Petrie, William M. Flinders: Abydos: Part I: 1902 (London, 1902)

THE TEMENOS OF OSIKIS.

13

small saucers, 10—14, are so easily invented at
any time that they are not important.

The everted bowls 15—-27 are both of rough
brown pottery (see N. R 24, 26, 28) or of
polished red ware of poor and late quality
(see N. P 15, 17, 18).

The brim bowls, 28—31, are of late origin,
but of various ware ; some red polished (N.
V 14), some rough brown, but more usually
of hard late ware (N. L 7, 8, 9, 10).

The inturned bowls are the commonest of
all, and descend from early ages; they are
divided into four columns here, the straight
sided, the curved sided, the rounded sided, and
the wide based.

It should be noted that the different classes
of boAvls were not in use similarly at all levels.
The rough small saucers are all of 0 or 3 level;
the everted bowls at 0 to 25, and one later;
the wide bases usually 25 to 50 ; the brim bowls
19 to 85; the rounded bowls 18 to 115. This
shoAvs that fluctuations in fashion went on from
one generation to another, within the wider
range of the mere existences of such forms which
cover much longer periods.

The rough-bottomed bowls, 57—62, were
made by dropping a lump of mud into a hole in
the ground, and then shaping it up by hand.
They are all very thick, and of soft, poorly-
baked mud; signs marked Avith the finger
often occur on the inside of the boAvls, and such
are copied here. The earlier forms are natter,
the later ones more upright.

The great pans, 66 — 69, Avere probably used
for storage, as also the ovate jars 70—77.
lliese forms are not known in the graves,
except very rarely a jar. But the great pans
were used to invert over a contracted body, so
as to constitute a grave ; and they are commonly
knoAvn to explorers by their modern name of
magur. The pans are found in all levels, but
the jars only range from 18 to 62.

The great jars with narroAV mouths (78—83)
Avere probably sunk in the ground and used to

store grain. A recess around the mouth (see
section in 81) was made to retain a lid. The
levels stated here are taken a little beloAv the
top, at the probable ground level. The same
form of mouth to a spheroidal jar Avas found
along Avith a cylinder of Ka-Ra, probably
Khaires Avho reigned either just before or after
Khasekhemui in the Ilnd Dynasty (El Kab, ii, 2).
This Avould be probably rather later than the
examples here, Avhich are at 68 to 88 levels.

The largest jar (Fig. 83) is much later, being
found at 55 inches under the pavement of
Amenhotep I; the height over sand is yet
unknoAvn.

The cylinder jars, 84—86, are of the usual
late type, such as is found in the latest pre-
historic graves, probably contemporary Avith
such jars in the Mena and Zer tombs. The
series of further degradation of this form is
given in R, T. i, 119—129.

The minute forms, 88—91, seem to be models
of the large jars 102, &c. They are all early.

The rough broAvn jars, 92—97, are of the
form of the late ash jars of the prehistoric
graves (A7. L 30). In tAvo or three houses long
lines of these Avere found stacked against a Avail;
in one case 21 jars, along a chamber 145 by 86
inches, standing mouth doAvn on the sand
(fig. 92); elseAvhere more than a dozen, mouth
up (fig. 97); elseA\rhere a long line, mouth
down (fig. 95); and in nearly all of these cases
the bottoms Avere broken off.

The smooth, hard, light broAvn jars, 98—101,
are not so common in the toAvn as they are in

graves.

The class of great jars, 102—105, is quite
distinct from all others. The earliest is that
from the tomb of King Ro (Ii. T. i, 2), Avhich
has the raised bands marked to imitate rope;
this is a copy of a jar slung in cords, like the
example carved in stone found by Amclineau
(De Morgan, Heck, ii, fig. 823). For a small
pottery model of the same see II. T. ii, pi.
xxxviii, 1. Such jars Avere found by me Avith