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  3. Ostraka and Other Inscribed Material from Bir Shawish, Small Oasis: Excavation Seasons 2005 and 2007

Ostraka and Other Inscribed Material from Bir Shawish, Small Oasis: Excavation Seasons 2005 and 2007

Marek Dospel
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Informal documents and remains of material culture, when analyzed properly, offer a unique window into the daily lives and workings of ancient civilizations. Published here in their archaeological context and with any relevant artifacts, the documents and inscriptions excavated recently in Egypt's Western Desert represent a valuable addition to our meager documentation of the Bahriya Oasis in the first centuries CE.

This is the first comprehensive treatment of an archaeological dataset from the archaeological exploration of Bīr Shawīsh. Dating to around 400 CE, these primary historical sources include documentary texts written on ostraka, informal inscriptions on various ceramic objects, plus a group of incised lids. The core of the volume consists of an annotated edition and analytical indices. This is prefaced by the historical and archaeological context and is followed by a synthesis of selected issues inherent to the published material. The book includes appendices and pictures of all published objects. Doubling the number of texts and inscriptions published to date from the Small Oasis, this new corpus furthers our understanding of the economic, administrative, and social history of Late Antique Egypt.

  • Contents
  • Preface and Acknowledgments
  • Table of Ostraka (O. Bir Shawish)
  • Table of Inscriptions (I. Bir Shawish)
  • List of Illustrations
  • 1. Introduction
  • 2. Bīr Shawīsh in the el-Ḥāyz Oasis
    • 2.1. Baḥrīya, or the Small Oasis
    • 2.2. The el-Ḥāyz Oasis: The Sites
    • 2.3. Western Travelers and Early Scholars in el-Ḥāyz
    • 2.4. Recent Exploration of el-Ḥāyz
    • 2.5. Bīr Shawīsh
      • 2.5.1. Topography of the site
      • 2.5.2. Dating of the site and House 3
  • 3. Inscribed Material from Bīr Shawīsh
    • 3.1. Archaeological Context of the Inscribed Material
    • 3.2. Notes on Editorial Procedure
    • 3.3. Ostraka
      • I. Accounts (1–2)
      • II. Certificate (3)
      • III. Receipts (4–33)
      • IV. Orders and notes (34–36)
      • V. Letter (37)
      • VI. Uncertain texts (38–50)
    • 3.4. Other Inscribed Material
      • 3.4.1. Dipinti (1–2)
      • 3.4.2. Graffiti (3–10)
      • 3.4.3. Opercula (11–36)
        • I. Opercula with alphabetical notations (11–12)
        • II. Opercula with vegetative motifs (13–18)
        • III. Opercula with geometric motifs (19–29)
        • IV. Operculum with a human figure (30)
        • V. Opercula with uncertain decoration (31–36)
  • 4. Selected Aspects of the Documentation
    • 4.1. Dating
      • 4.1.1. Regnal or era years
      • 4.1.2. Indiction years
      • 4.1.3. Egyptian civil calendar
    • 4.2. Commodities and Measures
      • 4.2.1. Grains
      • 4.2.2. Chaff
      • 4.2.3. Legumes and other vegetables
      • 4.2.4. Dates
      • 4.2.5. Wine and other vine products
      • 4.2.6. Oil
      • 4.2.7. Cotton and dress
      • 4.2.8. Livestock and other animals
      • 4.2.9. Chickens and eggs
      • 4.2.10. Money and monetary economy
    • 4.3. Administration and Management
      • 4.3.1. State administration
      • 4.3.2. Local oikos management
      • 4.3.3. Agrophylax, the field-guard
    • 4.4. Personal Names
    • 4.5. Religion
    • 4.6. Military Presence in el-Ḥāyz
      • 4.6.1. Archaeological remains of the Roman army
      • 4.6.2. Papyrological evidence for the Roman army
  • 5. Late Antique Bīr Shawīsh from a Papyrological Perspective: A Conclusion
  • Appendices
    • 1. Concordance of Ostraka by Object Number
    • 2. Concordance of Ostraka by Publication Number
    • 3. Concordance of Inscriptions by Object Number
    • 4. Concordance of Inscriptions by Publication Number
    • 5. Table of All Presented Material according to Archaeological Context
  • Bibliography
  • Index of Papyri, Ostraka, and Inscriptions
  • General Index
  • Indices to the Edition
    • 1. Chronology
    • 2. Personal Names
    • 3. Toponyms
    • 4. Official and Μilitary Τerms
    • 5. Professions, Occupations, and Statuses
    • 6. Religion
    • 7. Payments and Taxation
    • 8. Money, Weights, and Measures
    • 9. General Index of Greek and Coptic Words
    • 10. Decorative Elements (I. Bir Shawish)
Citable Link
Published: 2020
Publisher: American Society of Papyrologists
ISBN(s)
  • 978-0-9799758-8-2 (ebook)
  • 978-0-9799758-7-5 (hardcover)
Subject
  • Archaeology
  • Papyrology
  • Classical Studies
  • History

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Fig 45b: Ostraka 37 inscribed on convex (45a) and concave sides (45b), perpendicular to the throwing marks. Hand on convex side looks inexperienced, unlike on concave side. Script is majuscule, with only a few ligatures. It is a letter.

O. Bir Shawish 37: conc.

From Chapter 3

Fig. 45b. O. Bir Shawish 37, convex (a) and concave (b). (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 46: Ostraka 38 inscribed on concave side only, parallel with the throwing marks. Hand looks inexperienced and script is semicursive. The fragment probably comes from the right-hand part of an ostrakon as it is very thick. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 38

From Chapter 3

Fig. 46. O. Bir Shawish 38. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 47: Ostraka 39 inscribed on convex side only, with no apparent throwing marks. Sherd is broken off on all sides and text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 39

From Chapter 3

Fig. 47. O. Bir Shawish 39. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 48: Ostraka 40 inscribed on convex side only, parallel with the throwing marks. Surface of sherd is smooth but is badly faded and soiled. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 40

From Chapter 3

Fig. 48. O. Bir Shawish 40. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 49: Ostraka 41 inscribed on convex side only, parallel with the throwing marks. Sherd is too fragmentary. Hand looks regular, with seldom ligatures. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 41

From Chapter 3

Fig. 49. O. Bir Shawish 41. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 50: Ostraka 42 inscribed on convex side only, parallel with the throwing marks. Upper part of sherd surface has numerous scratches and lower part is soiled and has black fungal spots. Script is semicursive. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 42

From Chapter 3

Fig. 50. O. Bir Shawish 42. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 51: Ostraka 43 inscribed on convex side only, parallel with the throwing marks. Sherd is too fragmentary. Hand is semicursive. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 43

From Chapter 3

Fig. 51. O. Bir Shawish 43. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 52: Ostraka 44 inscribed on convex side only, parallel with the throwing marks. Hand is irregular and script is semicursive. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 44

From Chapter 3

Fig. 52. O. Bir Shawish 44. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 53a: Ostraka 45 inscribed on concave side only, obliquely to the throwing marks. Sherd is broken into two pieces (53a) and is heavily soiled. It is broken off at left-hand (53b) and top right-hand sides (53c). Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 45a

From Chapter 3

Fig. 53a. O. Bir Shawish 45. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 53b: Ostraka 45 inscribed on concave side only, obliquely to the throwing marks. Sherd is broken into two pieces (53a) and is heavily soiled. It is broken off at left-hand (53b) and top right-hand sides (53c). Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 45b

From Chapter 3

Fig. 53b. O. Bir Shawish 45. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 53c: Ostraka 45 inscribed on concave side only, obliquely to the throwing marks. Sherd is broken into two pieces (53a) and is heavily soiled. It is broken off at left-hand (53b) and top right-hand sides (53c). Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 45c

From Chapter 3

Fig. 53c. O. Bir Shawish 45. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 54: Ostraka 46 inscribed on convex side only, parallel with the throwing marks. Surface of sherd is affected by black patches and the red slip has flaked off in patches exposing the underlying fabric. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 46

From Chapter 3

Fig. 54. O. Bir Shawish 46. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 55: Ostraka 47 inscribed on convex side only, perpendicular to the throwing marks. Sherd is broken off on all sides and has black fungal spots. Hand is semicursive, regular, and confident. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 47

From Chapter 3

Fig. 55. O. Bir Shawish 47. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 56: Ostraka 48 inscribed on only the convex side on both fragments, obliquely to the throwing marks. Surface of sherd is very smooth and is affected by dark-brown spots of fungi and soil. Hand is cursive and hard to read. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 48

From Chapter 3

Fig. 56. O. Bir Shawish 48. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 57: Ostraka 49 inscribed on convex side only. Hand is experienced, script is cursive and characterized by long and curly descenders. The sherd represents a fragment of the left mid-part of an ostrakon. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 49

From Chapter 3

Fig. 57. O. Bir Shawish 49. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 58: Ostraka 50 inscribed on convex side only, parallel with the throwing marks. Hand is fairly regular but reading is difficult due to the extremely faded ink. Text is uncertain.

O. Bir Shawish 50

From Chapter 3

Fig. 58. O. Bir Shawish 50. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 59: Inscribed Material from Bīr Shawīsh 1 is a transport amphora of North African provenance with a notation. Inscription on the fragment is on the upper shoulder of the convex side.

I. Bir Shawish 1: Transport amphora with a notation

From Chapter 3

Fig. 59. I. Bir Shawish 1: transport amphora with a notation. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 64: Inscribed Material from Bīr Shawīsh 6 is amphora fragment. The sherd is a small fragment of a locally produced wine flask having dimensions of 6.7 × 5.1 cm.

I. Bir Shawish 6: Amphora fragment

From Chapter 3

Fig. 64. I. Bir Shawish 6: amphora fragment with ⲓⲥⲱⲥ. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 65: Inscribed Material from Bīr Shawīsh 7 is a ceramic fragment with the name Apollos. The vessel has dimensions of 9.6 × 8.1 cm with a substantial knob of 51.7 mm in diameter. Inscription is on convex side, parallel with the throwing marks.

I. Bir Shawish 7: Ceramic fragment with the name Apollo

From Chapter 3

Fig. 65. I. Bir Shawish 7: ceramic fragment with the name Apollos. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

Fig 67: Inscribed Material from Bīr Shawīsh 9 is a vessel fragment that is unregistered. This appears to be a bowl of diameter 95 mm.

I. Bir Shawish 9: Vessel fragment

From Chapter 3

Fig. 67. I. Bir Shawish 9: vessel fragment with χμ. (Courtesy of Charles University.)

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