ARCHAEOMAGNETIC FIELD INTENSITY DURING THE ROMAN PERIOD AT SIWA AND BAHRYN OASIS,EGYPT: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE FIDELITY OF EGYPTIAN ARCHAEOMAGNETIC DATA

A preliminary survey was conducted in Siwa and Bahryn Oasis to test the possible influence of various rock magnetic and experimental constraints on the fidelity of the Egyptian archaeomagnetic field record. Five potsherds from the Roman era, which lasted from 1981 bp to 1555 bp , have been investigated. Archaeologists dated the localities to ～1620 bp . Ten ceramic specimens, two of each potsherd, were subjected to archaeointensity determination, including tests for domain state effects, magnetic anisotropy and magnetic cooling rate dependency. Six successful archaeointensity determinations are obtained from three individual cooling units, revealing an average field value of 37.7 μT for the late Roman period in Siwa and Bahryn oasis, which is comparable to the present‐day field strength. The error propagation of the individual uncertainties related to all applied experimental techniques results in a maximum uncertainty estimate of 4.4 μT. The obtained field value is significantly smaller than early results and slightly smaller than some more recent determinations of the field intensity in Egypt. The difference is attributed to a combined effect of alteration, magnetic anisotropy and magnetic cooling rate dependencies. Along with other high‐quality data from the south‐east Mediterranean, our data suggest a field intensity minimum during the Egyptian Roman era.     

ON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE UNIFIED STATE IN ANCIENT EGYPT

The annalist Manetho, a native Egyptian scholar-priest who lived in the 3^rd century BC during the reign of Ptolemy II （285-246 BC）, wrote a history of Egypt in Greek and divided the history of ancient Egypt into 30 （or 31） dynasties. He began with the unification of Egypt, making a Thinite king of Upper Egypt, whom he knows as Menes, the founder of the First Dynasty （ca.3100-2890 BC）. Menes is said to have built his capital at the junction of Upper and Lower Egypt, in a strategical key position. The new capital was called the ＂White Wall＂, it became later known as Memphis. There a great temple was built, dedicated to the god Ptah, who remained the patron deity of the city throughout its long history. Up to now no monuments of the First Dynasty have been found that would bear the name of Menes. Therefore, modem archaeologists hold that Menes should be identified with Narmer, the king whose relics have been unearthed at Hierakonpolis. Some scholars even doubt that Menes was a true historical figure, after all.     

ANCIENT EXPLOITATION AND USE OF COBALT ALUMS FROM THE WESTERN OASES OF EGYPT*

Cobalt alums from the Western Oases of Egypt were used in the second millennium bc as a colorant to produce dark blue glasses and glazes. A collection of these alums was gathered together and analysed by a series of techniques to accurately characterize them. They were then used alongside artificial analogues in experimental work aiming to determine the process that was used to convert the raw alum into a suitable pigment that might be used in a glass. Finally, the broader picture of the use of these alums is considered together with the implications for the trade in these materials across the Near East and into Europe.     

在埃及,体验另一种沧桑

一直以来,"古代文明"这四个字在我心目中就是我们的长城、兵马俑,直到某一天,突然看到有人说:"到过埃及之后,我们才知道什么叫妄自菲薄",于是,开始向往这个古老的国度……     

LUHUO COUNTY:OASIS IN THE PLATEAU

n the spring of 1936, the Fourth Army of the Chinese Workers and Peasants Red Army reached Luhuo and rested there for half a year during the famous Long March. Returning today, one finds the neat streets of the county seat lined with houses unique to the locality. Originally, Luhuo was known as "Hor Zamgu", meaning "Mongolians on the rock", because the Luhuo headman of the time, said to be the offspring of Mongolians, had his official house built on a large rock. It was renamed Luhuo in …     

THE IMPACT OF SOLUBLE SALTS ON THE DETERIORATION OF PHARAONIC AND COPTIC WALL PAINTINGS AT AL QURNA,EGYPT: MINERALOGY AND CHEMISTRY*

The wall paintings of Al Qurna in Egypt were studied by means of XRD and ICP–AES in order to determine their mineralogical and chemical composition, and to evaluate the impact of soluble salts on their deterioration, including the identification of the building materials and pigments used. Soluble salts analysis showed that NaCl is the most common soluble salt in the bedrock, ground water and surface water samples. The building materials are affected by the ground water, while the wall paintings in the area are affected by the Upper Egypt climatic conditions, which were studied in order to detect their role in the deterioration cycle in the area.     

THE ANALYSIS OF SECOND MILLENNIUM GLASS FROM EGYPT AND MESOPOTAMIA,PART 1: NEW WDS ANALYSES*

A recent analytical study by SEM–WDS was carried out on 226 glasses from the Late Bronze Age, analysing each of the glasses for a total of at least 22 elements, the largest such analytical study conducted on these glasses. The aim of the analysis was first to identify which elements were brought in with each of the raw materials and, second, to accurately characterize those raw materials. Since different glassmaking sites in Egypt and the Near East would probably use at least some local raw materials and these raw materials will vary slightly from site to site, this has potential for provenancing the glass. Analysis showed new patterns in the compositions of glass from the various sites and led to new conclusions about the supply of raw materials and personnel for the glass workshops. This forms the basis for further work by LA–ICPMS to be presented in part 2 of this paper.     

CHARACTERIZATION OF PLASTERS FROM PTOLEMAIC BATHS: NEW EXCAVATIONS NEAR THE KARNAK TEMPLE COMPLEX,UPPER EGYPT*

The aim of the present work is to characterize plasters from Ptolemaic baths recently discovered in front of the Karnak temple complex, by the excavations of an Egyptian–French team. The characterization was carried out by means of optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with an energy‐dispersive X‐ray detector (EDS), X‐ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT–IR). The results allowed the identification of the chemical composition and structure of these plasters. In addition, samples of red, yellow, black and white pigments were examined and identified. The results helped in providing an image concerning some materials used during the Ptolemaic era in ancient Egypt.     

LEAD ISOTOPE ANALYSES OF ISLAMIC POTTERY GLAZES FROM FUSTAT,EGYPT*

Lead isotope analyses have been undertaken on a group of Islamic lead‐glazed pottery artefacts from Fustat, Egypt, spanning the period from the eighth to the 14th century ad , that had previously been the subject of a comprehensive typological, chronological, petrographic and technological study. Comparison of the lead isotope ratios for the glazes with those for lead ores from Egypt, Iran, Tunisia, Anatolia, Greece, Sardinia and Spain provided information on the possible sources of the lead used in the production of the glazes. The results show that the lead used in glaze production by the Islamic potters at Fustat was most probably obtained from distant ore sources in Iran or Tunisia, Sardinia, Spain and the Taurus Mountains. Different ore sources were favoured in different periods and, to a limited extent, for different types of pottery, but at no time did the Fustat potters use the potentially more accessible Egyptian ore sources.