Tracing the provenance of unfired ancient Egyptian clay figurines from Saqqara through non-destructive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry

Braekmans, D.; Boschloos, Vanessa; Hameeuw, Hendrik; Van der Perre, Athena

doi:10.1016/j.microc.2018.12.029

Tracing the provenance of unfired ancient Egyptian clay figurines from Saqqara through non-destructive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry

Title

Tracing the provenance of unfired ancient Egyptian clay figurines from Saqqara through non-destructive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry

Author

Braekmans, D. (TU Delft (OLD) MSE-4; Cranfield University; Universiteit Leiden; Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)
Boschloos, Vanessa (Universiteit Gent; Royal Museums of Art and History)
Hameeuw, Hendrik (Universiteit Gent; Royal Museums of Art and History; Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)
Van der Perre, Athena (Royal Museums of Art and History; Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)

Date

2019

Abstract

A collection of Prime Cultural Heritage artefacts consisting of Egyptian late Middle Kingdom figurines (c. 1850–1700 BCE), made of unfired clay and covered in inscriptions, is kept at the Royal Museums of Art and History (RMAH) in Brussels, Belgium. Several of these hieratic inscriptions curse enemies of the Egyptian state, including Canaanite, Nubian and Libyan entities; thus providing invaluable information for Middle Bronze topography in ancient Near Eastern studies. What makes the extensive Brussels group even more exceptional, is the fact that these figurines were discovered in a closed archaeological context in Saqqara, Lower Egypt. Defining and classifying clay and ancient ceramic provenance groups in Egypt is highly complex due to variability in Nile and marl clay deposits. Chemical characterization of this figurine assemblage (n = 91) allows to effectively study the potential direct use of clays in the vicinity of Saqqara and characterize the nature of the raw materials used. Additionally, it aims to assess the validity of portable XRF spectrometry for this type of materials and its provenance resolution. Analyses show that very similar clays were used to produce the different morphological types of figurines in the assemblage. The chemical profile indicates the use of a mixed source at Saqqara rather than pure marl or Nile clays, which are common for ancient pottery production.

Subject

Ancient Egypt
Clay figurine characterization
Clay provenance
Non-destructive chemical analysis
Portable XRF
Unfired clay objects

To reference this document use:

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:441f6ec5-821b-4249-9e1f-ddb9b504ccbc

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.microc.2018.12.029

Embargo date

2020-12-28

ISSN

0026-265X

Source

Microchemical Journal, 145, 1207-1217