظل ظروف بيئية مثالية، والتي سوف تثبط أي نمو للميكروبات.

THE DIGITALIZATION OF ANCIENT EGYPTIAN COFFINS: A DISCUSSION OVER DIFFERENT TECHNIQUES FOR RECORDING FINE DETAILS

Abstract. This work starts from the request to have a physical high-resolution 3D model of the external, anthropoid coffin of the scribe Butehamon, held at the Museo Egizio, Turin. At the time of writing, a replica of the coffin, based on this survey work, functions as final and focal installation of the temporary exhibition Archeologia Invisibile of the Museo Egizio, Turin, running from March 2019 to January 2020. The replica acts as support for a micro-mapping installation meant to re-project a pattern of images onto the coffin’s surface, including the results of different radiometric and colourimetric analyses performed in the recent past by Museo Egizio and Musei Vaticani. This collaborative work encouraged a thorough discussion on the interaction between scientists and humanists engaged in the study of archaeological finds, on the needs and expectations of both sides, and on the technical problems relating to handling objects of different sizes.

A NEW HANDHELD SCANNER FOR 3D SURVEY OF SMALL ARTIFACTS: THE STONEX F6

Abstract. Movable heritage preserved in our museums are an invaluable evidence of our past. In order to properly respond to the need of 3D documentation of these significant assets, in the last few years both range-based and image-based solutions have been developed by researchers operating in the framework of Geomatics with a special focus on reaching a high level of detail and on texture radiometric quality, taking into consideration the intrinsic fragility of these kinds of objects which during the survey require a contactless approach. During the presented research a collection of architectural models representing ancient Nubian temples from “Museo Egizio di Torino” had been digitalized using different techniques; in particular, the wooden maquette of the temple of El-Hilla has been acquired using a new structured light handheld laser scanner, the Stonex F6 SR, and applying a close-range photogrammetric approach. In this paper a comparison between the two approaches is proposed as regards acquisition workflow, final results and suitability as regards digitisation of objects belonging to movable heritage and museum collections.

DOCUMENTING HISTORICAL RESEARCH FOR A COLLECTION INFORMATION MODELLING. A PROPOSAL FOR A DIGITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Abstract. The paper describes part of the conceptual structure produced within the still ongoing project B.A.C.K. TO T.H.E. F.U.T.U.RE. (BIM Acquisition as Cultural Key TO Transfer Heritage of ancient Egypt For many Uses To many Users REplayed). The aim of the project was to use a semantic web infrastructure to describe archival research and tracking informations related to a hidden museum collection expedition models of Egyptian architecture partially stored in the depots of the Museo Egizio of Turin. The outcome will be an interactive web-presentation portal of high-resolution 3D models enriched by historical and archival set of content, from the digitization procedure applied to collection objects, to the digitization process of related data and information. The development of the collection documentation of the project illustrates how is crucial to declare the semantic description underlying narrative contents. Data about single collection objects were conceptually modelled using generalizable formulas already known by CIDOC-CRM community. The description of provenance of knowledge related to the historical investigation process was modelled using CRMinf extension, exploring the possibility of making beliefs based on the available documentation and validating the results of the assumptions made during the research.

Current Research of the Leiden-Turin Archaeological Mission in Saqqara. A Preliminary Report on the 2018 Season

In 2015, the Museo Egizio in Turin joined the Leiden expedition to Saqqara, in the area south of the Unas causeway. This report presents the expedition’s new approach as well as some first results of this new cooperation. In the 2018 season, the Leiden-Turin expedition worked in the northern sector of its concession, covering an area of ca. 250 sqm just north of the tomb of Maya. Here Late Antique layers overlie a wind-blown deposit containing some simple burials and numerous “embalmers’ caches”, some of which yielded marl clay cups with hieratic labels. An overview of both the pottery and the human remains found during this season is provided in the present report. Below the wind-blown deposit is a level with Ramesside funerary chapels and shafts. One of them has a remarkable decoration including six small-format figures carved in high relief in the middle of its back wall. The shaft of another chapel was also excavated, revealing several plundered chambers which yielded only scanty finds. A large mud-brick wall exposed during the previous season turned out to belong to the outer wall and pylon entrance of a monumental tomb, whose owner’s name has not been found yet. A photogrammetric survey by a team of the Politecnico di Milano yielded a 3D model of the dig (included in the web version of this report), as well as several 3D models of the monumental tombs (completed or in the making). During the season, conservation work was carried out on several tombs and on the newly discovered Ramesside chapel. ملخص البحث: شارك المتحف المصري بتورينو في عام 2015 مع بعثة لايدن فى سقارة، في المنطقة الواقعة جنوب طريق أوناس الصاعد. يُبرز هذا التقرير الأسلوب الجديد للبعثة وكذلك بعض النتائج الأولية لهذا التعاون الجديد. في موسم 2018، عملت بعثة "لايدن – تورينو" في القطاع الشمالي من الامتياز الممنوح لهم، وهو ما يغطي مساحة حوالى 250 متر مربع شمالي مقبرة مايا. تكسو طبقات العصور القديمة المتأخرة في هذه المنطقة رواسب محمولة بالرياح، وتحتوي على بعض المدافن البسيطة والعديد من "مقتنيات المحنطين"، بعضها اشتمل على أكواب طينية من الطين الكلسي بعلامات مكتوبة بالخط الهيراطيقي. يوفر هذا التقرير لمحة عامة عن كل من الفخار والبقايا البشرية التي عُثر عليها خلال هذا العام. أسفل الرواسب المحمولة بالرياح يوجد مستوى مكون من الأماكن المخصصة للصلاة وتقديم القرابين وأكثر من بئر كلها تعود إلى حقبة الرعامسة. أحدها يحتوي على زخارف رائعة بما في ذلك ستة أشكال صغيرة الحجم منحوتة نحتًا يبرز معالمها في منتصف الجدار الخلفي. بالإضافة إلى اكتشاف عامود معبد آخر والكشف عن حجرات منهوبة عديدة أدت إلى اكتشافات ضئيلة. كما تبين أن جدارًا كبيرًا من الطوب اللبن، كان قد تم اكتشافه خلال الموسم الماضي، ينتمي إلى الجدار الخارجي ومدخل صرح مقبرة ضخمة لم يتم تحديد اسم مالكها بعد. أسفر مسح تصويري قام به فريق من مدرسة الفنون التطبيقية للمهندسين في ميلانو "Politecnico di Milano" عن تقديم نموذج ثلاثي الأبعاد لموقع التنقيب (يوجد في النسخة الالكترونية من التقرير على الموقع الالكتروني)، بالإضافة إلى العديد من النماذج ثلاثية الأبعاد للمقابر الأثرية (التي تم إعدادها أو قيد الإعداد). خلال الموسم، تم القيام بأعمال صيانة وترميم للعديد من المقابر وكذلك مكان الصلاة المكتشف حديثًا العائد إلى حقبة الرعامسة.

Two Ancient Egyptian Models in the Historical Photographic Archive of the Museo Egizio, Turin

This article presents two case studies from the historical photographic archive of the Museo Egizio in Turin. Three photographic plates (C0629, C0630, and C0631) show two fragments of models (of a boat and of a granary) found by the Italian Archaeological Mission at Gebelein in 1914. These photos give important information about the condition of these objects at the moment of their discovery, since one of the models (boat cabin, S.15776 [?]) is currently much more fragmented than in the historical photographs, and the granary is now lost. The author focuses particularly on the chronology, spread and significance of the boat cabin’s distinctive decoration style, on the basis of which he proposes a date for the (now lost) tomb where they were found. The chronology of this burial has remained hitherto moot, since no accurate date could be provided for the only other objects ascribed to its owner, Iqer, namely, two pieces of his coffin carrying Coffin Texts, labeled as G1T and G2T. ملخص البحث: توفر هذه المقالة دراستي حالة من أرشيف الصور الفوتوغرافية التاريخي الخاص بالمتحف المصري في تورينو. تُظهر ثلاث لوحات فوتوغرافية تحت أرقام (C0629، C0630،C0631 ) بقايا جزئين من نماذج (قارب وصومعة) كانتا قد عثُر عليهما من قبل البعثة الأثرية الإيطالية في "الجبلين عام 1914. وتوفر هذه الصور معلومات مهمة عن حالة هذين العنصرين في الوقت الذي تم فيه اكتشافهم، حيث أن أحدهما (من المحتمل أن يكون القارب رقمS. 15776 ) وهو الآن أكثر تهتكًا بكثير عما بدا عليه في الصور التاريخية الملتقطة له، بينما الصومعة مفقودة الآن. يركز المؤلف بشكل خاص على تأريخ وامتداد وأهمية النمط الزخرفي المميز لمقصورة القارب، وبناء على هذا النمط الزخرفي اقترح المؤلف تاريخًا للمقبرة (المفقود الآن) التي تم العثور على هذين العنصرين بها. لا يزال تأريخ هذه المقبرة موضع نقاش حتى الآن، حيث أنه لا يمكن تحديد تاريخ دقيق للعناصر الأخرى المنسوبة إلى مالكها، أيقر ، وهما قطعتين من تابوتة يحملان نصوص التوابيت.

Reliability of portable X-ray Fluorescence for the chemical characterisation of ancient corroded copper‑tin alloys

This paper examines the effect of different corrosion patinas on the chemical composition of copper‑tin alloys detected by portable X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (pXRF). Specimens of Cu88Sn12 alloy with a composition close to that of ancient Egyptian copper-based alloys were corroded in three different aqueous solutions containing aggressive anions that can be found in Egyptian soil, for a maximum time of three months. After each sample was extracted, the elemental composition was determined with pXRF and the surface morphology and cross-sections were observed by metallographic microscopy to measure the thickness of the corrosion patinas. The cross-section of selected samples was analysed with Scanning Electron Microscopy equipped with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometer (SEM-EDS). During the corrosion evolution of the copper alloy in the corrosive solutions of chlorides, decuprification phenomena made XRF data less accurate due to the development and thickening of Sn compounds (oxides or chlorides). Another problem encountered in the detection of the chemical composition of the Cu88Sn12 alloy was the bronze disease that strongly increased the corrosion process leading to the formation of an outer layer of atacamite and paratacamite, reaching a thickness of 150 μm. Conversely, during the corrosion process of the samples immersed in a sulphate solution, no changes in the initial composition of the Cu88Sn12 alloy were observed. The attenuation effect of the Sn concentration, by the thickness of green/dark green patinas with a high chloride content was observed on two Egyptian toilet spoons from the Museo Egizio (Turin) using pXRF. Following comparison of the chemical compositions in different corrosion patinas, it emerged that the red and grey patinas did not suffer the attenuation effects and, at these points of analysis, a reliable chemical characterisation of the alloy was obtained.

Egyptian Grave Goods of Kha and Merit Studied by Neutron and Gamma Techniques

Artifacts from the Egyptian grave goods of Kha and Merit preserved at the Museo Egizio in Turin were studied through a combination of non-destructive and non-invasive neutron and gamma techniques (namely neutron imaging, neutron diffraction and prompt gamma activation analysis). The results provide unprecedented morphological reconstructions of the inner parts of the two alabaster and metallic vases and their isotopic and phase composition, thereby extending our knowledge of the hitherto unknown content of the vases and their functions.

Egyptian Grave Goods of Kha and Merit Studied by Neutron and Gamma Techniques

AbstractArtifacts from the Egyptian grave goods of Kha and Merit preserved at the Museo Egizio in Turin were studied through a combination of non‐destructive and non‐invasive neutron and gamma techniques (namely neutron imaging, neutron diffraction and prompt gamma activation analysis). The results provide unprecedented morphological reconstructions of the inner parts of the two alabaster and metallic vases and their isotopic and phase composition, thereby extending our knowledge of the hitherto unknown content of the vases and their functions.

Rediscovering Sculptures from Tebtynis at the Museo Egizio in Turin

This article presents three case studies from an ongoing research project on the statues and sculptural fragments from Tebtynis, discovered by Carlo Anti in the years 1930-1936 in the temple dedicated to the god Soknebtynis. Specifically, it examines the following three statues: Alexandria, Graeco-Roman Museum inv. no. 22979, Turin, Museo Egizio S. 18176, and a non-royal statue which one of the authors has recently identified as Turin, Museo Egizio S. 19400+S. 19400/1. The authors combine stylistic analysis with a study of relevant archival records currently kept in Padua and Venice, Italy, to shed light on these sculptures and retrace their post-excavation history. ملخص البحث: يقدم هذا المقال دراسات حالة على ثلاثة قطع آثرية من المشروع البحثى المستمر لتماثيل وبقايا المنحوتات من مدينة تبتونيس "أم البريجات"، التى أكتشفت بواسطة كارلو أنتى خلال أعوام 1930-1936م بالمعبد المكرس للمعبود سوبك نبتونيس. تحديداً ومن خلال فحص التماثيل الثلاث التالية: تمثال من المتحف اليونانى الرومانى بالأسكندرية ويحمل رقم 22979، وأخر من المتحف المصرى بتورينو ويحمل أرقام . S. 18176، وتمثال غير ملكى والذى تم تحديدة مؤخراً من قبل أحد المؤلفين وهو محفوظ أيضاً بالمتحف المصرى بتورينو ويحمل رقم S. 19400+S. 19400/1. تجمع دراسة المؤلفين تضامن التحليل الأسلوبي مع دراسة السجلات الأرشيفية ذات الصلة المحفوظة حاليا في بادوا، إيطاليا، لتسليط الضوء على هذه المنحوتات وتتبع تاريخ ما بعد الحفائر.

Three Faience Rosette Discs in the Museo Egizio in Turin: The Early Ramesside Pharaohs in the Eastern Delta, and Their Glittering Palaces

Three small faience rosette discs now in the Museo Egizio of Turin, one of which has a given provenance from Heliopolis, while another bears the inscription ‘Tel el-Yahoudeh’, form an intriguing introduction to a certain type of Egyptian palace architectural decoration. They also trace the sorry story of the pillage of Ramesside sites in the Delta. Not only was it possible for near contemporary Pharaonic activity to transport and relocate the majority of the stone monuments of a whole city (Qantir-Piramesses to Tanis), to the extreme puzzlement of Egyptologists, but the smallest elements of certain ritual buildings also proved irresistible, since for the sebakhin they were highly portable and saleable. The renewed commercial opportunities offered by European travellers in the nineteenth century sounded the death knell for buildings decorated with these attractive decorative elements. Here I shall take a detailed look at the rosette tiles, their possible sources, and the light they throw on techniques of faience manufacture. ملخص البحث: ترتكز الدراسة فى هذا المقال على دراسة ثلاثة أقراص صغيرة من الفاينس الوردى موجودة حاليا بالمتحف المصرى بتورينو، إحداهما وفقاً للسجل فهى من هليوبوليس، فى حين أن آخرى من تل اليهودية، حيث تشكل هذه القطع الثلاث مقدمة مثيرة للإهتمام لنوع معين من الزخارف المعمارية في القصر المصري. كما أنها تتبع القصة المؤسفة لنهب مواقع الرعامسة فى الدلتا. على جانب واحد كان من الممكن للنشاط الفرعونى المعاصر نقل معظم المعالم الحجرية لمدينة بأكملها (على سبيل المثال قنطير-بررمسيس إلى تانيس)، مما أدى إلى حيرة علماء المصريات، ليس لهذا السبب فقط بل أيضاً عن كيفية نقل العناصر الصغيرة للغاية من زخرفة بعض المبانى الطقسية، فى الواقع هذا قد يكون راجعاً للسباخين الذين كانو قادرين على حملها وبيعها. وقد أتاحت الفرص التجارية المتجددة التى ظهرت للمسافرون الأوربيون فى القرن التاسع عشر بداية النهاية للمبانى المزخرفة بهذة العناصر الزخرفية الجذابة. هنا ومن خلال البحث سوف يلقى المؤلف نظرة مفصلة على البلاط الوردى، مصادرة المحتملة، وعلى ضوء معرفة تقنيات تصنيع الفاينس.

Nuns and Guns: Thoughts on Heritage, Histories, and Egyptology

In March 2017, the Museo Egizio in Turin, Italy opened an exhibition calledMissione Egitto 1903–1920, exploring the history of the archaeological excavations from which much of the museum's impressive (and impressively displayed) collection derives. Known as the Missione Archeologica Italiana, the excavations were overseen by the museum's then-director, Ernesto Schiaparelli—an esteemed Egyptologist and prominent Catholic philanthropist. “Mission” was one of several terms archaeologists used to identify their work in the colonial Middle East, including Egypt: the Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale in Cairo originated in 1880 as the “Mission archéologique,” to take just one example (Reid 2002, 175).

Virtopsy shows a high status funerary treatment in an early 18th Dynasty non-royal individual.

This work presents the multidisciplinary investigation of the head of Nebiri (Museo Egizio, Turin S_5109), Chief of Stables, a high status elite person from the 18th Dynasty involving MDCT, 3D brain surface and facial reconstructions accompanied by a consideration of previously presented chemical analysis of the embalming materials found in fragments of bandages used on the head and viscera (lung) found in one of the four canopic jars. Comparison of the techniques used for the cosmetic treatment of Nebiri with those used in other elite and high status non-royal persons confirms the validity of the use of the term "high status elite" in the case of Nebiri. This case highlights the importance of using modern forensic techniques both to enhance new technologies of retrospective diagnosis on altered human remains and to increase knowledge of past populations.

A neutron study of sealed pottery from the grave-goods of Kha and Merit

This work presents the first neutron characterization of artefacts from the grave-goods of Kha and Merit, a unique cultural treasure of mankind and preserved at the Museo Egizio in Turin.