Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean (17.2005(2007))

SAQQARA

EGYPT

THE POTTERY, 2005
Teodozja Izabela Rzeuska

The pottery studied in the season of 2005
came from squares 1903-1904-1905,
where burials of the Upper Necropolis
were discovered in the upper layers,
superimposed on the late Old Kingdom

necropolis1 and the sloping passage, i.e.,
Corridor 3 (squares 2002-2102) combined
with the area of the mud-brick platform
(squares 2001-2101), both investigated in
2004.2 3

UPPER NECROPOLIS

The surface layer in squares 1903-1904-
1905 consisted of sand mixed with
limestone chips in considerable quantities.
The layer was evidently disturbed, as
indicated by the chronological spread of the
sherds found in it, from severely damaged
Late Old Kingdom beer jars to vessels from
the Late Period.
The directly underlying layers were con-
nected with the functioning of the Upper
Necropolis as well. The most numerous and
typical of the finds are tall slender wheel-
made juglets made of Marl clay A4 or
Mixed clay with wet-smoothed surface,-1
and fragments of a slender torch, often with
a burnt substance inside. Meriting special
attention is a fragment of small globular
juglet with one handle, made of Marl A4
(SQ 1683), as well as a bowl (SQ 1505)
[Fig. 1} found south of the Upper
Necropolis burial 422, both vessels dating
to the Late Period. The former has a parallel
found in context with Late Period burials in
Saqqara.4 The latter is wheel-made of Nile

B2 with uncoated surface, only the rim
being secondarily covered with a black,
resinous substance. Vessels of this type were
used as lids for large piriform jars of the Late
Period, which served as containers for
whatever remained from the mummification
process. The resinous traces on the rim
would suggest just such use as a lid for the
present vessel. No jars of piriform shape
have been found so far, but this lid could
mean that such finds should be anticipated.
A large number of amphorae sherds was
recorded, unfortunately mostly not diag-
nostic. Meriting note is fragment SQ 1703
{cf. Fig. 1], which is a fragmentary rim with
one handle preserved, coming probably
from a Samian amphora. One of the most
remarkable pieces is a body sherd from a big
vessel with an Aramaic inscription written
in black ink. The vessel was made of hard,
dense clay with a consi-derable amount of
dark and red sandy inclusions. The outer
surface is brown, while the inside is coated
with a resinous substance. Despite numer-

1 For the mission's present work at Saqqara, see report by K. Mysliwiec in this volume.
2 See contribution by F. Welc in this volume.
3 T.I. Rzeuska, "The pottery", PAM XIV. Reports 2002 (2003), 150-151, Fig. 8.
4 J. Bourriau, D. Aston, "The pottery", in: G.T. Martin, The Tomb-Chapel of Paser and Ra'ia at Saqqara (London 1985),
PI. 37, no. 127, p. 54.

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