Artefact evidence has the unique power to illuminate many aspects of life that are rarely explored in written sources, yet this potential has been underexploited in research on Roman and Late Antique Egypt. This book presents the first in-depth study that uses everyday artefacts as its
principal source of evidence to transform our understanding of the society and culture of Egypt during these periods. It represents a fundamental reference work for scholars, with much new and essential information on a wide range of artefacts, many of which are found not only in Egypt but also in
the wider Roman and late antique world. By taking a social archaeology approach, it sets out a new interpretation of daily life and aspects of social relations in Roman and Late Antique Egypt, contributing substantial insights into everyday practices and their social meanings in the past.
Artefacts from University College London's Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology are the principal source of evidence; most of these objects have not been the subject of any previous research. The book integrates the close study of artefact features with other sources of evidence, including papyri
and visual material. Part one explores the social functions of dress objects, while part two explores the domestic realm and everyday experience. An important theme is the life course, and how both dress-related artefacts and ordinary functional objects construct age and gender-related status and
facilitate appropriate social relations and activities. There is also a particular focus on wider social experience in the domestic context, as well as broader consideration of economic and social changes across the period.
Author(s): Ellen Swift, Jo Stoner, April Pudsey
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Year: 2022
Language: English
Pages: 480
City: Oxford
Cover
A Social Archaeology of Roman and Late Antique Egypt: Artefacts of Everyday Life
Copyright
Acknowledgements
Contents
List of Figures
List of Tables
1: Introduction
A Social Archaeology: Interpretative Approaches
Life Course
Design
Object Biography
Methodological Issues
Choice of Object Categories for Study
Data Quality Issues in Studying Older Collections
Reconstructing Grave Assemblages at Qau
Egypt in the Roman and Late Antique Periods
Village Life in the Fayyum
Urban Communities
Religious Life
Religious Practice in the Earlier Roman Period
Christianity
I: Exploring The Socialfunctions Of Dress Objects
2: Introduction to Part I
Themes in Dress Objects from Egypt as Exemplified by the Petrie Collection
3: Original String and Bead Assemblages
Bead Assemblages
Qau Bead Assemblages
Dating
Chronological and Regional Overview
Changes in Bead Assemblages through Time
Regional Diversity
Evidence from Individual Jewellery Items
Coloured Ancient String
Curation, Reuse, and Heirloom Status
Graduated Necklaces of Angular Amber Beads
Curation of Other Beads
Interpreting Heirloom Beads
Conclusion
4: Bracelets and Torcs
Identifying Bracelets and Torcs and How They Were Worn
Bracelets
Types of Bracelets and Dating
How Bracelets Were Worn
Diameter Sizes
Amuletic Disc Bracelets
Torcs
Torcs in Egypt: Types and Dating
Torcs with Multiple Projecting Medallions
Torcs with Expanding Fastening
Thin Wire Torcs with Hook and Eye, or Two-Hook,Fastening
How Were Torcs Worn, and by Whom?
Social Function and Value of Torcs
Conclusion
5: Shoes and Sandals
Introduction
Data Set
Footwear Size and Decoration
Deposition
Regionality
Conclusion
6: Concluding Discussion to Part I
Dress Objects and the Life Course
Infants (and Unborn Children) Aged Less Than 7, and Older Children, Aged 7 Up to Puberty
Puberty and Post-PubertyUp to Menopause
Post-MenopauseUp to the End of Life
Dress Objects and Wider Community and Family Relationships
II: The Domestic Realm And Everyday Experience
7: Introduction to Part II
Material Culture of Durable Materials
Organic Materials Other Than Bone and Ivory
8: Production and Experience: Objects Related to Textile Production
Introduction
Whorls
Whorl Data
Ceramic Whorls
Glass Whorls
Wooden Whorls
Bone and Ivory Whorls
Stone Whorls
Whorl Discussion
Comb Pendants
Finger Distaffs
Discussion
Conclusion
9: Children’s Material Culture
Toys: Children’s Playthings and Agency
Dolls and Doll-LikeFigurines
Wooden Horses as Toys
Small Models for Small Hands
Material Culture of Harpokrates, Child-Protector
Rituals Involving Children
Dress of Figurines
Conclusions
10: Sound-MakingObjects
Archaeological Context and Dating
Evidence of Likely Uses from Textual and Visual Sources
Bells
Wooden Clappers and Small Metal Cymbals
Rattles
Panpipes
Making Replica Instruments to Investigate Artefact Properties
Analysis of Experimental Sound Measurement Data and Other Evidence Relating to Use
Bells
UC8976 Bes Bell
UC33261 Bell
UC58526, UC58538, and UC58540, Bells on Bracelets
Rattles
Cymbals
Panpipes
Clappers
Sounds in Spaces
Conclusion
11: Concluding Discussion to Part II
Practice and the Life Course
Infants and Children
Adolescents and Adults
Everyday Experience
12: Egypt in the Roman and Late Antique World: An Artefacts Perspective
Egypt and the Wider Empire
The Roman to Late Antique Transition and Beyond
Appendix 1: Phased Bead Assemblages from Qau
Appendix 2: Assemblages of Beads with Evidence of Original Association
Appendix 3: Data Set of Artefacts Including AncientS tring, with Dating Evidence
Appendix 4: Data Sets for Bracelets and Torcs
Bracelets
Torcs
Appendix 5: Shoes Data Set
Appendix 6: Spindle Whorls Data Set
Appendix 7: Sound Measurement and Studio Recording
Sound Recording
References
Ancient Texts
Modern Sources
Web Sites and Date Accessed
Index
