Abstract
This field report covers the work of the Egypt Exploration Society and Macquarie University Joint Mission during the period of 2018 and 2019 at Qubbet el-Hawa (third to fifth field seasons). Excavations focused on the infrastructure of the Lower Necropolis (Sites B and C) and the discovery of the causeway of Tomb QH90 (Site E). A detailed analysis of the pottery found and archaeometrical results complement the report.
After no security clearance was received for 2017, 1 work resumed in 2018 and 2019 when the Qubbet el-Hawa Research Project returned to Aswan for three field seasons: the third field season took place between 25 March and 17 April 2018, 2 the fourth between 26 December 2018 and 9 January 2019, 3 and the fifth field season happened between 2 and 19 April 2019. 4 During these periods, Causeway B was excavated up to the retention wall. While erroneously work was not permitted at Site D in 2018–19, a causeway in the southern necropolis was partially excavated with the approval of the SCA (Site E) which was found leading to the rock cut tomb of Sobekhotep (QH90). In the Lower Necropolis, nine tombs were discovered or further cleared. Ceramology continued to include scientific analysis and archaeometrical research both in the field and in internationally accredited laboratories in Egypt and are discussed in this report. 5
Objectives of the third to fifth field seasons
A distinct feature of the decorative programme of rock cut tombs at Qubbet el-Hawa is the absence of daily-life scenes, such as market or agricultural scenes, as observed in contemporary tombs in Memphite cemeteries as well as other provincial elite necropoleis. Instead, the thematic focus of tomb programmes is on offering scenes and rituals which have been executed with the greatest attention to detail, including the names and titles of those involved. 6 This unique focus on local community and patronage evident in the tomb programme of the elite showcases a remarkable attention on social strata in the region of the First Cataract and the involvement of identifiable individuals within the elite class. It is these individuals’ many traces in the archaeological record and their ways of frequenting and modifying the funerary landscape of Qubbet el-Hawa as a group that the Qubbet el-Hawa Research Project (QHRP) aims at investigating over the coming years. One of the main research objectives, therefore, is an improved understanding of the funerary landscape of Qubbet el-Hawa and how infrastructure served as a means to negotiate the challenge of the slope that the tomb builders, as well as mourners and those enlisted in offering rituals, had to overcome.
According to previous scholarship, the earliest tombs, as confirmed through inscriptions, date to the time of Pepi I (c. 2321–2287 BCE), 7 which is represented by tombs QH35f, QH35g and QH35k. 8 Another aim of the QHRP is to challenge this view by investigating the early outlined history of the site through new evidence represented by the mudbrick tombs discovered in the Lower Necropolis which never attracted scholarly attention. As Causeway B and surrounding areas are now confirmed to date back to at least the Fifth Dynasty, Qubbet el-Hawa was used as a burial site since at least c. 2350 BCE. The emergence of tomb building activities during the Fifth and Sixth Dynasties is therefore a distinct phase in the life of this burial place, but perhaps not its earliest. Funerary cult activities at Qubbet el-Hawa started earlier, as evidenced by an elaborate infrastructure with multiple facilities and rich assemblages of cult pottery, long before the earliest known epigraphic rock cut tombs emerged.
Methodologies
As can be observed from the causeway of Unas, mudbrick mastaba cemeteries are known to be located next to passageways that help structure existing and developing funerary landscapes. 9 Due to the importance of the infrastructure as a defining aspect of any ancient Egyptian provincial necropolis including rock cut tombs, major challenges are met when excavating landscapes that are defined by natural slopes consisting of modern and ancient windborne sand and gravel. Creating large amounts of shifting sand that, once it moves, impacts the stratigraphy of large areas, the clearance of tombs cannot be the only priority, nor in fact the initial step in the long process of excavating such sites. Instead, QHRP first addresses public spaces such as access routes, streets, open squares and ritual landscape through intra-marginal context assessment before tombs are finally approached and examined. As mastaba tombs have strong and sturdy constructions, they represent a concealed environment which, different from public spaces with complex stratigraphies but almost indiscernible layers, 10 is static. The same cannot be said about the areas surrounding mastaba tombs. The land around these tombs has in almost all cases seen repeated and extensive use in ancient times while the establishment of neighbouring tombs can be expected to have added to the shifting of previously sealed layers. It is also prone to be consisting of intrusions created by archaeologists on their way to tombs who use the same infrastructure as the ancient visitors. The QHRP approach to funerary archaeology is first guided by the aim to minimise impact triggered by modern intrusion and, secondly, by the need to negotiate the specific challenges that characterise what we call Sandhill Archaeology. 11 The excavation methods applied here are therefore different from those adopted for settlements set in plains but are still based on the Harris Matrix, a tool for dry land archaeological sites to address the temporal succession of archaeological contexts and thus the sequence of depositions and surfaces.
At Qubbet el-Hawa, and other provincial cemeteries set against sandy slopes, tombs are surrounded by at least four different street levels, owing to the fact that funerary rituals required the quadruple circumnavigation of mastaba tombs, if not already during the Old Kingdom then at least during the early Twelfth Dynasty. In Pap. Ramesseum E from the time of Senwosret I, a recitation manual which originates from a royal context (col 71), the following passage sheds light on this practice that continued from the Old Kingdom onwards:
Col 74 Circumnavigating the mastaba, four times
Col 14a Second time of circumnavigating the mastaba. 12
The following passages are written in red ink. Here, Pap. Ramesseum E mentions mourning women wailing and the singing of two Osirian Cult Songs, the introducing verses (incipits) of which are preserved. 13 Each song lasts presumably as long as these women orbit the mastaba; as they circumnavigate the tomb four times, the Osirian Cult Songs are equally repeated four times:
Col 15 Calling in the mourning women
Col 16 while (they) lament.
Col 17 The mourning women, recitation:
Col 18 ‘I came, Osiris NN’, four times
Col 19 ‘Take for yourself (your offering?), Osiris NN’, four times.
The introduction of mourning women marks the initiation ritual of the mastaba to be used for the tomb owner, including lamentations and the singing of Osirian Cult Songs as Pap. Ramesseum E points out. During the later lives of these tombs, many more people passed by, and carried out funerary cult activities on their way to and in front of the burial places of their ancestors. In order to assess the streams of visitors, pottery analysis is a crucial research tool to identify periods of use, quality of funerary rituals and activities. As a result, the ceramological research outlined in this report is mainly focused on cult pottery discovered in public spaces rather than burial assemblages which will emerge as the QHRP unfolds over the coming years. This cult pottery and their vessel contents is regarded as the most eloquent evidence for the physical presence of the subsidiary figures shown making offerings as part of the decorative programme of elite tombs of Qubbet el-Hawa. As noted above, these people are known so far by their names, titles and family relationships but have escaped the archaeological record with regards to their daily activities within the funerary landscape of Qubbet el-Hawa.
Site B, Causeway B and adjacent buildings (map 1)
Regarding the aim of understanding the infrastructure of the Lower Necropolis of Qubbet el-Hawa after its discovery in 2016, the monumental causeway located between the causeways of Khunes (QH34e) and Sarenput I (QH36) was excavated 14 up until the retention wall (Site A) and documented. In previous field seasons 15 this causeway turned out to have been the blood line of both building activities and funerary rituals in the northern part of the Lower Necropolis. It was hoped that excavations would reveal details about the building and maintenance history of this monument and how it facilitated builders and mourners to have access to tombs located both in the Lower Necropolis and further up the slope. While the causeway of Khunes provided access to rock cut tombs at the first terrace dating to the reign of Pepi I and later, the causeway of Site B turned out to cater for the areas below, identified as the Second Terrace of tombs. This includes both tombs previously built in the vicinity of its eastern extension, as well as all contemporary building activities in its western exit area at the top end of the causeway. As three exit gates suggest, Causeway B also provided access to tombs in the north (Site C) and possibly the south of this main access route. So far, this is the only causeway at Qubbet el-Hawa that does not only provide access to one particular rock cut tomb at the top of the hill, but also helped channelling the flow of people visiting the extensive cemetery at the foot of the hill. It is therefore key to the understanding of the set-up of the mastaba cemetery at the Lower Necropolis (Site C).
Qubbet el-Hawa Research Project 2019 sites A, B and C.
The causeway extends over 94.4 m in an almost straight line (fig. 1). It is defined by a northern and a southern wall, each of 106 cm thickness, carefully built of locally sourced sandstones of irregular shape. The mural crowns are, apart from where the incline drastically increases after 62 m, preserved to a height of up to 65 cm, the bottom 25 cm of which reach below the ancient surface level (fig. 2). 16
Causeway B during excavations, extending west. The entrance of the shaft of tomb 4B02 is visible in the foreground.
Exit 3 within the southern wall of Causeway B.
How much higher the flanking walls of the causeway were built in ancient times is impossible to say. To judge from the causeways of Mekhu and Sabni (QH25 and 26), an original height of >1 m seems plausible thus leading to the assumption that the privately built causeways at Qubbet el-Hawa lacked a roof as known, for example, from the lower causeway of the Bent Pyramid. 17 Its extensive width ranging between 305 and 310 cm (Snofru, Bent Pyramid: 298 cm; Unas: 265 cm) hardly facilitates a roof construction, however, but certainly catered for increased traffic. Its eastern extension is marked by carefully laid, but otherwise unmarked, head stones, similar to the causeways of Mekhu, Sabni and Site E (see below), but different from the causeway of Sarenput I which was found to have been decorated with raised relief. 18 Its western extension has not been assessed 19 as the upper part of the causeway undercuts the retention wall (Site A) 20 that was built on top of it, exceeding its width. Here, east of Wall A, pottery was found inside the fill, dating from the Old Kingdom to First Intermediate Period, late Twelfth to Thirteenth Dynasties, and even to the Late Period.
With regards to Causeway B’s construction date, shaft tomb 4B01 21 is of importance. Located in the area of the eastern extension of the causeway, it fell victim to the new construction: its foundation level overbuilt the tomb shaft’s superstructure. 22 In addition to the levelling, and seemingly not triggered by construction needs, the northern part of the shaft had also been removed by the causeway builders. 23 The pottery found inside this shaft included a fragment of a finely worked Nubian large, open container showing a milled rim, suggesting any date between predynastic/A Group 24 down to the Middle Kingdom. Sadly, nothing more was revealed than the fact that Causeway B cut through an existing necropolis.
Shaft tomb 4B02
Only 30 cm east of the eastern extension of the causeway, another shaft tomb was discovered (4B02), the superstructure of which has been brought down to the causeway’s walking level (fig. 1). However, the carefully plastered shaft remained intact. A complete pot including its original contents (fig. 15f) was discovered 22 cm below the preserved rim of the shaft and covered by a layer of mudbricks that belonged to the shaft’s original sealing. This pot dates to the Middle Kingdom while a carinated bowl fragment found at the bottom of the shaft suggests a burial during the very early Middle Kingdom. The fact that these artefacts date the reuse of the tomb is further supported by the Old Kingdom fill that was first dug out by the new owners of the tomb before it was later used to seal the shaft. As a result, the evidence seems to suggest that the causeway and tomb 4B02 were used simultaneously during the Old Kingdom and well into the Middle Kingdom when older tombs in the causeway’s vicinity were usurped and the area was still frequented. This observation is further supported by the discovery of ubiquitous fragments of Middle Kingdom drinking cups across the entire extension of the causeway.
With a width of 93 cm and a length of 164 cm, the shaft’s dimensions were generous enough to accommodate the introduction of coffins. Its lowest level was reached after 161 cm which revealed an entrance in the northern wall of the shaft, closed with carefully laid mudbricks (17 x 34 cm, fig. 3) below the entrance’s stone lintel, still in situ. Once the closure was removed, a single burial chamber of w: 93 cm, l: 249 cm, h: 102 cm revealed itself, extending to the north. Its walls show a fine mud plaster, carefully white-washed and a vaulted ceiling apparently constructed by highly skilled builders (fig. 4). The burial chamber was found emptied by looters who had cracked through the north wall and dug a hole large enough for a child to enter the chamber; only random skeletal remains of a male and a female were left behind. 25
It seems that the type of shaft tomb represented by 4B02 is not uncommon in this area: an almost identical tomb was discovered only a few meters north of the Khunes causeway during a car accident in 1992. 26
4B02, layers of mudbricks sealing the entrance between the ground level and the stone lintel, looking north.
Vaulted burial chamber of tomb 4B02 with white-washed walls, looking north. Note the hole in the back wall dug by looters.
Building History of Causeway B
Non-royal causeways built in provinces lead to rock cut tombs. Despite its western extension currently unknown, Causeway B, too, is expected to connect the narrow alluvial plain with the Second Terrace of rock cut tombs. It was built at a point in time when the Lower Necropolis had already been established as a burial site. It can therefore be understood as a measure to design a landscape that had previously been explored and purposefully used but seemed to have been in need of an expansion and hence a functioning infrastructure. As all other known causeways at Qubbet el-Hawa show, these requirements did not trigger a communal effort but were taken care of by influential owners of rock cut tombs. As things currently stand, Causeway B marks the earliest attempt to establish the Lower Necropolis of Qubbet el-Hawa as a structured burial ground that was expected to benefit from axial designs. It therefore follows a linear path as required by the funerary procession inspired by the myth of Osiris. As for Qubbet el-Hawa, this was a formative process. As the location of Causeway D shows (meeting the tomb QH36 (Sarenput I) on an angle 27 ), the development of Causeway B marked a standard design that was not challenged but rather paralleled by later tomb builders.
The precise location of Causeway B (map 1) was determined by two main factors: 1) existing tombs at the edge of the alluvial plain served as reference points, and 2) good quality bedrock further up the hill welcomed the construction of a rock cut tomb. As the contour map suggests, 28 Causeway B is expected to hit the connecting rock tomb in a direct line which is a feature that can also be observed for four other causeways of Qubbet el-Hawa: Mekhu and Sabni (QH25 and 26), 29 Khunes (QH34h) 30 and Causeway E. 31 Confirmed by later evidence from places such as Beni Hassan, 32 causeways fulfilled various roles which include the provision of access during tomb building processes and funerary rituals but also opened land for the exploration of adjacent burial grounds. As key elements of infrastructure and landscape design, it can be assumed that causeways were highly appreciated by village communities who, as a result, used causeways as main axes to surmount altitude differences when visiting tombs of their ancestors.
The prospect of good standing rock as a result of area surveys before tomb building could commence defied the existence of older structures that stood in the way of the causeway. Not being prepared to alter its course for the reasons outlined above, older tombs at the foot of the hill had to be levelled to make space for the monumental access route.
During the course of its existence, Causeway B was well maintained and constantly renovated as various layers of thick pavements of mud in the lower section (98.5–106.2 m ASL) suggest. 33 Where the slope gets steep and the causeway negotiates an elevation of eleven meters over a distance of only 22 meters (120.5–131.1 m ASL), stone slabs were used to guarantee grip and a smooth passage for pedestrians but also for the transport of heavy goods. 34 No steps had been used. 35 The northern wall shows signs of restoration with two top layers of stones having been replaced at an unknown point in time. Its overall appearance never changed much apart from adding a large vessel at its entrance; however, only the imprint of the vessel found (fig. 5, map 1), surrounded by hardened layers of mud pavements, presumably caused by water spill.
Traces of a zir-vessel at the beginning of Causeway B, looking west.
Such a vessel may mark a service point which offered visitors water to physically prepare for the steep climb or to collect for libation offerings to their ancestors, or, indeed, food. 36
As things currently stand, the terminus ante quem for Causeway B is the Fourth–Fifth Dynasty complete vessel found sealing the shaft of tomb 3C01b (see below). Cult pottery dating to the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, Eighteenth Dynasty, Late Ramesside Period and Late Period suggests that Causeway B was in use for more than 1500 years during which burials in the Lower Necropolis and Second Terrace were established and visited.
Site A, the retention wall (map 1)
The retention wall (Wall A) was followed further to the north (fig. 6). 37 It ended after 11.2 m, thus suggesting that it served as a measure to stabilise the area to which Causeway B was leading. It seems that the problem area was limited to a rock cut tomb behind Wall A which would explain why the retention wall covers more than three times the width of Causeway B.
Overlooking Causeway B from the top of the retention wall, Wall A (Site A).
This leads to three conclusions: first, Causeway B indeed marks the main access route to a Second Terrace of tombs. 38 Second, Causeway B was used until the tomb it leads to supposedly went out of use, and Wall A was erected before the area was subsequently re-used during the Late Period, as the pottery suggests. 39 Third, Late Period tombs were no longer accessed via Causeway B, which had been abandoned at this point in time as the reverse stratigraphy of the site suggests. While Late Period pottery forms the contents of the lowest levels excavated during the second and third seasons, top layers include Old Kingdom and Middle Kingdom pottery. No finds have been discovered in Site A that suggest a date after the Late Period, 40 and this also holds true for Causeway B over its entire known length. 41
After Wall A had been built, presumably during the Late Period, and before its northern section had been filled with rubble, time had passed during which the wall had not been covered, as suggested by an unfinished Yellowjacket wasps’ nest that was discovered in situ hanging below a block belonging to the fourth layer. 42 The existence of the nest suggests that the façade of the wall had been exposed and also received little human traffic over a period of time during the Late Period. 43
Site C, the Lower Necropolis (map 1)
In an attempt to gain clarity about the mastaba cemeteries adjacent to Causeway B, the area located to the north of this access route was further examined. Access to the northern Lower Necropolis is granted by two entrances that open into tiers of tombs that were built into the hillside. 44 Cleaning and focussed excavations revealed five mastaba tombs with a total of eight entrances to burial chambers, thus far. 45 At this point in our investigations, Site C is the only evidence for a coherent cemetery located below the rock cut tombs of Qubbet el-Hawa. 46 Rather than being characterised by tombs randomly scattered over the area investigated, a well-thought-out land-use plan provided convenient access via streets marking tiers; thus far all tombs have their entrances in the east and are accessible via streets running in a south-north orientation. Different from this well-planned and strategically laid out landscape for the dead, all mastaba tombs assessed so far differ widely in their design. Once examined in full, it is hoped to provide a valuable addition to the understanding of private burial practices and the importance of memory landscapes in the Aswan region during the Old and Middle Kingdoms.
Mastaba tombs
Mastaba 3C01 (tier 1). Tomb 3C01, located north of the eastern exit of causeway B is a multiple-annex tomb (map 1, fig. 7). Initially designed as a mastaba tomb, it includes three independent entrances to burial chambers which are all accessible from the street giving access to tier 1. Its main corpus measures 3.45 by 5.98 m. It is built of large mudbricks (each 16 x 32 cm), supported by occasional sandstone slabs, presumably to increase stability. The mastaba’s outer walls are designed as slopes covered with a thin layer of white plaster, typical for mastaba tombs in this area. The eastern wall includes three types of entrances into subterranean burial chambers: a stepped access and sloping passage attached to the SE corner (3C01a, excavated, figs 7–9), a sloping passage in the east wall (3C01b, awaiting excavation), and one shaft tomb attached to the north of the mastaba (3C01c, excavated). Further to the north, a single-room mudbrick building is most likely part of this funerary landscape (map 1).
Multiple-annex Tomb 3C01, looking north at the entrance of 3C01a.
Tomb 3C01a marks the mastaba’s south-east corner (fig. 7); its entrance is flanked by two door jambs from where a steep slope reaches the floor of the tomb (fig. 8), located below the massive stone lintel overarching the entrance. 47 The stepped access route consists of mudbrick steps at the top end negotiating the height of 51 cm between the street level and the tomb’s floor on the level as marked by the bedrock. To the left, a vaulted rock cut side chamber, 110 cm long and 93 cm high, was found empty (fig. 9). It sits next to a horizontal passage into the tomb which first goes in a western direction before moving south after 260 cm in a J-shaped left turn. 48 This area of the tomb had been looted, and no finds where made apart from non-diagnostic pottery sherds and a single deep blue faience round bead. 49 It is not immediately linked with the main corpus of the complex 3C01 and is therefore suggested to be a later addition.
Tomb 3C01a, entrance.
Tomb 3C01a, gallery, looking west.
Apparently, the looters of 3C01a were unaware of the design of this multiple-annex tomb which explains why the entrance of 3C01b was left intact. Similar to the previously described burial, the entrance of 3C01b, located in the centre of the mastaba corpus is constructed as a corridor-like, 202 cm long passage with a width of 102 cm, situated in the eastern wall. Open to the east, it is marked on three sides by stone walls ending in a carefully smoothened stone lintel that overarches the entrance leading to what appears to be a sloping passage (fig. 10). This entrance was found intact as indicated by a complete vessel including its contents that was recovered 78 cm below the crowns of the walls, dating between the Fourth to early Sixth Dynasties (fig. 18).
Entrance to 3C01b, looking west.
Shaft tomb 3C01c is located right next to 3C01b and the northern extension of the main corpus of the mastaba complex 3C01. As a result, it follows the street that leads to tier 1. However, at a later stage, the street in front of this shaft was turned into a wide, almost square slope of 1.8 by 1.9 m in front of the tomb shaft. It consists of carefully packed, dense layers of Nile sediment. As the western extension of this patch is marked by two rectangular, parallel sandstone substructures (fig. 11), it can be assumed that these carried an offering table that had been removed.
Tomb 3C01c, offering court, looking west.
Based on this observation, the rectangular area which was proven to have been carefully covered and painstakingly maintained can be described as an offering court. By incorporating the street and lopping off public space, shaft 3C01c gained added value by this annexation. It allowed for the carrying out of offering rituals during annual festivals. This conclusion is further supported by a complete hes-jar dating to the Eleventh to early Twelfth Dynasty that was discovered in situ on the street level south-east of the offering court (™. 17). 50 The tomb’s shaft itself was supposedly used over a long period of time; its youngest burial consisted of heavily disturbed bones from one individual that was buried alongside a First Intermediate Period to Middle Kingdom zir. 51 Despite this burial having been heavily disturbed, one fragment of a painted box coffin was documented that had fallen victim to an infestation of lower termites and, sadly, could not be saved due to its advanced state of decay. It can be suggested, though, that both the Middle Kingdom burial and the hes-jar are connected to the latest use of 3C01c, and date the construction of its offering court. North of shaft 3C01c, a single-room building was discovered, the purpose of which remained unclear as no finds were made. 52
While only 3C01b is part of the original mastaba design and 3C01a and c are attached to the southern and northern walls of this mastaba, it can be concluded that the latter two are later additions. This observation is further supported by the fact that, first, 3C01a has a burial corridor that turns away from the actual mastaba corpus while secondly 3C01c is a shaft tomb that shares no feature with the original design other than its northern wall.
Mastaba complex 3C02 and 3C03 (tier 2)
The superstructures of five more mastaba tombs have been discovered but not yet excavated. These are located on tiers 2 and 3. Across the street and west of multiple-annex grave 3C01, mastabas 3C02 and 3C03 have been joined to form a double tomb (fig. 12). 3C02 in the west measures 2.05 by 2.75 m. It was built first and consists of angled, white-washed exterior walls that still display five layers of mudbrick, measuring 16 by 32 cm.
South-east corner of mastaba complex 3C02 and 3C03.
The mastaba’s centre is marked by a shaft. This mastaba was initially reached by Western Exit 2 in the north wall of Causeway B. However, when mastaba 3C03 was built in front of it, this exit had to be closed and moved further east to accommodate access to 3C03 while at the same time avoiding the closure of the street leading to tier 2. Mastaba 3C03 is not only similar in size to 3C02 but also has sloping exterior walls and a central tomb shaft. Its construction is almost identical which adds some credibility to the assumption that both tombs form one complex. Heavily eroded sherds from the area east of 3C03 further prove the existence of a street and aid in dating the activities outside the mastaba, rather than dating the mastaba complex itself. As such, they are examples of cult pottery: three fragments belonging to a double-lined carinated bowl dating to the Fifth to Sixth Dynasty, while the presence of a drinking cup proves the fact that tier 2 was still visited during the late Twelfth Dynasty. 53
4C04, 4C05 and 3C05
Further to the north-east of the corner of 3C02, surface cleaning promised the existence of an open square at tier 3, surrounded on three sides by three more tombs. 54 Mastaba 4C04 measures 352 by 635 cm and is particularly well preserved with its shining white paint still visible on its outside walls. 4C05 further to the north is another example of a tomb entrance comprising of two stone-clad, but otherwise undecorated, door jambs accessible through a court. Tomb 3C05 with its square ground plan of 3 by 3 m provides an offering court in the east of the main corpus which has only been partially cleaned at present (map 1).
Thus far, six conclusions can be drawn from the findings in the lower necropolis of Qubbet el-Hawa, north of Causeway B which need to be validated in future studies:
1) As part of Site C, nine tombs have been (re-)discovered. Some of these tombs are accompanied by offering courts (3C01b, 3C01c, 4C05, 3C05).
2) While tombs in the area of the eastern extension of Causeway B, located in the plain and close to the Nile, present themselves as shaft tombs (3B01 and 3B02), further up the slope mastaba tombs are the norm (3C01–3C03; 4C04–4C05) with only a few exceptions (3C01c and 3C05).
3) Mastaba tombs of the Lower Necropolis give access to between one and three spatially distinct burials per corpus (multiple-annex tombs).
4) The positioning of mastaba tombs follows a carefully planned infrastructure characterised by streets and tiers, presumably laid out by some authority that enjoyed land-ownership.
5) Access to the necropolis is granted via two exits situated in the north wall of Causeway B. These exits are followed by streets which reach out to three known tiers of mastaba tombs, including an open square.
6) The mastaba tombs of Site C comprise a multitude of shapes and sizes without a common design but similar construction methods. Thus, they do not match the basic design concept suggested for mastabas close to Memphis between the Fourth and Sixth Dynasties. 55
7) Burials date between the Fourth and Sixth Dynasties, First Intermediate Period and Middle Kingdom.
8) Cult pottery proves the continuous use of the Lower Necropolis from the Fourth/Fifth Dynasty to the early Twelfth Dynasty.
Site E, causeway of tomb QH90 (map 2)
The first attempt at a structured cemetery in the Lower Necropolis of the northern part of Qubbet el-Hawa was achieved by building the monumental Causeway B in an area frequented since the Fifth Dynasty (see above). It is therefore suggested that causeways, among other functions, played a crucial role in establishing the lower cemeteries of Qubbet el-Hawa. In order to test these conclusions and based on the assumption that a burial site as large as Qubbet el-Hawa might not have emerged from one spot alone, 56 work in the area south of the Khunes causeway was taken into consideration. As in the north, no excavation has ever taken place below the known rock cut tombs. In the south, the incline is much steeper and shorter than the comparably gentle slope in the north, dominated by Causeway B. Also, no plain is present that allowed for intensive shaft building at the bottom of the hill, instead the desert sand reaches a thick layer of alluvium that gives proof of the highest Nile levels before the construction of the Aswan High Dam at 96.2 m ASL. Third, the surface area between the causeways of Khunes and Mekhu/Sabni and below the range of tombs dominated by QH90 is covered with windborne sand, mixed with rubble and random archaeological fragments, similar to Sites A–D investigated further to the north.
It comes as no surprise, therefore, that the area had been neglected by archaeological missions. As a result, the causeways of Mekhu and Sabni (QH25 and 26), together with the signal station referred to as the tomb of Sheikh Aly Abu el-Hawa claimed attention as the most recognisable monuments of Qubbet el-Hawa, visible from as far as the Cornish el Nile Street at the east bank of Aswan. In 2017, the mural crown of one wall running in an east-west direction became visible after strong sandstorms, and a survey of the area in April 2018 did lead to the assumption that a third causeway, north of the causeway of tombs QH 25 and 26 had been hiding underneath the desert sand. 57 During the fourth field season, cleaning of the site began, and a well-preserved causeway came to light that was followed up the slope for c. 65% of its original length.
To judge from two test trenches along the northern and southern inside walls (fig. 13), the edges of this causeway rise to up to six layers of carefully laid irregular stones with a maximum height of 58 cm but without a sign of steps. The construction of Causeway E matches the one of Causeway B except for exits, which are not attested thus far. 58 Now that the flight of the walls is confirmed over more than half of its original extension, it is evident that the two stone walls belong to a causeway that connected with rock cut tombs above. Its axis reaches the forecourt tomb QH90 where it meets the preserved balustrade that define the eastern extension of the tomb. 59 To judge from a pottery assemblage discovered at the base level of the southern inside wall (fig. 19), this causeway was in use between the Ninth/ Eleventh Dynasties until the Late Period although it was most likely built before this date, presumably during the time of its owner Sobekhotep who lived during the final third of the reign of King Pepi II. As its design feeds into the layout and matches the orientation of QH90, Causeway E can be confirmed to have been designed to access this particular tomb (see map 2). Since the vessels mentioned can be linked with the later use of the causeway, it is worth stating that the neighbouring tombs QH88–9, equally accessed via Causeway E, catered for secondary burials. While it is, of course, impossible to say to which tomb(s) precisely this cult pottery assemblage belongs, human remains attested in these tombs and dating to the First Intermediate Period, Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period have been researched repeatedly, including laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). 60 The evidence provided is sufficient to assume a direct link between secondary burials in tombs QH88–90, the pottery found at the foot of Causeway E and this causeway itself, thus offering fresh insights into the changing living conditions in Elephantine between the First Intermediate Period and Second Intermediate Period.
Causeway E during cleaning, looking east.
Qubbet el-Hawa Research Project 2019 Site E.
Pottery: Preliminary report on the Third to the Fifth Field Seasons
The assemblages excavated by the Qubbet el-Hawa Research Project (QHRP) during the third, fourth and fifth field seasons were studied between 31 March and 19 April 2018 and between 4–22 April 2019. Sherds were weighed and photographed; modern and Graeco-Roman examples were counted and excluded from the report after general observations about their time period were noted. Ancient Egyptian sherds were further examined and individually recorded by clay, fabric, surface treatment, size, colour, 61 and vessel type. Wherever necessary, drawings were made. The fabric description was done using a magnifying glass with a power of ten. Additionally, samples were collected for archaeometrical analysis, which will be discussed below following the ‘Pottery Description by Site’ section and before the conclusion.
Pottery Description by Site
Site B
On the surface near shaft tomb 4B02, Nile clay sherds from open forms have a thick red coating, typical for the pottery of the late Old Kingdom through the early Middle Kingdom. 62 Some fabrics include sandy Nile B2 or Nile C, which are difficult to differentiate. 63 Sherds are eroded, typical of a pathway accommodating a high volume of traffic. Different from aeolian sand corrosion, sherds discovered within pathways tend to have rounded edges that are unlikely to be the result of taphonomy. In addition, they are significantly small in size, as they re-broke repeatedly due to trampling. A similar remark was made regarding material discovered on Elephantine Island. 64 Near the northern wall of Causeway B, a miniature set was discovered. Near the southern wall, apart from the surface Graeco-Roman pottery, the dating ranges from the mid-Sixth Dynasty (fig. 14d), 65 or the late Old Kingdom (fig. 14f), 66 to the New Kingdom. The latter is represented by a body sherd from a Marl D jar with Amarna blue and white decorations, typical of the period between Amenhotep III and Ramses IV. 67 There is also a concentration of sherds from shallow bowls with a plain surface and a red painted rim (fig. 14c), an innovation of the mid-Twelfth Dynasty, 68 which continues afterwards. 69 An eroded lid and two miniature bowls were also discovered.
The cleaning of the stone pavement in the top section of the causeway yielded sherds, including one from a Nubian pot. Among the diagnostic sherds, there is a piece of a miniature plate and a rim from a bread mould lacking a folded rim, dating to the mid-Eleventh Dynasty. Open forms are red coated on both surfaces including a double-lined rim of a bowl. High quality red-coating is a feature of this period. 70 Further up towards the retention wall (Site A), the most significant piece comes from a hemispherical cup with a red rim (fig. 14b). The fabric includes visible straw and crushed shell, a common replacement of limestone as temper in pottery produced on Elephantine Island. 71 These can be dated from the late Twelfth Dynasty to the Thirteenth Dynasty. 72 Further up near the southern wall of the causeway, the sherds continue to be small including marl sherds and a few sherds of closed Nile clay vessels, but open shapes are the most common. Sherds from bread moulds lack the folded rim, typical of the late Eleventh Dynasty. 73 There is also a rim of a large hemispherical bowl with incised decorations (fig. 14e) made of Nile C fabric with a high density of straw, granite, and crushed shell as temper. Granite, and its related minerals, is typical of pottery locally produced in Aswan. 74 These bowls typically date to the Twelfth and Thirteenth Dynasties. 75 Two fragments of rectangular offerings tables were also retrieved from this area, as well as a base of a bottle (fig. 14g) and a sherd from a Late Middle Nubian Imitation (LaMNI) pot, 76 common within household assemblages at Elephantine from the late Thirteenth to the early Eighteenth Dynasty. 77
Examples of pottery from Causeway B.
The assemblage from 18B003a–c, the area east of the retention wall (Site A, northern extension), is diverse, including rims of bread trays (apr.t), parts of offering tables, and a broken pot stand. Non-diagnostic marl sherds come from large zirs, typical of burial pottery. Dating ranges from the late Old Kingdom/ First Intermediate Period (fig. 15a), 78 to the late Twelfth to Thirteenth Dynasties (fig. 15c), and until the late Third Intermediate Period. 79 This assemblage dates to when sherds from earlier burial and cult pottery were used as fill.
At the foot of Causeway B, the deepest level of the shaft of tomb 4B02 (layer 4B02cc) yielded a rim of a carinated bowl with double-incised lines as decoration, which can be dated to the late Eleventh Dynasty. 80 The following layer that sealed the fill of the shaft (4B02b) yielded a globular pot with a pointed base (fig. 15f), which can be dated to the Middle Kingdom. One layer above (4B02a), there are small pieces from rims of bread moulds including one with sand lining, dated to the late Twelfth to Thirteenth Dynasties, 81 in addition to two LaMNI sherds.
Further examples of pottery from Site B.
Site A
The pottery from the eastern façade of the retention wall, Wall A (Site A, southern extension), comes from an area entirely filled with rubble. The material is heavily eroded. Unlike the sherds from the rest of the concession of QHRP, this pottery has rounded edges, indicating pre-depositional wear after the pots were broken. This is likely a result of the crushing of the sherds when they were used as rubble, or that they were brought from exposed areas of the cemetery with heavy traffic or originate from Causeway B itself. From the eastern façade of the wall between the first and the second layers, the sherds are too eroded for any attribute analysis apart from fabric identification, mainly Nile clay. A few large sherds were also present. The most numerous forms are open. One Nubian body sherd was identified among this assemblage. A broken incense burner, parts of an offering table made of Nile C, a miniature cup, and the remains of a pot stand were discovered among the rubble described below.
The earliest pottery in this assemblage, represented by open forms made of Nile C with red coating on both surfaces, points to the late Old Kingdom to the early Middle Kingdom as a date. 82 Also present is a deep inflected bowl with a red rim on a plain surface (fig. 16d). The youngest object of this assemblage is the base (fig. 16g) and part of a rim, both from the same shallow bowl with a ring base. The bowl is polished on the interior surface up to the outside of the rim. Similar examples were dated to the early Eighteenth Dynasty. 83 This suggests a date for the building of the retention wall (Wall A) to later than the New Kingdom. The presence of sherds from closed vessels (fig. 16a), together with marl clay sherds and remains of other grave goods alongside sherds from open pots (fig. 16c, e, f), confirms that the contents of earlier burials were already exposed at that time.
Selected pottery forms from the rubble discovered east of Site A.
Site C
Most of the material from around tomb 3C01 consists of fragmentary body sherds with eroded surfaces. Apart from two marl body sherds, the assemblage is all Nile clay. Those include small pieces of bread moulds and cooking pots, one with visible residues. Some sherds show a ‘sandwich core’. Thick layers of red coating are present, but rare among finer fabrics. A few sherds, however, show a thin layer of red coating. A rim of a bread mould lacks the overhang and is likely to date to the mid to late Eleventh Dynasty. Among this assemblage is a sherd from a carinated bowl with a form typical of the Sixth Dynasty to the early Middle Kingdom. 84 The last two pieces provide the date range of this assemblage. A set of three miniature pieces was also discovered. This assemblage reflects mainly activities of the visitors of the cemetery. The state of poor preservation of the sherds is due to them being found around an ancient street.
Regarding shaft tomb 3C01c, the assemblage from 18C003aE is fragmentary and difficult to describe, and typical of street assemblages. Thick red coating is almost lacking from this mixed assemblage. There are pieces from Old Kingdom beer jars, bowls, jars, food presentation bowls, as well as a piece from a spouted pot and an early Middle Kingdom rim of a bread mould. Of interest is an almost complete ovoid jar with angular shoulders, a flat base, and almost vertical sides (fig. 17) discovered south-east of the offering court of tomb 3C01c. The pot is uneven and made of Nile B fabric. There are remains of a red coating on the exterior surface (10R 5/6 red) and the original colour is 2.5R 6/6 light red. The pot is wheel thrown from the rim until the shoulders with marks of scraping with a sharp tool around the base. Both the form and the manufacturing technique are comparable to hes-jars of the Eleventh to early Twelfth Dynasty. 85 Inside shaft 3C01c, fragments of a typical Middle Kingdom zir were discovered as the only pottery found. However, these are believed to be intrusive on account of the size of the zir from which the sherds originated being too large to fit in the shaft.
hes-jar from shaft tomb 3C01c.
A complete irregular ovoid jar (fig. 18) was discovered in situ, sealing the entrance into tomb 3C01b. It is made of Nile B fabric. The top half is wheel thrown, while the bottom half is finished by hand leaving fingerprints and marks of scraping on an irregular surface. The entire exterior surface and the top of the interior were covered with a layer of red coating, which is now peeling off. Within the Aswan region, similar pots are dated to the Sixth Dynasty. 86 More slender examples, executed in the same fashion with the same surface treatment, are well known from Giza and date to as early as the Fourth Dynasty, 87 as well as the late Fifth Dynasty. 88 Examples with irregular forms are also known, dating to the late Fifth to Sixth Dynasties. 89
Ovoid jar from mastaba 3C01b.
Site E
At the foot of the causeway leading to tomb QH90, a collection of three almost complete cups, a miniature, and a stand were discovered (fig. 19). The stand and three of the cups are over-fired with eroded surfaces. The stand has a height of 10.3 cm. It bears the remains of a red coating on the exterior surface. The fabric is Nile B with minerals that are by-products of granite produced within the Aswan region. As complete hemispherical cups are not common, table 1 shows the Vessel Index (VI) and the suggested dates for each cup. Additionally, 21 sherds, including a piece of a bowl with a modelled rim and flat base, were discovered in this area. Bases are round and flat from wheel-thrown bowls. Some are cut with a sharp tool; others are string cut. The surfaces are too eroded for further description.
Dating of the cups based on various dating methods.
Pottery assemblage from Site E.
Archaeometry
Another rewarding line of investigation was initiated in the field season of 2017–18, namely the laboratory analysis of pottery samples taken from the excavations of 909192 QHRP. 93 The original idea was based on the discovery made in September 2016 of a pot at the foot of the causeway of Sarenput I (Site D). 94 The pot is from a type identified as having been used in embalming caches of the Late Period, 95 and hence could be tested hoping to identify the organic remains absorbed in the walls of the pot and its content to reveal details on the chemical used for embalming. 96 In the field, pottery sherds are not washed according to QHRP procedure to avoid losing any inscriptions or paint on the exterior surface 97 or absorbed residues, especially on the interior surface. In the laboratory, methylation was used to extract organic residues. After sonication, the sample was injected in the front inlet of an Agilent 7890B GC System coupled with an Agilent MS. The method used was split less, and the carrying gas was helium with a purity of 9.999. The temperature in the oven was held at 40ºC for three minutes, then heated at a rate of 20ºC/minute, up to 300ºC. The total run time was nineteen minutes. The results were compared to the NIST library.
At a retention time of 12.58 minutes, results (fig. 20) show Hexadecanoic acid methyl ester. The appearance of the methyl esters proves that the process of the extraction of organic residues by using methylation in the laboratory was successful. Hexadecanoic acid (C16:0), more commonly known as palmetic acid, is present in animal fats and vegetable oils. Results also showed the presence of pentadecanoic acid (C15:0), which occurs in butter fat from cow milk and in some cases mutton fat. While these fatty acids can be used in the process of mummification, 98 the absence of other components of organic balms necessary for mummification does not support the use of this large pot with lid to carry material related to the process. These fatty acids instead point to the use of the vessel for consumption or the preparation of general food stuff. These results change our understanding not only of vessel use, but also of the use of this part of the necropolis and the activities taking place within it during ancient times. 99
Gas chromatography of visible residues collected from the pottery of the embalming cache. Results of the first seven minutes are excluded for a better view.
Another sample tested for organic residues was taken from the soil surrounding the pot. As the results were not similar to those extracted from the walls of the vessel, this proves that the fatty acids discussed above are actual residues and not a contamination from the surrounding soil that seeped through its pores over thousands of years of direct contact. Additionally, contents of the hes-jar discovered in Site C (fig. 17) were also tested for residues. Results lack the presence of ancient residues of fatty acids. This is the case in vessels used for carrying water, which does not include any of these acids. These results support the understanding of the pot’s sole use for libation. Further archaeometrical analyses are being carried out on other samples while this report is being written.
Conclusions
The assemblages from the field seasons of April 2018 through April 2019 are heterogeneous, yet the assemblage from each job number seems to be homogenous. Apart from LaMNI and Nubian-influenced types of pottery (fig. 14e), 100 Nubian pottery is almost absent. From the eastern extension of the retention wall (Wall A) at Site A, a Nubian body sherd could be identified based on the fabric. At Site C, 18C010, a round base from a pot with fine Nubian fabric was discovered. The shape could not be reconstructed. Miniature and model pottery are far more represented than Nubian pottery.
Egyptian sherds are made from clay local to the Aswan area, and the temper used is typical of the one used on Elephantine Island. The large assemblage of pottery from Site B reflects the extent of the length of the causeway. This assemblage comes from unstratified surface finds from the causeway. Pottery from this area dating to the Old and Middle Kingdoms (table 2) is typical of cult pottery represented by offering tables, miniature and model pottery, as well as food preparation, consumption and presentation. This reflects the activities of the visitors passing through this part of the necropolis to visit burials. Pottery of the Late Period, on the other hand, includes more closed forms, which reflects the reuse of the area surrounding the causeway for burial during this period.
Date ranges of sites excavated by QHRP based on evidence presented in this report.
The concentration of sherds from Site A, reflects its use as a dumping area of the rubble created while building the retention wall (Wall A), now dated to later than the New Kingdom. The assemblage retrieved from 18A002 reflects mixed cult pottery. Site C, on the other hand, includes shaft tombs and burials from the late Old Kingdom to the Middle Kingdom, which were frequented by visitors who left behind cult pottery during that time. It seems this part of the cemetery was not used afterwards until the Graeco-Roman Period, represented by surface finds only.
This report presents direct evidence of the use of Qubbet el-Hawa during the New Kingdom, different from what was previously assumed beyond the evidence presented by QH35l and QH35m. 101 Furthermore, the earliest sherds discovered during the field seasons in discussion date to the Old Kingdom, but not to the late Sixth Dynasty. Some types of sherds are known from the late Fifth Dynasty or earlier, and their appearance in such high quantities points to an extensive use of the necropolis prior to the time of Pepi II. However, these sherds come from cultic rather than burial pottery. The actual burials themselves have not yet been excavated. 102 This hypothesis remains for further field work to prove together with more results of archaeometrical analysis.
Footnotes
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: QHRP received funding from the EES Fieldwork Fund in 2018 and 2019. The fifth field season was funded by Macquarie University. The work of Eman Khalifa was generously funded by the 2017 EES Centenary Fund.
