Quarryscapes

This book seeks to identify and describe all the rocks and minerals employed by the ancient Egyptians using proper geological nomenclature, and to give an account of their sources in so far as they are known. The various uses of the stones are described, as well as the technologies employed to extract, transport, carve, and thermally treat them.

Making environmental history accessible to scholars of the Middle East and the history of the region accessible to environmental historians, Water on Sand opens up new fields of scholarly inquiry.

The Oxford Handbook of Egyptology offers a comprehensive survey of the entire study of ancient Egypt, from prehistory through to the end of the Roman period. Authoritative yet accessible, and covering a wide range of topics, it is an invaluable resource for scholars, students, and general readers alike.

Science in the Study of Ancient Egypt takes an innovative and integrated approach to the use of scientific techniques and methodologies within the study of ancient Egypt. Accessibly demonstrating how to integrate scientific methodologies into Egyptology broadly, and in Egyptian archaeology in particular, this volume will help to maximise the amount of information that can be obtained within a study of ancient Egypt, be it in the field, museum, or laboratory. Using a range of case studies which exemplify best practice within Egyptian archaeological science, Science in the Study of Ancient Egypt presents both the scientific methods of analysis available and their potential applications to Egyptologists. Although Egyptology has mainly shown a marked lack of engagement with recent archaeological science, the authors illustrate the inclusive but varied nature of the scientific archaeology which is now being undertaken, demonstrating how new analytical techniques can develop greater understanding of Egyptian data.

Egypt under the Romans (30 BCE–3rd century CE) was a period when local deserts experienced an unprecedented flurry of activity. In the Eastern Desert, a marked increase in desert traffic came from imperial prospecting/quarrying activities and caravans transporting wares to and from the Red Sea ports. In the Western Desert, resilient camels slowly became primary beasts of burden in desert travel, enabling caravaneers to lengthen daily marching distances across previously inhospitable dunes. Desert road archaeology has used satellite imaging, landscape studies and network analysis to plot desert trail networks with greater accuracy; however, it is often difficult to date roadside installations and thus assess how these networks evolved in scope and density in reaction to climatic, social and technological change. Roads in the Deserts of Roman Egypt examines evidence for desert roads in Roman Egypt and assesses Roman influence on the road density in two select desert areas: the central and southern section of the Eastern Desert and the central Marmarican Plateau and discusses geographical and social factors influencing road use in the period, demonstrating that Roman overseers of these lands adapted remarkably well to local desert conditions, improving roads and developing the trail network. Crucially, the author reconceptualises desert trails as linear corridor structures that follow expedient routes in the desert landscape, passing through at least two functional nodes attracting human traffic, be those water sources, farmlands, mines/quarries, trade hubs, military installations or actual settlements. The ‘route of least resistance’ across the desert varied from period to period according to the available road infrastructure and beasts of burden employed. Roman administration in Egypt not only increased the density of local desert ‘node’ networks, but also facilitated internodal connections with camel caravans and transformed the Sahara by establishing new, or embellishing existing, nodes, effectively funnelling desert traffic into discernible corridors.Significantly, not all desert areas of Egypt are equally suited for anthropogenic development, but almost all have been optimised in one way or another, with road installations built for added comfort and safety of travellers. Accordingly, the study of how Romans successfully adapted to desert travel is of wider significance to the study of deserts and ongoing expansion due to global warming.

Christianity and monasticism have flourished along the Nile Valley in the Aswan region of Upper Egypt and in what was once Nubia, from as early as the fourth century until the present day. The contributors to this volume, international specialists in Coptology from around the world, examine various aspects of Coptic civilization in Aswan and Nubia over the past centuries. The complexity of Christian identity in Nubia, as distinct from Egypt, is examined in the context of church ritual and architecture. Many of the studies explore Coptic material culture: inscriptions, art, architecture, and archaeology; and language and literature. The archaeological and artistic heritage of monastic sites in Edfu, Aswan, Makuria, and Kom Ombo are highlighted, attesting to their important legacies in the region.