The Italian-Egyptian Mission at the Monastery of Abba Nefer at Manqabad. Results of the first four seasons’ work

The Italian-Egyptian project at the Monastery of Abba Nefer at Manqabad started in 2011. The first three campaigns, carried out between 2011 and 2013, were actually brief surveys, strongly affected by the political instability of the country. During these surveys, the mission identified most of the structures already brought to light and recorded by previous investigations. Finally, during the campaign of autumn 2014, it was possible to work longer and to start the topographical survey and the investigation of the numerous structures still extant on the site. The town wall, overall enclosing an area of about 92.000 square meters, was acquired and measured with a Total Station. From the satellite images of the site, it was possible to identify a series of alignments in the NW quarter of the site, running EW at an average distance of 25m from each other. These alignments are very likely to correspond to the foundations or the lower courses of buildings for military cantonment of the Roman phase. Differently from monumental buildings of Roman time and churches of the early Christian period in Egypt, which were the object of in-depth studies during the last century, and are rather well known, the domestic architecture of the early Christian time still deserves further attention. For this reason, the mission put a particular focus on the Northern Sector of the site, characterized by a long row of housing units – 90 were recorded – and a first typology was set up. During the same season, the study of the previously discovered findings was also started. From the analysis of the two inventories kept in el-Ashmunein and Asyut (Shutbi), it was possible to determine the number and nature of all the findings and their conservation status. Unfortunately, however, only very vague information exist on the systems of grids and squares used by previous excavators and on the provenance of these findings. After the inventory survey, the study of the materials was undertaken at el-Ashmunein, where 152 specimens were analysed, catalogued and photographed. The preliminary observation of the finds (especially ceramics, paintings and architectural elements) and inscriptions allowed us to suggest an outline of the history of the site, divided into three main phases of life and at least three others of less regular human presence, which can be summarized as follows: a) Pharaonic Period (?); b) Ptolemaic Period (?); c) Late Roman Period; d) First Christian phase: end of the 5th/6th century; e) Second Christian phase corresponding to the first phase of the Islamic Period: 8th century; f) Second Islamic phase: 19th century (Mahmud II) (Pirelli 2015). However, this paper presents the results achieved so far by the Mission, on only four specific subjects: general features of the housing units; stone architectural elements; pottery; and inscriptions.

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