Marek Woźniak

Evidence from a newly discovered well at Berenike, a Hellenistic port on Egypt's Red Sea coast, suggests that the late third-century BC hiatus in occupation may have resulted from a multi-year drought that caused the city's freshwater source to run dry. This climatic shift was probably triggered by a volcanic eruption in 209 BC, an event that also caused a failure of the Nile to flood, leading to the famine-induced revolt of 207–186 BC in Upper Egypt. The Berenike excavations have not only uncovered the first Hellenistic city on the East African coast, but have also contributed to a better understanding of the effect of natural disasters on ancient societies.

The Hellenistic road network in the Eastern Desert and Red Sea coast of Egypt has been at the nexus of important archaeological research on several sites in the region in the second half of the 20th century. The work was focused at first on the Roman remains of this network, but with time it became evident that the Romans had made use of a system developed in Hellenistic and even earlier, Pharaonic times. French and Italian investigations at Marsa Gawasis, Gebel Zeit and Wadi al-Jarf contributed data on the marine expeditions of Old Kingdom rulers into the Sinai and Middle Kingdom rulers to the Land of Punt. Key information for the Hellenistic period came from the French exploration of gold mines and fortified features at Samut and the fort at Abbad. Of equal importance was the work of a Dutch–American and then Polish–American team at the Hellenistic and Roman coastal harbor of Berenike Trogodytica. This work uncovered remains of a Hellenistic port-base in the Eastern Desert region ...

Key information on the location, size and dating of the Ptolemaic fortifications of Berenike Trogodytika comes from archaeological excavations carried out in 2013–2015, following the 2012 season when the presence of military architecture in the Red Sea harbor was first discovered and identified (Woźniak and Rądkowska 2014). Sections of a thick wall constructed of gypsum anhydrite blocks on a wide foundation were recorded in the northern part of the site (trenches BE-13/90 and BE13-93). The wall was part of the defenses protecting the harbor from the north, the only land access to the site through marshy ground on the fringes of the so-called “northern lagoon”. Further work in trenches BE14-97 in 2014 and BE15-104 in 2015 uncovered the remains of a well preserved early Hellenistic fortified city gate, built of gypsum anhydrite blocks and chunks of coral. The complex has no parallel at present anywhere in the Red Sea region. A series of shallow basins interconnected by pipes made of t...

Abstract: Berenike was a gateway to the distant lands of Africa and the Indian Ocean littoral and the archaeological record from the site testifies to the scope and rich array of goods passing through this Red Sea port. However, investigation of the Hellenistic origins of the town began in earnest only after a full magnetic survey was completed of the western fringes of the site where the Ptolemaic foundation was believed to have been established. Recent excavations in 2010 and 2012 have contributed important new data about the architecture of this part of the town. Of particular interest were the remains of a presumed tetrapyrgion associated with a huge defensive complex, roughly 150 m by 80 m in size, which may have been used, among other things, for bringing through wild elephants from Africa imported for use by the Ptolemaic army. This contribution initiates a series of articles by the author on the Hellenistic defenses now under excavation at Berenike, presenting an overview of the location and structure of the great fort/base of Berenike Trogodytika and its role in the network of military harbors on the Red Sea coast, and the posts on the routes and fortified outposts of the Eastern Desert.

Abstract: Brief overview of two seasons of archaeological survey and excavation carried out in 2012 and
2013 at the site of Berenike on the Red Sea coast and in two sub-projects in the Eastern Desert: the
prehistoric cattle cemetery at Wadi Khashab and the Roman-era emerald mines at Sikait and Nugrus.
Highpoints of the work at Berenike included discovery of the Hellenistic fort and fortifications that mark
the original settlement of the site in the third quarter of the 3rd century BC, continued clearance of
harbor-related structures in the southwestern bay interpreted as the early Roman harbor of Berenike and
the uncovering of an earlier phase of the late Roman harbor temple (so-called Lotus Temple) of the 5th–
6th century AD in the harbor.

Brief overview of two seasons of archaeological survey and excavation carried out in 2012 and 2013 at the site of Berenike on the Red Sea coast and in two sub-projects in the Eastern Desert: the prehistoric cattle cemetery at Wadi Khashab and the Roman-era emerald mines at Sikait and Nugrus. Highpoints of the work at Berenike included discovery of the Hellenistic fort and fortifications that mark the original settlement of the site in the third quarter of the 3rd century BC, continued clearance of harbor-related structures in the southwestern bay interpreted as the early Roman harbor of Berenike and the uncovering of an earlier phase of the late Roman harbor temple (so-called Lotus Temple) of the 5th–6th century AD in the harbor.

Brief overview of two seasons of archaeological survey and excavation carried out in 2012 and 2013 at the site of Berenike on the Red Sea coast and in two sub-projects in the Eastern Desert: the prehistoric cattle cemetery at Wadi Khashab and the Roman-era emerald mines at Sikait and Nugrus. Highpoints of the work at Berenike included discovery of the Hellenistic fort and fortifications that mark the original settlement of the site in the third quarter of the 3rd century BC, continued clearance of harbor-related structures in the southwestern bay interpreted as the early Roman harbor of Berenike and the uncovering of an earlier phase of the late Roman harbor temple (so-called Lotus Temple) of the 5th–6th century AD in the harbor.

Among numerous exotic goods carried along ancient trade routes the so-called Seric iron is one of the most mysterious and least known. According to ancient sources, it was imported from a half-mythical land of Serica. New discoveries in southern India suggest it should be identified with the kingdom of Chera (in modern Tamilnadu) which existed between 300 BC and AD 300. This metal, one type of which was the patterned Damascene steel, was used mainly in the production of high-quality weapons. From about the 3rd century AD local production centers of crucible steel emerged also outside India.

Brief overview of two seasons of archaeological survey and excavation carried out in 2012 and 2013 at the site of Berenike on the Red Sea coast and in two sub-projects in the Eastern Desert: the prehistoric cattle cemetery at Wadi Khashab and the Roman-era emerald mines at Sikait and Nugrus. Highpoints of the work at Berenike included discovery of the Hellenistic fort and fortifications that mark the original settlement of the site in the third quarter of the 3rd century BC, continued clearance of harbor-related structures in the southwestern bay interpreted as the early Roman harbor of Berenike and the uncovering of an earlier phase of the late Roman harbor temple (so-called Lotus Temple) of the 5th–6th century AD in the harbor.

Brief overview of two seasons of archaeological survey and excavation carried out in 2012 and 2013 at the site of Berenike on the Red Sea coast and in two sub-projects in the Eastern Desert: the prehistoric cattle cemetery at Wadi Khashab and the Roman-era emerald mines at Sikait and Nugrus. Highpoints of the work at Berenike included discovery of the Hellenistic fort and fortifications that mark the original settlement of the site in the third quarter of the 3rd century BC, continued clearance of harbor-related structures in the southwestern bay interpreted as the early Roman harbor of Berenike and the uncovering of an earlier phase of the late Roman harbor temple (so-called Lotus Temple) of the 5th–6th century AD in the harbor.

The Hellenistic road network in the Eastern Desert and Red Sea coast of Egypt has been at the nexus of important archaeological research on several sites in the region in the second half of the 20th century. The work was focused at first on the Roman remains of this network, but with time it became evident that the Romans had made use of a system developed in Hellenistic and even earlier, Pharaonic times. French and Italian investigations at Marsa Gawasis, Gebel Zeit and Wadi al-Jarf contributed data on the marine expeditions of Old Kingdom rulers into the Sinai and Middle Kingdom rulers to the Land of Punt. Key information for the Hellenistic period came from the French exploration of gold mines and fortified features at Samut and the fort at Abbad. Of equal importance was the work of a Dutch-American and then Polish-American team at the Hellenistic and Roman coastal harbor of Berenike Trogodytica. This work uncovered remains of a Hellenistic port-base in the Eastern Desert region of Egypt, giving grounds for broadening a general understanding of the daily functioning, logistics, and functional interdependence of the Hellenistic road network in the region, which enabled in turn a comparison with the Roman counterpart. The present paper considers the functioning of this system based on the author's work in Berenike.

Key information on the location, size and dating of the Ptolemaic fortifications of Berenike Trogodytika comes from archaeological excavations carried out in 2013–2015, following the 2012 season when the presence of military architecture in the Red Sea harbor was first discovered and identified (Woźniak and Rądkowska 2014). Sections of a thick wall constructed of gypsum anhydrite blocks on a wide foundation were recorded in the northern part of the site (trenches BE-13/90 and BE13-93). The wall was part of the defenses protecting the harbor from the north, the only land access to the site through marshy ground on the fringes of the so-called " northern lagoon ". Further work in trenches BE14-97 in 2014 and BE15-104 in 2015 uncovered the remains of a well-preserved early Hellenistic fortified city gate, built of gypsum anhydrite blocks and chunks of coral. The complex has no parallel at present anywhere in the Red Sea region. A series of shallow basins interconnected by pipes made of truncated necks of early Hellenistic amphorae, found east of the gate, probably collected rainwater. The water function? of the gate was confirmed further by a large basin or cistern, about 1 m deep, abutting the complex on the southwest. A subterranean network of four rock-cut chambers was discovered at the bottom of the internal gate chamber. A corridor in the east wall of the gate shaft, with a covered channel in the floor, led off to the northeast, in the direction of a rectangular anomaly observed on the magnetic map, a possible second rock-cut shaft.

The report brings a comprehensive summary of archaeological fieldwork and survey carried out in Berenike on the Red Sea coast of Egypt and in the Eastern Desert hinterland over the course of two seasons in 2014 and 2015. The completed magnetic map of the site is discussed in some detail, assessing the potential for future excavations. The report covers the most important discoveries of the two seasons, which include fragments of Middle Kingdom Pharaonic stelae, possibly pushing back the foundation of the harbor, archaeological evidence of a rock-cut water-collection system forming part of the Hellenistic-age fortifications and two inscribed stone bases, one of which records a secretary of an aromatics warehouse at Berenike, discovered undisturbed in the courtyard of the Great Temple of Berenike (also called the Serapis Temple). A previously unknown religious(?) complex was discovered on the western outskirts of the site thanks to work with Corona satellite imagery. In turn, analysis of the magnetic mapping of the city revealed an administrative(?) complex in the northern part of the town; the later, 5th and 6th century layers were examined inside a chamber with niche forming part of this complex. Work also continued in the early Roman harbor, uncovering among others a complete timber ship frame, and a collection of garnets in subsidiary buildings in the late Roman temenos located in the entrance to the southwestern bay.

Brief overview of two seasons of archaeological survey and excavation carried out in 2012 and 2013 at the site of Berenike on the Red Sea coast and in two sub-projects in the Eastern Desert: the prehistoric cattle cemetery at Wadi Khashab and the Roman-era emerald mines at Sikait and Nugrus. Highpoints of the work at Berenike included discovery of the Hellenistic fort and fortifications that mark the original settlement of the site in the third quarter of the 3rd century BC, continued clearance of harbor-related structures in the southwestern bay interpreted as the early Roman harbor of Berenike and the uncovering of an earlier phase of the late Roman harbor temple (so-called Lotus Temple) of the 5th– 6th century AD in the harbor.

Archaeological work since 2014 in the Hellenistic areas of Berenike, a key port on Egypt’s Red Sea coast, founded by Ptolemy II Philadelphus in c. 275 BC, has brought extensive evidence of water-related structures: a rock-cut well located inside a rebuilt early-Hellenistic gate and a nearby cistern with an associated rainwater-collection system, that has changed the way in which the sources and uses of water in Hellenistic Berenike is understood today. The research started with the excavation of an ash mound, a characteristic landmark in the western part of the site, which is now believed to be the rubbish dump from the furnace that heated a Hellenistic bathhouse. At this stage in the research, it can be argued that Hellenistic Berenike had sufficient water available on site not only for drinking (hence potable), and agricultural and industrial uses, but also for public bathing. This article summarises the current state of research, presenting recent discoveries of a Hellenistic dat...