Studies in Ancient Art and Civilisation

Front Matter

2022-12-18

Back Matter

2022-12-18

Phase 5 (Naqada IIIb–IIIc1) in Tell El-Farkha. The Peak of Development or the Beginning of Decline?

Krzysztof M. Ciałowicz — 2022-12-18

The research at Tell el-Farkha provides new opportunities to reconstruct the processes of Egyptian state formation. Seven main chronological phases are distinguished. One of the most important periods in the city’s history is phase 4 (Naqada IIIA–Naqada IIIB; ca. 3350–3200 BC). An administrative-cultic centre, a monumental warehouse, and the oldest Egyptian mastaba were created during this time. The inhabitants of Tell el- Farkha owed their prosperity to the trade with the Southern Levant. During phase 5 (Naqada IIIB to Naqada IIIC1; ca. 3200–3000 BC) several phenomena are evident that portended the gradual decline of the city, eventually leading to its abandonment. No evidence of major storage facilities has so far been discovered at Tell el-Farkha from phase 5, and imported pottery is also absent in this period. It seems that at the beginning of the Protodynastic period the Egyptians gradually abandoned the trade routes running through the eastern Delta and used new ones leading via Wadi Tumilat or across the Red Sea. The engravings in Wadi Ameyra (Sinai) with the names of Iry-Hor, Ka, and Narmer suggest that exploration of the natural resources of the Sinai and the maritime routes to Egypt were highly important. In this situation only a few imported products would have reached cities like Tell el-Farkha, which may explain the lack of both central warehouses and imported ceramics. Natural disasters also contributed significantly to the decline of Tell el-Farkha. The abandonment of the Western Kom, at the end of phase 5, clearly followed a major catastrophe caused by natural forces. The collapsed walls may be the result of this cataclysm. Evidence of a natural catastrophe that struck the settlement at the turn of our phases 5 and 6 can be found at the Eastern Kom as well.

La prime testimonianze della metallurgia nei colli albani (Roma, Italia Centrale)

Flavio Altamura — 2022-12-18

The earliest evidence of metallurgy in the Alban Hills (Latium, central Italy), dated between the Eneolithic and the Recent Bronze Age (c. IV – end of II millennium B.C.), is described through a review of the published materials and the study of unpublished finds. The analysis allows to understand the technological capabilities and cultural, social and economic aspects of the local communities in the pre-protohistoric period.

Roman Prostitution Through Plautus’ Theatre

María Teresa de Luque Morales — 2022-12-18

The main issue addressed in this paper is the study of the prostitution business in the mid-Republican period from the point of view of theatre. Theatre appeared in Rome in 240 BC, and, from that time on, we find plays that are of great value to our understanding of the Roman society of this period.
For this reason, we will focus on the comedies of Plautus, representing the genre of the fabula palliata. By taking this documentation as a basis, one can analyse the role of prostitutes and procurers in his comedies, on whom we are given extensive information through humour. Despite possible exaggerations, the models used by the author allow us to approach the reality of that period (the end of the 3^rd and the 2^nd century BC).

Construction of Ancient Houses in Marina El-Alamein. Analysis of the Demand for Building Stone

Szymon Popławski — 2022-12-18

Although structures within the ancient settlement in Marina el-Alamein were built almost exclusively of local limestone, no remains of ancient quarries have been found. The author calculates the cubature of stone used in the construction of the houses, based on the knowledge of the applied building solutions. The resulting data make it possible to address the question of the city managing the works without its own quarry, sourcing limestone from subterranean structures alone.

Evidence from a Nabataean Inscription Regarding Water and Cult in Nabataea, with Some Remarks on the Nabataean Royal Family

Zeyad al-Salameen — 2022-12-18

The article presents a Nabataean text inscribed in raised relief on a bronze plate and dated to the seventh year of the Nabataean king Aretas IV (3 BC). The text is significant since it mentions the dedication of a water well/cistern by Aretas, to his god Dushara, the God of Gaia “for the life of himself and his wife ḥldw, queen of the Nabataeans, and their daughter pṣʾl.” The paper includes a commentary on the vocabulary of the text and sheds some light on water and its association with the cult in Nabataea. In addition, it provides some details about ḥldw, queen of the Nabataeans and pṣʾl, the daughter of Aretas and ḥldw, allowing an update of the Nabataean royal family tree.

An investigation into the Pottery Flasks at the Sanandaj Archaeological Museum

Mohammad Ebrahim Zarei — 2022-12-18

Pottery has a significant bearing on the reconstruction of ancient regional and transregional interactions. Flasks represent a pottery type that was more ubiquitous in the historical period. The present study examined 16 pottery flasks stored at the Sanandaj Archaeological Museum in order to address three research questions: Which historical period can this pottery be dated to? What is the geographical range over which they were manufactured given the available excavated comparanda? What types are represented in the sample under study in terms of manufacturing technique, surface treatment, decoration, and form? The results showed that the flasks were primarily produced in two varieties, round shouldered and angular shouldered, with their exterior coated in a slip or a buff, turquoise, and light or dark green glaze. Judging by their appearance (surface finish and decorations), they were produced in the Hellenistic and Parthian period. It was found out that they have parallels among assemblages from west and southwest Iran and Mesopotamia. The study adopted the descriptivehistorical and comparative methods.

The Young Lady in Pink. New Light on the Life and Afterlife of an Ancient Portrait

Jan M. van Daal — 2022-12-18

A Roman-Egyptian mummy portrait of a young woman in a pink tunic is part of the Allard Pierson collection in Amsterdam. The portrait is well-known and a key piece of the collection, but has received little scholarly attention so far. The life and the afterlife of the portrait are therefore poorly understood. The authors approach the portrait from different perspectives: its provenance and acquisition, the artist’s materials and techniques, the dating conventions surrounding mummy portraits and their cultural context. The authors advocate for this in-depth multidisciplinary approach primarily because it spotlights specific areas in mummy portraits (in this case, the pearl earrings) where iconography, materials and techniques and ancient socio-economic developments converge. Provenance research proved important not only for securing the object’s bona fide acquisition, but also for tracing its second-life biography. These converging perspectives effectively cast light on research areas where more work remains desirable. In lieu of secure documentation of the archaeological findspot (which is the case with most mummy portraits) this approach is a powerful tool to nonetheless compose histories that help to understand the meaning of mummy portraits in the past and in the present and provide a durable framework for future research.

The Foundation Scene on Roman Colonial Coins from the Near East in the 3rd Century CE

Szymon Jellonek — 2022-12-18

One of the most common iconographic motifs of Roman colonial coinage is the ‘foundation scene’. Colonies modelled on Rome were established according to the aratrum ritual, in imitation of the manner in which, according to myths, Romulus founded Rome. Veteran colonies, established between the 1^st century BCE and the 2^nd century CE, gladly exploited that motif to commemorate the colonial foundation and to manifest their bond with Rome. However, colonies set up under Septimius Severus and later were considered as purely titular foundations. Nevertheless, they also occasionally presented the foundation scene on civic coins. If they were not colonists, the question arises as to the message that such coins conveyed. In this paper, the author makes an attempt to examine the foundation scene on Roman colonial coins from the Near East in the 3^rd century CE. The concepts of veteran and titular colonies are contrasted. It is a noteworthy that while the colonies in northern Syria and Mesopotamia (except Rhesaena) never introduced the foundation scene on their coinages, the southern colonies (except Philippopolis) proudly manifested their connections with Rome. Eventually, the foundation scene disappeared from colonial coins of the Near East in the mid-3^rd century.

Représenter l’égyptologue, rendre hommage au Boulonnais. Le portrait d’Auguste Mariette par Florent Buret

Michel Gutierrez — 2022-12-18

In this paper, we propose the first study of the portrait of Auguste Mariette kept in the Château Comtal – Musée de Boulognesur- Mer (France). Painted by Florent Buret in 1899, the work pays tribute to the Egyptologist born in this city in 1821. Artificially composed from photographic sources, this portrait evokes his work for the Louvre and Boulaq museums in France and Egypt. It was included in the “historical gallery” of the town hall of Boulogne-sur-Mer with fourteen other personalities of the city. As such, it reflects the pride of a late 19^th century French town and its scholarly and political networks.