Magnetic prospection in the service of uncovering the Hellenistic and Roman port of Berenike on the Red Sea in Egypt

Iwona Zych; Tomasz Herbich

Published: 2015-01-01

Vol. 53 (2015)

Magnetic prospection in the service of uncovering the Hellenistic and Roman port of Berenike on the Red Sea in Egypt

Iwona Zych , Tomasz Herbich

Abstract

Magnetic prospection was chosen as a non-invasive survey method for covering the expanse of the Hellenistic and Roman city and port of Berenike on the Red Sea in Egypt. A test run in 1999 confirmed the potential of the method in the specific conditions of the site and its geology; since 2008 the Polish–American project excavating the site has completed a full-site prospection, revealing surprising data for consideration in the interpretation of site topography and individual architectural remains. The article gives background on the topography of the site and explores three areas of the site: the western district, the southwestern bay and the urban mound in the east, where the results of magnetic prospection have been particularly telling and where, combined with archaeological feedback, they have contributed to a new understanding of the ancient remains. The discussion also poses ideas concerning the interpretation of site topography overall and follows up with prospects for the surveyors in the coming seasons

Keywords:

magnetic prospection, Berenike, port, fortifications, urban insulae, street grid, Hellenistic fort

Most read articles by the same author(s)

Tomasz Herbich, Magnetic prospecting in archaeological research: a historical outline , Archaeologia Polona: Vol. 53 (2015): Archaeological Prospection
Irene Forstner-Müller, Tomasz Herbich, Christian Schweitzer, Archaeological and geophysical survey of Tell el-Dabᶜa, an ancient town in the Nile Delta , Archaeologia Polona: Vol. 53 (2015): Archaeological Prospection
Tomasz Herbich, Editorial , Archaeologia Polona: Vol. 53 (2015): Archaeological Prospection
Tomasz Herbich, Włodzimierz Rączkowski, Creating a new standard: medieval town(s) within a remote sensing perspective , Archaeologia Polona: Vol. 53 (2015): Archaeological Prospection
Tomasz Herbich, Geophysical surveying in Egypt: periodical report for 2013-2015 , Archaeologia Polona: Vol. 53 (2015): Archaeological Prospection

Download files

PDF

Citation rules

Zych, I., & Herbich, T. (2015). Magnetic prospection in the service of uncovering the Hellenistic and Roman port of Berenike on the Red Sea in Egypt. Archaeologia Polona, 53, 95–118. Retrieved from https://journals.iaepan.pl/apolona/article/view/289

Cited by / Share

Licence

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

References

Aldsworth, F.G., Sidebotham, S.E. and Wendrich, W.Z. 1995. The town site: survey, plan and description. In S.E. Sidebotham and W.Z. Wendrich (eds), 1995. Berenike 1994. Preliminary Report of the 1994 Excavations at Berenike (Egyptian Red Sea Coast) and the Survey of the Eastern Desert, Leiden, 13–20
Belzoni, G.B. 1822. Narrative of Operations and Recent Discoveries within the Pyramids, Temples, Tombs and Excavations in Egypt and Nubia II, London
Gaffney, Ch. and Gater, J. 2003. Revealing the buried past. Geophysics for archaeologists, Stroud
Harrell, J.A. 1996. Geology. In S.E. Sidebotham and W.Z. Wendrich (eds), Berenike 1995. Preliminary Report of the Excavations at Berenike (Egyptian Red Sea Coast) and the Survey of the Eastern Desert, Leiden, 99–126
Herbich, T. 2003. Archaeological geophysics in Egypt: the Polish contribution, Archaeologia Polona 41, 13–56
Herbich, T. 2007. Magnetic survey. In S.E. Sidebotham, W.Z. Wendrich (eds), Berenike 1999/2000. Report of the Excavations at Berenike including Excavations in Wadi Kalalat and Siket, and the Survey of the Mons Smaragdus Region, Los Angeles, 22–29
Herbich, T. 2011. Magnetic survey (2008 and 2009). In S.E. Sidebotham and I. Zych (eds), Berenike 2008–2009. Report on the Excavations at Berenike, Including a Survey in the Eastern Desert [=PCMA Excavation Series 1], Warsaw, 11–18
Rądkowska, J., Woźniak, M. 2011. Locating the Emporium of Berenike: Evidence of geology, geophysical prospection and satellite mapping. In Sidebotham, S.E. and Zych, I. (eds). 2011. Berenike 2008–2009. Report on the Excavations in Berenike. Including a Survey in the Eastern Desert [=PCMA Excavation Series 1], Warsaw, 19–24
Rądkowska, J., Sidebotham, S.E. and Zych, I. 2013. The Late Roman harbour temple of Berenike. Results of the 2010 season of excavations, Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean 22 (Research 2010), 209–228
Sidebotham, S.E. 1999. Berenike. In K.A. Bard (ed.), Encyclopedia of the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt, London, New York, 170– 172
Sidebotham, S.E. 2011. Berenike and the Ancient Maritime Spice Route, Berkeley–Los Angeles–London
Sidebotham, S.E., Hense, M. and Nouwens, H.M. 2008. The Red Land. The Illustrated Archaeology of Egypt’s Eastern Desert, Cairo–New York
Sidebotham, S.E. and Wendrich, W.Z. 2002. Berenike: Archaeological Fieldwork at a Ptolemaic–Roman port on the Red Sea coast of Egypt 1999–2001, Sahara 13, 23–50
Sidebotham, S.E. and Wendrich, W.Z. 2007. Survey of Berenike. In Sidebotham, S.E. and W.Z. Wendrich (eds). Berenike 1999/2000. Report of the Excavations at Berenike including Excavations in Wadi Kalalt and Siket, and the Survey of the Mons Smaragdus Region, Los Angeles, 4–21
Sidebotham, S.E. and Zych, I. (eds). Forthcoming a. Berenike 201o–2011. Report on the Excavations at Berenike, Including a Survey in the Eastern Desert and Reports on Earlier Work [=PCMA Excavation Series 4], Warsaw
Sidebotham, S.E., Zych, I.2012. Berenike: Archaeological fieldwork at a Ptolemaic–Roman port on the Red Sea coast of Egypt 2011–2012, Sahara 23, 29–48
Sidebotham, S.E., Zych, I. 2011. Excavations. In Sidebotham, S.E. and I. Zych (eds). 2011. Berenike 2008–2009. Report on the Excavations at Berenike, Including a Survey in the Eastern Desert [=PCMA Excavation Series 1], Warsaw, 25–57 Google Scholar