Decorated Ware pottery represents a predynastic product of local creativity that faded with the statehood of dynastic Egypt. The interpretation of this vessel production as a phenomenon of skeuomorphism has long been an Egyptological topos, especially of D-ware with stone inspired decorations. This study focuses on the actual interactions between the production of the latter and predynastic stone vessels, and attempts to assess their social and economic dynamics
This study focuses on the analysis of the group ANOC 30, a chapel with four stelae that commemorate and record the family ties of four generations of individuals named Nakht (CG 20263, CG 20515, CG 20526, and CG 20751). The first section of this paper provides the transcription, transliteration, and complete translation of the set of stelae of the group ANOC 30. The second part examines the donation of stelae during the Middle Kingdom through the so-called vivification formula which appears in the corpus of the four stelae that are part of the group ANOC 30. Additionally, the social identity of the main figure represented in the monument, Nakht (III), will be analyzed to understand the possible connections and power relationships he may have developed thanks to his position in the new capital of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt.
To sum up, the analysis and study of the group ANOC 30 aim to understand the connections and the significance that family remembrance may have had in shaping certain social and familial identities at the beginning of the Middle Kingdom.
This paper presents six small anthropomorphic clay figurines held in the collection of the Garstang Museum in Liverpool, accessioned as potentially coming from one of the Garstang excavations at Abydos. The figurines are illustrated and described here for the first time and are stylistically analysed within the broader framework of comparable Egyptian clay figurines from other sites. Their manufacture and clay composition – analysed with portable XRF – are discussed, and their possible date and provenience is reconsidered.
This combination of diverse research methods sheds light on an otherwise unknown group of objects and aims to contribute to broader approaches in the study of ancient clay materials.
Deir el-Medina housed a community of skilled craftsmen responsible for constructing royal tombs in the nearby Valleys of the Kings and Valley of the Queens during the New Kingdom. While the site’s flourishing Ramesside period is well documented, its earlier history, particularly the Amarna and post-Amarna periods, remain less understood. To date, most scholars have generally agreed that the community was relocated to Tell el-Amarna during the reign of Akhenaten to contribute to the construction of the new royal capital, resulting in the temporary abandonment of Deir el-Medina. However, evidence suggests that the site may have continued to be occupied during this period.
This paper reassesses existing theories concerning Deir el Medina’s status during the Amarna and post-Amarna periods, offering new insights based on an updated and comprehensive corpus of evidence that also integrates recent scholarly developments with new findings from the Medjehu Project’s research on woodworking at the site.
This article presents the results of the archaeobotanical study of the assemblage of floral arrangements (garlands, bouquets and scattered plant remains) unearthed from the courtyard of the funerary chapel M.I.D.A.N.05 at Dra Abu el-Naga. Excavated in 2011 and 2014, the materials were predominantly recovered from an archaeological layer (SU 674) datable to the Late Period (c. 664-332 BC). Over 2,000 garland fragments and 167 bouquet-like arrangements were analysed, revealing standardised manufacturing techniques and a limited but culturally significant selection of plant species. Thanks to the material associated within the layer, it is here suggested that these compositions were part of the rituals performed outside the tomb during funerals and festivals for the dead. Then, the study not only confirms the persistence of traditional Theban floral practices into the Late Period but also opens the possibility to introduce new typologies, particularly sweep bouquets made from Desmostachya bipinnata (L.) Stapf, into the scholarly corpus.
Furthermore, the contextual integrity and stratigraphic clarity of the finds make M.I.D.A.N.05 a pivotal case study in the archaeology of ancient Egyptian floral arrangements and their ritual use.
A short note dealing with the provenance of two heart-amulets in the Florence Egyptian Museum. The two objects, recently published, are characterized by the same material, a yellow-brown resin similar to amber. Mentioned by Rosellini himself among the objects brought to Florence during the Franco-Tuscan Egyptian Expedition, they appear as having been purchased, not excavated, in Egypt, in the documents of the expedition kept in Prague.
This paper investigates the role of fish and fishing equipment in Lower Mesopotamia between the 6th and 3rd millennia BCE. By combining evidence from faunal remains with artifacts related to fishing practices, it explores how aquatic resources were integrated into subsistence, economic strategies, and cultural expressions. Materials from several major sites are considered in relation to their environmental and archaeological contexts, with particular attention to the relationship between settlement location, water systems, and the availability of different taxa. Beyond their practical use, fish also appear in ritual and funerary settings, suggesting symbolic associations that complemented their dietary importance. Overall, the study highlights the multifaceted value of aquatic resources, showing how they contributed to both daily life and broader cultural frameworks in early Mesopotamian societies.
This paper examines two cases of forced migration from the remote Plain of Rania in NE Iraq (KAR) separated by nearly 4000 years. The oldest was an outright deportation organised by the Kingdom of Shamshi-Adad I ca. 1780 BCE to punish local resistance and procure much-needed labour. The more recent was occasioned by the construction of the Dokan Dam in the late 1950s of our era, and served to make space for the artificial Dokan reservoir, which has since covered the core of the Plain. Both events are co-incidentally fairly well documented, although by very different data sets, the juxtaposition of which, however, serves to illuminate important aspects of either.
This paper presents an updated edition and an expanded commentary on a bilingual Aramaic-Dadanitic inscription from ancient Dadān. The inscription was featured in the “AlUla, Wonder of Arabia” exhibition, held in Paris (2019) and Beijing (2024). Despite mentioning “Aretas, king of the Nabataeans,” the dating of this dedicatory inscription remains debated. Through a paleographic analysis of the Aramaic text, this study aims to offer a clearer placement of the inscription within the historical and cultural context of the Dadān oasis during the final centuries of the first millennium BCE.