Experiments in Egyptian Archaeology, Stoneworking Technology in Ancient Egypt

Summary

We all stand in awe at the achievements of the Egyptians, at their pyramids, sarcophagi, intricate jewellery and so on, but rarely give a thought to how they actually produced these monuments and objects. With a background in mechanical engineering Denys Stocks has reconstructed and replicated two hundred tools that are found in archaeological contexts or are preserved in pictorial evidence. This book draws on this experimental work to discern the development of Egyptian tools and techniques throughout the Predynastic and Dynastic period. This `hands on' approach reveals the different methods and practises permissible by their technological know-how and Denys suggests what social and organisational changes may have been prompted by the increasing sophistication of stone working technology in particular. The analysis of these replicas is based within the context of a number of workers' towns such as Tell el-Amarna and Deir el-Medina, assessing how the Egyptian industrial revolution affected the individual craftsmen such as the bead-makers of Thebes or the stonemasons working on the pyramids at Giza. 263p, >200 b/w pls and figs, tbs (Routledge 2003, Pb 2010)

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• EXARC Experimental Archaeology Collection

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): EXARC Experimental Archaeology Collection Manager

Record Identifiers

ExArc Id(s): 10056

Notes

Rights & Attribution: The information in this record was originally compiled by Dr. Roeland Paardekooper, EXARC Director.