Achaeology

Tell Ibrahim Awad

Report on the Eleventh Field Season
(April, 30–June, 10 2000)

Members of the expedition:

• Willem M. van Haarlem — Field Director;
• Galina A. Belova — Co-Director of expedition;
• Rizq Diab Ghadiri — Inspector of the SCA;
• Alexei Krol — Archeologist;
• Chiori Kitagawa — Archeologist;
• Ron Leenheer — Photographer, Restorer;
• Jerome C. Rose — Anthropologist;
• Martha K. Spradley — Anthropologist;
• Salima Ikram — Archaeozoologist;
• Tomas Hikade — Flint Specialist.

J. Rose at work

In the season of 2000 the excavation area was extended owing to the study of square A 130/230 where a number of new burials was found. There were studied nine burials excavated last year (five burials in square A 150/120, one burial in square A 140/120 and three burials in square A 150/210) and ten new burials (one burial in square A 130/220, eight burials in square A 130/230 and one burial in square A 150/210). All of them belong to one (the second) type of burials, the inner surface of which was covered with reed mats. Two burials made of mudbrick (the first type of burials) — one burial in square A 130/230 and the other in square A 130/223 — were situated in such manner that their main part was in the walls of the excavation area. That is why their study was left for the next season (as well as one burial of the first type in square A 140/210). Three other burials (two burials in square A 130/220 and one in square A 130/230 were found after the departure of specialists-anthropologists. These burials were also left for the next season. One of them (the second type) is of special interest (No 24 in square A 130/230). It is the burial of a large size which belongs to the Old Kingdom while all known burials of this type are dated back to the Early Middle Kingdom. May be this burial is the first one of the discovered burials of this period. The rest of the burials of the same archaeological layer are dated back to the I Intermediate period and in accordance with their construction can be ascribed to the first type. Most burials contained adults: ten male and five female skeletons (in one burial two male skeletons were found). It is difficult to determine the sex of five skeletons due to their bad preservation. All the burials are orientated along the axis north-south. According to the position of the skeletons the dead were buried lying on the left side facing the east. One burial was an exception: judging by the position of the bones a dead was buried lying on the back; in two more burials the dead were buried in a crooked position (a posture of embryo). This type of the position of a dead body occurs for the first time.

Burial of Type II

Thus by now there have been studied 59 skeletons in the necropolis of Tell Ibrahim Awad. In a number of burials on the bottom of graves and on the skeleton bones there were found quantities of plaster and ochre of yellow or red colours. It is supposed that they are the remains of the decayed painted wooden sarcophagi. For all studied burials very poor equipment was common. For the most part there were beads made of bone. Only two burials contained pottery (water jars).

In the square A 140/220 the remains of settlement were found — a road limited by the walls of buildings, fireplaces. In the square A 130/220, near a fireplace, some large vessels, a lot of animal bones and river shells, and numerous flint tools were found. Also a stone button seal with geometric ornament was discovered there. The similar finds were made in Kua el-Kebir (Middle Egypt). According to the seal, this layer was dated from the First Intermediate Period. Another seal of this type was found in a burial in Tell Ibrahim Awad in 1993.

In season of 2000 one important discovery was made. On the bottom of one burial in the square A140/120 the seal impression with the Horus name (irj-maat ?) of Userkaf was found. This find confirmed a supposition, which was made earlier with the help of pottery analysis, about the dating of the layers of excavation area of 2000 year season by the late Old Kingdom.

In season of 2000 a specialist in stone tools took part in the work of the expedition. He studied all flint tools which had been found at Tell Ibrahim Awad during the ten seasons. The results confirmed a number of preliminary datings (first of all, of the temple complex).

The archaeozoologist studied animal bones found before. The analysis showed that mainly they were hippopotamus bones. The specialist also studied objects made of bone which were found in temple caches. 90% of these objects were made of hippopotamus bone and only 10% of the items were made of ivory. These results confirmed an opinion that hippopotamus occupied one of the main places in the animal world of the Nile Delta till the end of the Old Kingdom.

In this season the restoration of the objects made of bone, which started in 1997, was almost completed.

W. van Haarlem