The popularity of the Ricci C type of wheel-made lamps in southeastern Sicily: questions and hypotheses

At Akrai in southeastern Sicily, the University of Warsaw excavations have unearthed a huge quantity of small, wheel-made, beige-slipped lamps belonging to the Roman Republican type Ricci C. The most important conclusions from the research concern the functionality of these lamps, both as devices used for lighting in everyday life and as unused elements of votive deposits, as well as their enduring presence in southeastern Sicily when they had all but disappeared elsewhere in the Roman world. The type is a derivative of an old form and peaked in popularity in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC. The last examples of this type seem to have been produced in the reign of Augustus.

The West Wall of the Portico of Obelisks in Hatshepsut's Temple in 2018 and 2019: conservation and studies

The longest, west wall of the South Lower Portico (Portico of Obelisks) of the Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari has been reassessed in terms of its current state, compared to the original documentation by Edouard Naville, as an opening step to the author’s research project organized within the frame of the larger University of Warsaw Temple of Hatshepsut research program. A considerable number of blocks from the wall, including unpublished fragments, was tracked down in storage in the various temple blockyards and storerooms. About two-thirds of the wall decoration underwent conservation treatment in the spring of 2018 and 2019 seasons. The paper discusses the author’s progress in this research.

The 'last' king of Makuria (Dotawo)

Representations of Makurian Kings and Queens (Mothers of the King), dated from the end of the 8th through the 13th centuries, have been preserved inside several churches of Makuria, but mostly inside the cathedrals of Pachoras. The representation of the king inside the monastery church NB.2.2 in Dongola is the latest one and the most fully preserved with the regalia and late dress.

Research and architectural conservation in Marina el-Alamein in 2018 (Polish–Egyptian Conservation Mission)

Activities undertaken by the Polish–Egyptian Conservation Mission to Marina el-Alamein in 2018 comprised research and conservation mainly in the public district of the ancient town and, additionally, in private houses. Work focused foremost on research and presentation of remains of two streets, running east and south of the southeastern corner of the main town square, and the adjoining monuments. Research and conservation continued also on the remains of public Roman baths dating from the 1st to the 3rd century AD, located in the area south of the square. Maintenance conservation was carried out in Houses H21c and H1 and in the ancient town center. Land grading to enhance exhibition value and ensure rainwater drainage was carried out in some areas.

Alexandria Kom el-Dikka. Excavations and preservation work in the 2018 season

The 2018 season saw a continuation of research on Roman housing and urbanism in Alexandria. Excavations were focused in the central area of the Kom el-Dikka site, where some early to mid-Roman structures (2nd–3rd centuries AD) were explored. The uncovered part of the building seems to combine domestic and commercial functions. A couple of shops opening onto the street were identified. Evidence of artisanal production of glass beads was also recognised in the post-occupation phase. Post-processing of the finds (pottery, glass vessels, painted wall plaster and coins) was continued. The paper also brings an overview of the preservation program, which was limited this season to maintenance conservation of structures seriously threatened by unfavourable climatic conditions (mainly Baths and auditoria).

Human remains from the Tomb of Khety (MMA 508/TT 311) in North Asasif

The North Asasif Necropolis, adjacent to the New Kingdom temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el Bahari, has been the subject of several excavations over the past century, first by H.E. Winlock in the early 20th century, and since 2013 by the Asasif Project. Most of the tombs in the necropolis are rock-cut tombs of honored officials dating to the Middle Kingdom. One of these officials, named Khety, was buried in a tomb designated by Winlock as MMA 508 (also known as Theban Tomb 311), though the tomb was subsequently reused for another burial (or burials) during the Third Intermediate Period. Though Winlock excavated this tomb in the early 20th century, he left much archaeological material behind, and systematic documentation of this excavation debris by the Asasif Project has yielded a wealth of information. This study focuses specifically on the human remains recovered from MMA 508 during the 2019 season. Despite the commingled nature of the MMA 508 assemblage, much information has been gleaned from the human remains. The remains of at least twenty individuals, including infants and children as well as adults, were recovered from the tomb debris. Evidence for systemic physiological stress and infection was observed in some of the remains, and both male and female individuals were identified. Various aspects of body treatment testify to the elite status of the individuals interred in this tomb. The relatively high percentage of sub-adult remains may support theories that the tombs in this part of the necropolis were sometimes used as multi-generational family tombs. Further study of the human remains from MMA 508 may shed light on burial practices from the Middle Kingdom and Third Intermediate Period.

Metsamor in Armenia: the sixth season of fieldwork in 2018

Archaeological exploration of the eastern part of the settlement in Metsamor in 2018 uncovered several rectangular structures. Most of these structures were dated to the early Iron Ages I and II. Roman-period graves were recorded in the ruins of the Iron Age settlement. An anthropological assessment of human remains from three of the burials (sex, age, cranial and postcranial measurements as well as the selected paleopathologies) is presented in the appendix.

Excavation of the small animal cemetery at the Roman Red Sea harbor of Berenike in 2018 and 2019

The paper discusses funeral practices with regard to animals in ancient Berenike, investigated in two seasons of exploration, 2018 and 2019 (trenches BE18/19-107, BE01/19-48 and BE19/132). Three groups of animals are represented almost exclusively in the burials. These are cats, dogs and monkeys, buried mainly around the top and on what was the eastern slope of a sand dune. In the mid 1st century AD, an enclosure wall roughly 0.50 m thick was built enclosing a space of about 20 m2 with no apparent floor surface inside it. Outside the wall, a clay pavement surrounded the enclosure on at least three sides. Animal burials accumulated around this enclosure for the next century or so, achieving the greatest density close to the feature. By the 2nd century AD urban rubbish had encroached heavily upon the area taken up by the burials. Most likely in the beginning of the 3rd century AD, the wall was dismantled, perhaps together with the features that had been inside the enclosure (statue, column, tree?). Interestingly, two goats were buried by the two excavated corners (northeastern and northwestern ones) in this period. One of these represented a variant of the species not typical of Northeastern Africa.

Multidisciplinary insight into late Roman rural settlement on the northeastern Adriatic coast of Croatia: Island of Rab case study

Results of multidisciplinary research conducted on the island of Rab (Northeastern Adriatic, Croatia) are presented with particular focus on late Roman rural settlements and their economic activities. The settlement in Podšilo bay, Lopar peninsula, is analyzed in more detail, providing evidence on a vibrant local community engaged in diversified craft activities and the exploitation of local land and marine resources. Along with the specificities of its layout and organization, this site also presents unique possibilities to study environmental factors that influenced its setup and economy, but also its demise, tentatively placed within the 6th century AD.

Animal remains from the el-Hamra Christian complex in the el-Ga'ab Depression, West Dongola (Sudan)

The animal remains discussed in this paper come from three archaeological sites in the el‑Hamra Christian complex, excavated within the frame of the el‑Ga'ab Depression archaeological, ethnographical and ecological project. During two seasons in 2013/2014 and 2014/2015, a team directed by Yahia Fadl Tahir collected and examined a total of 89 mammal, five ostrich egg and 16 mollusk remains. The bone assemblage was divided into seven groups representing the most and least attractive parts of the carcass in terms of nutritional value. Identified species include sheep (Ovis aries) and goat (Capra hircus), while other animal remains include ostrich egg fragments and mollusk species: Pila ovata, Melanoides tuberculata and Lanistes carinatus. Similarities can be observed in livestock husbandry and subsistence patterns in the early Christian period in the Dongola region, where the economy depended on small mammals like sheep and goats to provide milk and meat.