DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.3390#0010
TARKH AN
INTRODUCTION
I. The sites of work in the season 1911-12 were
varied. In December the ruins of a town a few miles
south of Helwan—about 20 miles south of Cairo—
were excavated. It bears now the name of Shura-
feh; and as a late Roman camp was found there it
appears to be the Scenas Mandras of the Itineraries.
After about a month of clearing the history of that
site, a few days were spent at Atfieh, but it was
found that the limits officially stated for our work
were inexact, and we accordingly left the site, and
settled on the opposite—or western bank.
The main work of the first half of the season was
near Kafr Amrnar, about 37 miles south of Cairo.
There, a widespread cemetery of the earliest dynasties
was found, continuing also on a lesser scale down to
Roman times. As a distinctive name is required for
the early remains, which are the more important,
this volume is named from the nearest village Kafr
Tarkhan: while the later remains after the ist or
iind dynasty will be named from the more general
name of Kafr Ammar, the railway-station at a little
distance. This is somewhat like naming Drah abul
negga for the early material at Thebes, and Qurneh
for the later material in general. At Tarkhan we
had seven at work altogether. With me were Mr.
Mackay, Mr. Engelbach, and Mr. Elverson record-
ing, with my wife drawing, and, during part of the
time, valuable help was given by Mr. Lawrence,
before resuming his work at Carchemish. At about
a quarter of a mile away, Mr. Wainwright was work-
ing the southern end of the site. We were here
from January 13 to February 25, when I went to
Heliopolis. There I worked till April 18 assisted
by Mr. Engelbach, while Mr. Mackay was working
at Memphis.
The present volume deals only with the early
remains at Tarkhan, of the ist dynasty and shortly
before, with a few later illustrations which are linked
with the earlier. The account of the work at Mem-
I
phis is also included. The second volume of the
year, " Heliopolis I, Kafr Ammar, and Shurafeh"
will deal with the remains from the iind dynasty
onward at Kafr Ammar, and the whole work at
Heliopolis and Shurafeh.
CHAPTER I
THE DATING OF THE GRAVES
2. WHILE the excavations at Tarkhan were going
on, it was evident that we had to do with a ceme-
tery which started shortly before the ist dynasty, and
lasted through that dynasty in continual use. The
main material for comparison was therefore that from
the Royal Tombs of Abydos, which are precisely
dated. For the earlier part of the period the con-
tinual changes of degradation in the wavy-handled
jars—or rather cylinders, as they all were at this
period—gives a sequence which is of some value.
Thus it was evident that we could not well record
such a cemetery upon the old notation of the pre-
historic corpus, which was established in Naqada,
and amplified by additions from many subsequent
excavations. That corpus only included the earlier
part of our present types; and it was not at all full
for those, as it was derived from a cemetery which
was mainly of much earlier periods. The present
cemetery apparently only started at the northern
migration of the dynastic conquerors from Upper
Egypt; and it represents therefore the dying out
of the prehistoric civilisation, and the growth of
the early dynastic system, which lasted on to the
vith dynasty, and was not replaced by anything
different till the rise of the xith dynasty. In order,
therefore, to deal effectively with this period it is
needful to regard it apart from the prehistoric, and to
treat it as the earlier section of the dynastic history.
3. The prehistoric corpus of types of pottery and
stone forms was not applicable to such a scope ; most
of the old types had become extinct, the majority of
INTRODUCTION
I. The sites of work in the season 1911-12 were
varied. In December the ruins of a town a few miles
south of Helwan—about 20 miles south of Cairo—
were excavated. It bears now the name of Shura-
feh; and as a late Roman camp was found there it
appears to be the Scenas Mandras of the Itineraries.
After about a month of clearing the history of that
site, a few days were spent at Atfieh, but it was
found that the limits officially stated for our work
were inexact, and we accordingly left the site, and
settled on the opposite—or western bank.
The main work of the first half of the season was
near Kafr Amrnar, about 37 miles south of Cairo.
There, a widespread cemetery of the earliest dynasties
was found, continuing also on a lesser scale down to
Roman times. As a distinctive name is required for
the early remains, which are the more important,
this volume is named from the nearest village Kafr
Tarkhan: while the later remains after the ist or
iind dynasty will be named from the more general
name of Kafr Ammar, the railway-station at a little
distance. This is somewhat like naming Drah abul
negga for the early material at Thebes, and Qurneh
for the later material in general. At Tarkhan we
had seven at work altogether. With me were Mr.
Mackay, Mr. Engelbach, and Mr. Elverson record-
ing, with my wife drawing, and, during part of the
time, valuable help was given by Mr. Lawrence,
before resuming his work at Carchemish. At about
a quarter of a mile away, Mr. Wainwright was work-
ing the southern end of the site. We were here
from January 13 to February 25, when I went to
Heliopolis. There I worked till April 18 assisted
by Mr. Engelbach, while Mr. Mackay was working
at Memphis.
The present volume deals only with the early
remains at Tarkhan, of the ist dynasty and shortly
before, with a few later illustrations which are linked
with the earlier. The account of the work at Mem-
I
phis is also included. The second volume of the
year, " Heliopolis I, Kafr Ammar, and Shurafeh"
will deal with the remains from the iind dynasty
onward at Kafr Ammar, and the whole work at
Heliopolis and Shurafeh.
CHAPTER I
THE DATING OF THE GRAVES
2. WHILE the excavations at Tarkhan were going
on, it was evident that we had to do with a ceme-
tery which started shortly before the ist dynasty, and
lasted through that dynasty in continual use. The
main material for comparison was therefore that from
the Royal Tombs of Abydos, which are precisely
dated. For the earlier part of the period the con-
tinual changes of degradation in the wavy-handled
jars—or rather cylinders, as they all were at this
period—gives a sequence which is of some value.
Thus it was evident that we could not well record
such a cemetery upon the old notation of the pre-
historic corpus, which was established in Naqada,
and amplified by additions from many subsequent
excavations. That corpus only included the earlier
part of our present types; and it was not at all full
for those, as it was derived from a cemetery which
was mainly of much earlier periods. The present
cemetery apparently only started at the northern
migration of the dynastic conquerors from Upper
Egypt; and it represents therefore the dying out
of the prehistoric civilisation, and the growth of
the early dynastic system, which lasted on to the
vith dynasty, and was not replaced by anything
different till the rise of the xith dynasty. In order,
therefore, to deal effectively with this period it is
needful to regard it apart from the prehistoric, and to
treat it as the earlier section of the dynastic history.
3. The prehistoric corpus of types of pottery and
stone forms was not applicable to such a scope ; most
of the old types had become extinct, the majority of