Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean (16.2004(2005))

MARINA EL-ALAMEIN

EGYPT

In 2004, Tomb T12, excavated back in
1994-1995 by the Polish Archaeological
Mission directed by W. A. Daszewski,12
was cleared again, uncovering the lower
part together with the foundations. This

season pointing of the limestone blocks in
the pedestal part of the pillar tomb (four
upper courses of blocks) was completed.
A lime-cement mortar (using class 35 Port-
land cement) was used for the purpose.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL CONTROL13

All archaeological investigations were
strictly coordinated with the conservation
program for particular architectural struc-
tures.
In continuation of previous explorations
in House H19, rooms 22, 23, 24, 25 were
cleared to give access to the walls for pres-
ervation. Room 22 (4.85 by 4.25 m) was
found to have another doorway (0.80 m
wide, reconstructed height over 2.00 m) in
the north wall, the jambs preserved in place
and evidently belonging to an earlier phase
in the existence of the house. The under-
lying deposit consisted of sand with large
quantities of pottery. In the western wall,
a niche was discovered with two big stones

(0.40 x 0.38 m) forming a gable roof over it
(height of niche 0.80 m, width 0.63 m,
depth 0.42 m). The fill yielded potsherds,
a few bronze coins and a ring, bronze and
iron nails, an ostracon, fragments of oil
lamps, glass, fragments of terracotta figu-
rines [Fig. 7}, cosmetic spatulae and pins of
bone, two of the pins with a hand deco-
rating the top and a snake-bracelet wound,
around the shaft at the base of the ornament
[Fig. 8],14 and large quantities of animal
bones.
An interesting find of four clay jars,
three virtually intact [Fig. 9], was made in
a small compartment (25a), measuring
1.18 x 0.78m, in House HI.

GEOLOGICAL RESEARCH

Geological investigations carried out during
the season at Marina el Alamein15 con-
centrated on stone building materials used
on the site. The prevailing stone was an
oolitic limestone, white as a rule and
weathering to beige. In petrographic terms,
it is a grainstone with loose grain structure,
consisting mainly of ooids filled with
sparite (oomicrosparite). This Quaternary
limestone comes to the surface along the

African Mediterranean coast from Abu Qir
to Salum. It was used for walls and floors, as
well as for architectural decoration.
Ten varieties of marble have been
identified provisionally based on macro-
scopic observation:
1) red, fine- and medium-blasted, with
calcite veins 1.5 mm wide;
2) breccia, dark gray calcite clasts, medium-
blasted, surrounded by cherry red fine-

12 Cf. Daszewski, PAM VI, op. cit., 31-32; PAM VII, Reports 1995 (1996), 40, Fig. 5.
13 Grazyna B^kowska supervised the clearing and contributed to this part of the report.
14 The hand may have held a pearl or an apple, cf. M. Guisan, "Bijoux remains d'Avenches", in: Bulletin de l'Association Pro
Aventico 23 (1975), 35, PL 15, nos. 4,5. For pins ending in hands, cf. Germanen, Hunnen und Awaren, Schatze der
Volkerwanderungszeit, W. Menghin (Nuremberg 1987), 344, no. 34, PI. 49, and V. Sarianidi, Die kunst des Alten
Afghanistan (Leipzig 1986), 178.
15 The following remarks were contributed by Malgorzata Mrozek.

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