Papers - Sinai by castel georges
Since 2006, a joint mission from the Institut français d'archéologie orientale and the Université... more Since 2006, a joint mission from the Institut français d'archéologie orientale and the Université de Paris Sorbonne (Paris IV) has been investigating a specifi c region in the south-west of the Sinai peninsula that was the scene of intense exploitation of copper resources by the Egyptians from the very earliest periods of Pharaonic history. Within the context of this research, the remains of numerous metallurgical workshops from different periods have been surveyed. The aim of this article is to present the two most signifi cant discoveries made in this fi eld. To the west of Wadi Nasb, the discovery of a battery of intact furnaces that had been abandoned in antiquity without ever having been used, has allowed for precise observations regarding the construction techniques, ventilation system and the furnace load maintenance of these copper ore smelting units. Reproductions of these furnaces were then put to work as part of an experiment to demonstrate the main characteristics of their functioning. A second site at a locality known as Seh Nasb proved to be a major source of information as to the importance of this mining zone to the Egyptian state during the Old Kingdom. Here, a massive installation of some 27 batteries of furnaces, of a total cumulative length of nearly one kilometre, involving at least 3000 smelting units, refl ects the nearly industrial scale of ancient operations in the exploitation of copper in the region.
Collaboration on monograph by castel georges
Papers by castel georges
Journal of the American Oriental Society, 1986
Journal of the American Oriental Society, 1986
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Papers - Sinai by castel georges
Collaboration on monograph by castel georges
Papers by castel georges