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1 Plant Economy and Land Use in Middle Egypt during the Late
Antique/Early Islamic Period:Archaeobotanical Analysis of Mud
Bricks and Mud Plasters from the Area of Dayr al-Barsha
Elena Marinova1, Gertrud J.M. van Loon2, Marleen De Meyer2,3
& Harco Willems21 Center for Archaeological Sciences,
Celestijnenlaan 200E, bus 2408, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium,
E-mail: [email protected] K.U. Leuven, Research
Group Egyptology, Faculty of Arts, Blijde Inkomststraat 21, bus
3318, B-3000 Leuven, E-mails: [email protected] /
[email protected] /
[email protected]
3 Postdoctoral Fellow Research Foundation Flanders
Abstract: The current study presents the archaeobotanical
analysis of mud bricks and plasters from the Coptic occupation
(from ca 400 to ca 800 AD) from several localities in the vicinity
of Dayr al-Barsh, Middle Egypt. The data set presented comes from
three locations, i.e., Dayr Ab Hinnis (reused quarries), Dayr
al-Barsh and al-Shaykh Sad (reused Pharaonic tombs) and consists
mainly of desiccated plant material retrieved from 32 samples. The
chaff and particularly rachis fragments of main cereal crops
characteristic for the period of study, barley and free threshing
wheat, dominate the archaeobotanical finds. Apart from these, there
are rather numerous remains of radish, which are interpreted as
by-products of oil-production. In most cases, one of these three
species is the dominant tempering material found in the studied
samples. The plant assemblages from mud bricks and plasters
compared with those from settlement contexts in the same area show
good potential for obtaining information on the principal crops for
the study area. A wide variety of non-cultivated plants found helps
to reconstruct the habitats exploited in the areas surrounding the
site during the period studied. The botanical analysis of dung
pellets found in some mud bricks permits an estimation of the
contribution of animal dung to the variety of plant taxa
identified.
Keywords: archaeobotany, monastic diet, desiccated plant
remains, temper, chaff, crop processing by-products, animal
dung
Introduction
The archaeobotanical study of plant materials preserved in mud
bricks, wattle and daub or other building struc-tures already has a
tradition in arid areas such as Egypt (see Thanheiser 1999; van der
Veen 1999; Smith 2003; Newton 2004; Cappers 2006; Thanheiser &
Knig 2008; Fahmy & Fadl 2009; Hendrickx et al. 2010). The
straw, chaff and other crop processing re-mains preserved in
building structures were valuable raw materials for traditional
agricultural societies, and especially so in arid areas (van der
Veen 1999). The archaeobotanical analysis of such materials can
help to gain insight into the crop plants used and associated
weeds, which may be indicative of crop husbandry prac-tices.
Information of this kind can also be considered in general terms to
allow us to trace different aspects of the plant economy of the
period studied.
This paper presents the results of botanical analysis of plant
macrofossils recovered from mud bricks and plasters from several
localities in the vicinity of Dayr al-Barsh, Middle Egypt,
inhabited during the Late Antique to Early Islamic period. The
study is based on fieldwork being carried out by Leuven University
under the direction of Prof. Dr. H. Willems. The plant remains in
this study derive from structures related to the monastic
occupation of the studied sites. Consider-ing that the plaster and
brick material is continuously eroding, it was decided to conduct
archaeobotanical analysis on these materials. No other
archaeological structures could be used as a source of
archaeobotanical information for the study period, because they
have not yet been excavated.
Aims of the study were first to establish the botanical
composition of the temper materials of plant origin in the mud
plasters and mud bricks; secondly to trace how
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2E. Marinova et al.
the plant remains became incorporated in the build-ing materials
based on their taphonomy (see Newton 2004; Cappers 2006; van der
Veen 2007); and thirdly to consider the results of the study in the
light of what they can contribute to our understanding of the
ancient agriculture and the environment in the region.
Study area
The study area is situated approximately 280 km south of Cairo
on the east bank of Nile. The mud plasters and mud bricks analysed
originate from of the Coptic mo-nastic complexes at Dayr Ab Hinnis
(reused quarries), Dayr al-Barsh, and al-Shaykh Sad (reused
Pharaonic tombs) in Middle Egypt (Fig. 1).
Natural conditions
The study area, situated in the Nile valley, is character-ized
by an arid climate with high temperatures, low rela-tive humidity,
high evaporation and an annual rainfall of ca 14 mm. The vegetation
of the Nile valley includes two main habitats: river (and canal)
banks and culti-vated fields (Zahran & Willis 1992: 265267). In
the wadis surrounding the sites, representatives of desert
vegetation common in limestone desert landforms (Kassas &
Girgis 1970: 339342) can be found such as Zygophyllum coccineum L.,
Zilla spinosa (L) Prantl, Anabasis articulata (Forssk.) Moq.,
Fagonia bruguieri DC, Farsetia aegyptiaca Turra, and Panicum
turgidum Forssk.
Archaeological setting
The sites of Dayr al-Barsh and al-Shaykh Sad in Mid-dle Egypt
harbour many rock-cut tombs in cliffs on the eastern Nile bank
(Willems et al. 2004, 2006, 2009). Most of these tombs date from
the Old Kingdom, First Intermediate Period, and Middle Kingdom, but
many were secondarily inhabited at a much later point in time,
during the Late Antique to Early Christian Period (De Meyer 2008:
653658). The monk Anb Bishy, who lived in the nearby mountain of
Antinoopolis or Ansina in the early 5th century AD, is the titular
saint of the old church at Dayr al-Barsh. This church once belonged
to a monastic settlement (Coquin 1991: 20292030; Coquin et al.
1991: 794796). According to local tradition over one thousand monks
belonged to this monastery during the 6th and 7th centuries AD, one
third of them residing in the rock tombs as hermits (Timm 1984:
694; Meinardus 2000: 200). While this
number may be exaggerated, archaeological settlement remains do
show that it was not a few sporadic monks who inhabited the rock
tombs and quarries, but that these were fairly densely populated.
These monks altered the pre-existing rock tombs and quarries into
living environments. The modifications range from painting red
crosses on the walls, to carving hooks in the ceiling, to damaging
Pharaonic imagery, and even breaking out entire walls or creating
windows.
Coptic monks frequently smoothed the fairly rough tomb and
quarry walls. They did this using claw chisels, the remaining
traces of which are often covered by a layer of mud plaster. Mud
was also used to create floors and other structures inside the
tombs and quarries. It is from these mud wall plasters that several
samples have been analysed (Tab. 1). A mud brick construction
(bench?) on the side of the entrance door to tomb 15J67/1 the Old
Kingdom tomb of An-Ankhy on the south hill is dated by a Late Roman
coin found underneath the mud plaster
Fig. 1. Map of the study area, the approximate position of the
sites indicated with ellipses (AH: Ab Hinis, DALB: Dayr al-Barsh,
SS: al-Shaykh Sad). In the overview map of Egypt the study area is
indicated with a grey star.
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3Plant Economy and Land Use in Middle Egypt during the Late
Antique/Early Islamic PeriodPROOFScovering the rock floor. On top
of the bench and in the immediate vicinity six other Late Roman
coins were found, one of which could be assigned to the reign of
Theodosius I (379395 AD). These coins are still under study by
Barbara Lichocka and the preliminary results are mentioned in De
Meyer (2008: 527528).
The second series of samples comes from a monastic community
located near the village of Dayr Ab Hinnis (Fig. 1). This village
is situated a few kilometers north of Dayr al-Barsh and to the
south of the ruined town of Antinoopolis/Antino (founded by the
Emperor Hadrian around AD 130132) and Ansin. The later was an
administrative centre of Middle Egypt between the 8th and 13th
centuries (Bagnall & Rathbone 2004: 169172). In Pharaonic
times, mainly during the New Kingdom, the hills to the east of the
village (ca 7080 m high) were quarried extensively for limestone
(Willems & Demare 2009). These gallery quarries on several
levels, have nearly all been converted by monks into working and
living quarters and for liturgical purposes from approximately the
4th century onwards. Doorways, windows or cupboards were cut or
carved, stone walls were built to divide spaces into smaller units,
and out-side structures were added. The studied material comes from
a selection of these quarries, situated between two wadis, on the
upper and intermediate level of the lime-stone layers. The plateau
to the east also contains a fair number of quarries with
well-preserved built structures, which have not yet been documented
(Delattre in press; van Loon in press).
At first sight, the quarries look bare and poor. This is
deceptive: Plaster fragments show that most were well finished and
there was a certain degree of comfort. Paintings and sculptures
preserved show care and atten-tion to detail. In the south-western
corner of one of the largest quarries (AH-12), liturgical spaces
were installed and decorated with wall paintings, the most famous
be-ing the cycles of the Infancy of Christ and Saint John the
Baptist. The paintings in this area, traditionally called the
church, have been known since the 17th century (for recent
discussions see Delattre 2003; van Loon & Delattre 2004, 2005,
2006). Several walls inside the quarries, both constructed walls
and rock faces, still retain part of their mud and lime plaster
layers or whitewash. Sometimes lime plaster or whitewash was
applied directly to the rock face. Very rough walls were smoothened
with a coarse mud plaster or mortar mixed with small stones or
pottery, followed by preparatory layers of mud plaster and a
finishing layer of lime plaster. A small part of a mud brick wall
was found near the southern church entrance. In a quarry space to
the east of the church (AH-12 Eastern entrance 1), a few loose mud
bricks were collected for archaeobotanical analysis. Remains of mud
brick structures, however, are rare.
It is difficult to estimate how long monastic com-munities have
occupied these quarries. Plaster layers, inscriptions and paintings
show several phases of use. A few coins have been found (surface
finds), which have been in circulation from the end of the 4th
until the 9th century (Castrizio in press). The complex was
certainly still in use during the 6th to 8th centuries but the
exact dates of occupation and abandonment have not been
established.
Materials and methods
The study of the mud plasters and mud bricks from Dayr al-Barsh
was conducted using measured volumes of material ranging from 50 to
500 ml. The sample volumes were estimated by liquid replacement in
measured cylinder. Wet sieving, using sieves with mesh sizes of 2
mm, 1 mm, and 0.3 mm, was used to extract plant remains. First, the
mud bricks were observed carefully for destruction by insects or
other animal activity, as this can bias the result by contamination
with modern plant material. For this reason only building materials
preserved intact were taken and gently broken into smaller pieces
in order to observe possible modern disturbance. In cases where
sheep/goat coprolites were encountered, they were extracted intact
and studied separately. The same was done with larger visible plant
macro-remains, which were removed with the aid of a brush. The
samples were soaked in water for 1012 hours in order to release the
fine plant material embed-ded in the dry and compact clay of the
mud bricks and plasters. This approach permitted the extraction of
plant material, which could easily be damaged if dry sieving had
been applied on the compact and clay rich matrix of the brick and
plaster fragments. When extracted in this way plant remains were
preserved mainly in desiccated state. In some samples small
quantities of unidentifi-able mineralized material or charred
fragments were observed. The plant remains extracted from the clay
matrix of the bricks and plasters were then sorted and identified
using a zoom stereo microscope (NOVEX RZT-SF with up to 67.5x
magnification. For documenta-tion a digital camera (CMEX 5000)
integrated with the stereoscope was used. To aid the
identification, the port-able portion of the reference collection
of the Center for Archaeological Sciences, K.U. Leuven and the
Flora of Egypt (Boulos 1999, 2000, 2002, 2005) were used. The
botanical nomenclature for the wild growing plants follows the
Flora of Egypt (ibid.). The nomenclature of scientific plant names
for cereal crops follows van Zeist (1984) and for most other
cultivated plants Zohary & Hopf (2000). The identified material
from the samples was counted and is presented in Tables 1 and
2.
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4E. Marinova et al.
It is logical to expect the different functions of both studied
structures (mud bricks and mud plasters) to be manifested through
differences in the botanical mate-rial used for tempering. Such
differences were already observed by van der Veen (2001) in the mud
bricks and plasters from the Roman occupation of Mons Claudianus.
In order to recognize possible similarities or differences not
obviously traceable by simple com-parisons between the samples,
numerical approaches such as cluster analysis were applied. Taxa
which appear in less than 10 % of the samples and also samples with
fewer than 15 identified items were removed from the data set
following the considerations given in van der Veen (1992) on
statistical analyses of archaeobotanical datasets. For the analysis
the software PAST (Hammer et al. 2001) was used, applying the
paired group link-age correlation (a variation of unweighted pair
group method) clusters analysis. Clusters are joined based on the
average distance between all members in two groups and the most
similar clusters are combined at any given stage.
Results
A total of 58 samples was taken and prepared for
ar-chaeobotanical analysis at Dayr al-Barsh (11 from mud bricks and
47 from mud plasters). In 17 samples no significant identifiable
plant macroremains were found and they were omitted from further
analysis. These were mainly samples from the so called fine
plasters, i.e., plaster consisting mainly of fine clay and finely
chopped plant material. In the current study, 31 archaeobotani-cal
samples with a sufficient amount of plant macrore-mains (over 15
identifiable items) attributed to the Late AntiqueEarly Islamic
period were considered (Tab. 1). In total over 1800 desiccated
plant items were identi-fied and the average concentration of the
plant remains was 488 items per liter. One sample, consisting only
of branches of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.), from AH-33
threshold III-E, was excluded from the table. The good preservation
of the branches and the presence of inflorescence parts allowed the
determination of the material using modern herbarium specimens.
The most common plant remains identified and those of special
interest are illustrated at Figure 2. The archaeo-botanical
analysis of the mud bricks and mud plasters has revealed the use of
a wide spectrum of domesticated and other useful plants including
durum wheat (Triticum cf. durum Desf.), hulled barley (Hordeum
vulgare L.), lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.), pea (Pisum sativum
L.), grape (Vitis vinifera L.), fig (Ficus sp. L.), date palm
(Phoenix dactylifera L.), Christs thorn (Ziziphus spina-christi
((L.) Desf.), linseed (Linum usitatissimum L.), radish (Rapha-
nus sp. L.), safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.), melon or
cucmber (Cucumis melo L./sativus L.), bitter apple/water melon
(Citrullus sp. Schrad. ex Eckl. & Zeyh.), and rosemary
(Rosmarinus officinalis L.).
Some of the sampled plasters were dominated by the chaff of
durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) and to a lesser extend barley
(Hordeum vulgare L.), in oth-ers the fruit remains of radish
(Raphanus sp. L.) were dominant. Apart from these dominant remains
other plant remains were also present.
Along with crop remains, weeds and wild plants associated either
with them in the crop fields or with other habitats such as
river/canal bank areas, desert edge, or wadis, were identified. The
proportions of the main groups of plants found in the mud bricks
were compared with those found in the mud plasters (Fig. 3) in
order to compare the general vegetal composition of both types of
building elements. In the mud bricks there is 12.8 % more chaff
identified than in the plasters. The reason for this could be that
less plant material was used for the plasters. Considering the fact
that in many of the plaster samples the plant material was finely
chopped, this difference could be explained by a reduced number of
identifiable chaff remains in the plasters. The difference (10 %)
between proportions of oil/fibre crops from mud bricks and plasters
is mainly due to the fact that the Raphanus sp. L. remains were
interpreted as remains of oil crops and they are rather numerous in
several plaster samples.
All studied mud bricks had a similar spectrum of plant remains.
The plant materials used as tempering in-gredients partly derives
from animal dung, as suggested by the presence of individual dung
pellets of sheep/goat inside the bricks. Ten sheep/goat pellets
were analysed in order to determine possible sources of plant seeds
in the mud bricks and the diet of the ovicaprids kept at the site
(Tab. 2). Two of these showed a composition dominated by wet area
and riverbank vegetation which included Cyperus sp. L.,
Schoenoplectus praelongatus (Poir.) J. Raynal and Fimbristylis
bisumbellata (Forssk.) Bubani. In other coprolites Chenopodium
murale L. or Trifolium cf. alexandrinum L. were mainly found. In
one of the dung pellets, desert vegetation was represented by
Pulicaria sp. Gaertn. and cf. Zygophyllum sp. L. Some of the dung
pellets consisted of strongly fragmented possible Poaceae/Cerealia
material, which probably originated from fodder or herbaceous
vegetation.
The Dayr al-Barsh mud plasters were classified into two
categories according to their consistency: 1. fine (with quite well
chopped plant tempering), and 2. coarse (where larger plant remains
were visible). The cluster analysis (Fig. 4) of the sample
composition revealed certain similarities between the coarse
plas-ters and the mud bricks. Also according to the cluster
u0038253Sticky Notereplace "at" by "in"
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5Plant Economy and Land Use in Middle Egypt during the Late
Antique/Early Islamic PeriodPROOFSanalysis no notable difference
was observed between the different sites included in the analysis.
However, there is a difference between the compositions of the
different building elements analysed. Figure 4 shows four different
clusters that could be recognized.
Group A (2 samples): includes AH-19 and AH-23; both are
classified as fine plasters and consist of rather small amounts of
identifiable plant remains (Tab. 1).Group B (4 samples): includes
two samples of AH-12, AH-19, AH-22; consists of samples with coarse
or lime plaster, rich in threshing remains from cereal crops and
dominated by chaff of durum wheat.Group C (16 samples): includes
samples of plasters and mud bricks from Dayr Ab Hinnis (AH), Dayr
al-Barsh (DALB) and al-Shaykh Sad and en-compasses the greatest
number of samples. These samples yielded a great variety of
identified plant taxa and were generally rich in plant remains.
Most of the plasters in this group are coarse and probably indicate
a similar way of preparing the initial materi-als for both types of
building structures.Group D (4 samples): includes AH-4, AH-22,
AH-23, AH-33; samples of plasters which are poor in cereal chaff
and mostly contain concentrations of Raphanus sp. L. remains.
The cluster analysis confirms that differences in the
composition of the building structures are related mainly to their
function. It also shows that the plaster and brick plant
assemblages from the three sites are comparable in composition.
Discussion
The archaeobotanical finds from the mud bricks and mud plaster
have provided a range of plants which will now be considered in the
context of preservation, plant economy, possible environments and
taphonomy.
Preservation of plant remains
The plant remains from the mud brick structures came mostly from
inside rooms of the monastic complex built in the limestone rock
cavities. These locations are either quite well protected from
variations in humidity and temperature or the influence of these
climatic factors was significantly. This special situation is most
probably the main factor in the excellent preservation of plant
macrofossils and further contributes to increasing the number of
the plant taxa identified.
Information on the plant economy of the sites
Crop plantsThe main cereal crops recovered are tetraploid free
threshing wheat (Triticum cf. durum Desf., Fig. 2A) and hulled
barley (Hordeum vulgare L., Fig. 2C). They are represented mainly
by chaff as they came from tem-pering material for which crop
processing residues are commonly used. The only leguminous crop
identified is pea (Pisum sativum L., Fig. 2B) which is represented
by a few seeds. The few seeds of grass pea (Lathyrus sp. L.) could
be both from crop or weed so were not placed with the pulses. The
larger-seeded leguminous crops are obviously underrepresented in
the plant assemblages from the mud brick and plaster material or
are missing entirely (see Newton 2004: tab. 1; Hendrickx et al.
2010: tab. 2.) or form a very minor group (see van der Veen 1999:
fig. 5). Together with those also Trifolium sp. L. (Fig. 2J) was
found. These specimens are usually quite numerous and in many cases
are preserved with their calyx (found in 50 % of the samples with a
total of 87 seeds and 61 calyx remains). Considering the relatively
large size of the seeds (on average 2.67 mm) and the morphological
characteristics of the calyx (Fig. 2J), they could have originated
from the fodder plant Trifolium alexandrinum L. Similar rather
large Trifolium seeds in higher concentrations were found in the
roughly con-temporary monastic complex of Kawm al-Nan (ca 10 km to
the south) and were also interpreted as possible fodder (Smith
2003: 5861). The Trifolium L. seeds and calyx fragments with
similar morphological features were also found in three of the
coprolites extracted from the mud brick and plaster (Tab. 2). This
evidence points to their inclusion in the diet of contemporary
grazing small ovicaprines. However, the quantity of coprolites
analysed and materials found in them are insufficient to determine
if the plant remains originated as fodder or if they were elements
of the field weed flora.
Another possible crop is attested by the relatively numerous
finds of radish (Raphanus sp., Fig. 2D). The preservation of the
material and its significant fragmentation do not permit a firm
identification. The absence of clearly pronounced longitudinal
ridges on the surface of the fruits, which are characteristic of
Raphanus raphanistrum L., makes it difficult to attribute the
archaeological finds to the wild radish. On the other hand the
fruit fragments appear to be broken in one-seeded segments. Finds
of intact indehiscent fruits of Raphanus sativus L. which would
prove its presence are missing from the studied material. However
it should be taken into account that the cleaning of radish seeds
will also lead to fragmentation of the dry and brittle fruits.
Further fragmentation took place when they became imbedded in the
mud bricks and plaster and during
u0038253Cross-Out
u0038253Sticky Notesignificant
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(DALB) and al-Shaykh Sad (SS) and
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6E. Marinova et al.
Fig. 2. Most common plant remains mentioned in the text: A
Triticum cf. aestivum/durum grain, glumes and rachis fragments; B
Pisum sativum seed, C Hordeum vulgare grain with palea and lemma,
rachis fragments; D Raphanus sp. seed, fruit fragment; E Vitis
vinifera seed; F Ficus cf. carica nut, G Linum usitatissimum seed;
H Carthamus tinctorius achene; I Cucumis sp. seed; J Trifolium sp.
seed, calyx; K Pulicaria sp. achene; L Anthemis cf. pseudocotula
achene; M Cichorium intybus/endivia achene; N Phalaris minor grain,
with palea and lemma with grain; O Polypogon cf. monspeliensis
grain, glumes with grain; P Sinapis arvensis fruit; Q Rumex cf.
dentatus fruit with perianth; R cf. Lycium sp. seed; S cf. Glinus
lotoides seed; T Coronopus sp. fruit; U Ranunculus sect. Batrachium
fruit V Schoenoplectus praelongatus fruit W Fimbristylis
bisumbellata fruit; X Acacia sp. leaf.
Fig. 3. Percentage proportions of the main groups of plant
remains.
u0038253Sticky Noteto be replaced with: "indet."
EMHervorhebento be incerted: "...sp. - leaf. (All scales
correspond to 1 mm)"
EMHervorheben
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7Plant Economy and Land Use in Middle Egypt during the Late
Antique/Early Islamic PeriodPROOFS
their extraction for analysis. The high concentrations of
Raphanus sp. L. in some samples also point to economic importance
this plant taxon, and the samples could rep-resent the threshing
remains of an oil crop. Nevertheless the possibility that we are
dealing with the remains of a field weed cannot be not be
discounted because the state of preservation does not permit a firm
identification. Moreover the presence of both wild and domesticated
specimens in the studied materials is probable because Raphanus
raphanistrum L. occurs as crop weed in the study area (see Fahmy
1997).
Radish remains, found at Qasr Ibrm (Clapham & Rowley-Conwy
2007), indicate its use since the earli-est occupation of the site
during the Napatan Period (ca 700 BC). The archaeobotanical record
from Egypt shows an emphasis on radish in Late Roman to Early
Islamic times (O`Donogue et al. 1996; de Vartavan & Asensi
Amoros 1997; El Hadidi & El Fayoumi 1997; Hopf & Germer
1998). This evidence is also in accordance with biochemical
analyses, which demonstrate the use of radish seed oil in shell
lamps (Romanus et al. 2008: 792793) from the period under
consideration (8th
Fig. 4. Cluster analysis (paired groups, similarity) of the
sample composition.
u0038253Sticky Note"brik" should be "brick"
u0038253Sticky Noteal-Shaykh Sa'id
u0038253Sticky Note"tonb" should be "tomb"
u0038253Sticky Noteshould be 16L34/1
u0038253Sticky Noteshould be 16L34/1
u0038253Sticky Note...economic importance of this plant...
EMDurchstreichen
EMHervorheben,
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8E. Marinova et al.
10th century AD). The oil crops in the mustard family
(Brassicaceae), to which radish belongs, have a wide adaptability
and they mature quickly. The relatively easy and inexpensive
production of oil (also used as food and other purposes), together
with the collapse of the trade systems in Late Antiquity, probably
led to an increased use of locally grown radish oil in Egypt
(Bagnall 1993: 78). In light of this information, and considering
the high concentration of radish plant parts in several samples,
the remains most probably represent oil crop processing
remains.
Further evidence for oil/fibre crops is indicated by a few seeds
of linseed (Linum usitatissimum L., Fig. 2G) and safflower
(Carthamus tinctorius L., Fig. 2H). In contrast to the observations
at Kawm al-Nan, safflower was used as temper in the mud bricks of
Early Christian structures found in the limestone quarries and rock
tombs in the area. This means most probably that no special
selection was applied to the materials used for tempering. This may
be connected with the location of the structures being far from
settlements and crop fields. As such, the lack of easily accessible
threshing by-products, would favour the use of any available plant
residues or waste for temper in order to save energy in
transporting special types of tempering material. Another
explanation for the rather mixed character of the plant assemblages
is the presence of animal dung which was in many cases added to the
mud structures. Also oil pressing residues can be used as fodder,
which could end up in the bricks from dung.
Fruits and vegetablesThe evidence for fruits and vegetables is
limited, which most likely reflects the function of the studied
contexts. Fruits are represented by several species, the most
com-mon of which are figs (Ficus cf. carica L., Fig. 2F) and grapes
(Vitis vinifera L., Fig. 2E). Possibly because of their small size,
they had a better chance to become in-corporated into the mud
bricks and especially the mud plasters, compared to the larger
fruit parts of plants such as date palm and Christs thorn, which
were recovered only in very few cases.
The finds of melon/cucumber (Cucumis melo L./sativus L., Fig.
2I) and celery (Apium graveolens L.), which appear as single seeds,
could be considered the remains of vegetables and condiments.
Non-cultivated vegetationPossible field weedsThe majority of the
identified wild plant taxa can be classified as field weeds and
ruderal plants. Those belonging to the segetal flora include:
Anthemis cf. pseudocotula Boiss (Fig. 2L), Avena sterilis L.,
Bromus sp. L., Chenopodium murale L., Galium sp. L., Lolium
sp. L., Malva sp. L., Phalaris cf. minor Retz. (Fig. 2N),
Polypogon cf. monspeliensis (L.) Desf. (Fig. 2O), and Rumex cf.
dentatus L. (Fig. 2Q). These species are typical field weeds of
Egypt and have been established in the archaeobotanical record in
samples dating back as far as prehistoric times (see Fahmy 1997:
tab. 1).
Other wild growing plantsApart from the crops and their
associated field weeds, there are other plant remains indicative of
wetlands (for example Fimbristylis sp. Vahl., Cyperaceae-tubers,
Schoenoplectus praelongatus (Poir.) J. Raynal., and Ra-nunculus L.
subgenus Batrachium (DC) A. Gray) and species coming possibly from
the desert or its edges (cf. Lycium sp. L. (Fig. 2R), Pulicaria sp.
Gaertn. (Fig. 2K), and Zygophyllum sp. L.). Some of them were found
in dung pellets (Tab. 2). This provides direct evidence for the
habitats grazed by ovicaprines.
Comparison with contemporary sites
The mud plaster samples from the Roman site of Mons Claudianus
in the Eastern Desert, half way between Qena and the Red Sea coast
(van der Veen 2001: 206207, App. 1), are dominated by rachis
fragments of durum wheat and barley, as are plaster samples from
Dayr al-Barsh. The larger quantity of wild seeds in mud brick
samples from Mons Claudianus, compared to plasters, is also evident
in the mud bricks analysed in Dayr al-Barsh. Analyses of mud brick
samples dated to the 4th century AD from Madnat Waf, western edge
of Fayyum (Cappers 2006: 430440) also are comparable to the results
of the current study. There the composition of tempering material
is restricted to threshing remains of cereals (durum wheat and
barley), weeds, riparian and water plants and they are clearly
dominated by du-rum wheat. A definite similarity between
assemblages from Madnat Waf and Dayr al-Barsh is the large number
of riparian and water plant taxa in the mud bricks. Ethnographic
observations from the Fayum area (Cappers 2006: 440) indicate that
these riparian and water plant taxa usually originate from
irrigated areas according to their ecological affinities.
Comparisons between the Dayr al-Barsh plant as-semblages and
those from the more or less contempo-rary monastic site of Kawm
al-Nan (ca AD 400650, Smith 2003: 10) could help to generate a
clearer picture of plant use at Dayr al-Barsh. In this connection,
the different character of the Dayr al-Barsh contexts should be
mentioned. The plant assemblages from Kawm al-Nan originated from
diverse settlement contexts including alleys, floors, ovens, pits,
middens and mud bricks (ibid.: tab. 2.1). By contrast the Dayr
al-Barsh
u0038253Sticky Note...used as food and for other purposes
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Sticky Notethe mark under the t should be a dot and not
a comma
u0038253Cross-Out
u0038253Sticky Notethe mark under the t should be a dot and not
a comma
u0038253Highlight
EMDurchstreichen
EMDurchstreichen
-
9Plant Economy and Land Use in Middle Egypt during the Late
Antique/Early Islamic PeriodPROOFSsamples include plant material
only from building structures (bricks and plasters). Also of
importance for comparative purposes are the much smaller volumes
sampled for the present study which average ca 0.146 l, while in
Kawm al-Nan the flotation samples ranged between 1520 l in volume.
In general both assemblages show great similarities although those
from Dayr al-Barsh are not as diverse as those from Kawm al-Nan.
The composition of annual crops such as cereals, pulses and oil
seeds is almost identical, with the exception of lupin (Lupinus
albus L.) found only at Kawm al-Nan. Four of the eleven fruits
recovered at Kawm al-Nan were also identified in the building
materials from the Dayr al-Barsh area: fig, grape, date palm,
Christs thorn. Most of those missing from the Dayr al-Barsh
assemblage are those which are also rather rare in the samples from
Kawm al-Nan. The group which is most poorly presented is the
condiments from which only two (celery and rosemary) were found at
Dayr al-Barsh in contrast to seven identified at Kawm al-Nan
(ibid.: 5258, tab. 3.1.). This may be due to the different
character of the studied contexts at both localities. The
percentage proportions of the main categories of desic-cated plant
remains found at Kawm al-Nan (ibid: 36, fig. 3.2) show certain
similarities with those established in the mud bricks and plaster
material from the area of Dayr al-Barsh (Fig. 3). In both cases the
assemblages are dominated by chaff and wild plants, which is
typical for desiccated plant assemblages as described by van der
Veen (2007: 969970). The relatively good agreement between the
plant spectra of both sites indicates the potential of analyses of
mud brick and mud plaster in arid areas for reconstructing the
plant economy.
The results of the Dayr al-Barsh study also show general
similarities with finds from the sites of Ab Shar, Red Sea Coast,
ca 20 km north from Hurghada (El Hadidi & Amer 1996) and
Phoebammon, Deir el-Bahari, located on the west bank of the Nile,
opposite the city of Luxor (Tckholm 1961) both of which are
contemporary with the Dayr al-Barsh localities. This is expressed
mainly by the general composition of the chaff remains of cereal
crops and several of the field weeds and wild species.
Sources of plant remains found in the mud brick and plaster
assemblages
The plant assemblages identified reflect a variety of human
activities in the surroundings of the studied sites. The anal-ysis
of their composition suggests that they originate from crop
processing, food consumption, waste and animal dung. The wetland
plants recovered could have originated from the clays used in the
mud building structures.
The vast majority of plant remains found are by-products of crop
processing. The most numerous and frequently occurring are those of
cereal crops (free threshing wheat followed closely by hulled
barley) and to a lesser extent radish. In many cases one or
mixtures of these species form the basic component of the plant
temper in the bricks and plasters (see Tab. 1). Pulses are
represented by only a few seeds which are the exception than the
regular component of the tempering. Together with the remains of
fruits, vegetables, and condiments the pulses probably represent
food debris incorporated into the building material alongside the
threshing re-mains which dominate the tempers. Some pulses were
found in association with mineralized matter and could also have
originated from feces or dung incorporated in the building
materials.
The presence of many small leguminous, grass, and other seeds
that tend to pass through the digestion tract of the domestic
herbivores (such as Trifolium sp. L., Se-taria sp. P. Beauv., Malva
sp. L.), are usually considered to be indicators of dung (see
Miller 1984). The use of dung in the mud brick production was also
confirmed by the presence of dung pellets in seven of the studied
samples. The remains of oil/fibre crops could also origi-nate from
dung if they were used as fodder; this explains their rarity in the
building materials.
Most of the identified potential field weeds are those with
relatively heavy and large seeds/fruits or with other adaptation
features that allow them to remain with the crop after sieving (for
example Bromus sp. L., Galium sp. L., Lathyrus sp. L., Lolium sp.
L., Phalaris cf. minor Retz.). This may be an indication that the
materials used for tempering in the mud bricks originated as
by-products of the final stages of crop processing. But some of
them, as demonstrated by ethnographic observation (Cappers 2006:
433435), like spikelets of Polypogon monspeliensis (L.) Desf. and
valves and pedicels of Si-napis arvensis L., are more typical for
threshing remains. The rosemary branches, registered in a
threshold, were found bonded with yarn. Such a find of branches of
an aromatic plant may be related to the use of the branches for
ritual or decorative purposes. But from this single find it is
difficult to conclude, whether or not they were deliberately
deposited in the threshold.
Conclusions
The plant assemblages found at the Dayr al-Barsh localities
consist principally of desiccated remains and likely originated
from several different sources, such as threshing remains, food
consumption residues, discarded plant material, animal dung,
species from wetlands, and in very few cases plants from desert
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Sticky Noteana-lysis
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Sticky Note...which are the exceptian rather than
the...
u0038253Cross-Out
u0038253Sticky Note"digestive" instead of "digestion"
EMNotiz...at Sayr al-Barsha and Abu Hinnis in contrast...
EMHervorheben
EMHervorheben...a threshold at Abu Hinnis, were...
-
10
E. Marinova et al.
habitats. The main crop plants that were identified (durum
wheat, barley and possibly radish) are consist-ent with the plant
economy understood for the period under study. The mixed origin of
mud brick and plaster tempering materials in the Dayr al-Barsh
Christian sites does not permit the reconstruction of specific crop
husbandry practices, as was possible for other sites where the
composition of plant tempers was analysed. Comparisons with
previous studies from the period show that the plant assemblages
derived from the Dayr al-Barsh plasters and mud bricks have
provided a good general picture of the plant economy of the region,
but the results are not as detailed and diverse as those derived
from a wider variety of settlement deposits. Nevertheless the
current study has demonstrated the rather good potential of mud
brick and plaster materi-als as sources of information on ancient
plant economy and the exploitation of nearby habitats. This
observation has wider implications for archaeobotanical studies in
arid areas such as Egypt, where much of the architecture would have
been mud brick with plastered walls and floors. Detailed
information can be reliably obtained by ensuring control of the
deposits sampled to avoid sampling decayed plaster/mud brick or
those partly destroyed by insects.
Acknowledgements
The fieldwork for the current research was carried out with the
financial support FWO-Vlaanderen and the Bi-jzonder Onderzoeksfonds
of the K.U. Leuven. The first author would like to thank R.T.J.
Cappers, Groningen University for his help in identifying some
plant remains and for the productive discussion and inspiration on
the research topic. We also would like to express our thanks to
Ashraf Rashd Yssif Dkir, inspector of Supreme Council of Antiquity,
who supported the archaeobo-tanical sampling at Dayr Ab Hinnis. We
also would like to thank Alan Clapham, one anonymous reviewer,
Stefanie Kahlheber and especially to Ahmed Fahmy, for the critical
comments and helpful suggestions, which greatly improved the
current paper.
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u0038253Cross-Out
u0038253Sticky NoteJ instead of G
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E. Marinova et al.
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Tabl
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u0038253Sticky Note "wine" should be "vine"
u0038253Sticky NoteMigrationNone set by u0038253
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Highlight
EMHervorhebenfruitstone
-
13
Plant Economy and Land Use in Middle Egypt during the Late
Antique/Early Islamic PeriodPROOFSsa
mpl
e lab
orat
ory n
o.DA
LB 07
/15
DALB
07/6
5DA
LB 07
/69
DALB
07/1
7D
ALB
07/
20D
ALB
07/
21D
ALB
07/
23D
ALB
07/
64D
ALB
08/
71D
ALB
08/
73sit
eDA
LB
zone
7/ se
ct.2
SS co
ptic
wall
SS fr
ont
Wer
irni t
omb
DALB
zo
ne7/
sect
.2D
ALB
zo
ne7/
sect
.2D
ALB
zo
ne7/
sect
.2D
ALB
zo
ne7/
sect
.2D
ALB
Tom
b 16
K86/
1A
H-1
2,
easte
rn ro
om 1
AH
-12,
easte
rn
room
1st
ruct
ure
bric
kbr
ick
bric
kbr
ick
bric
kbr
ick
bric
kbr
ick
bric
k 1
bric
k 2
volu
me [
l]0.
250.
50.
250.
10.
10.
150.
10.
180.
050.
08su
m id
entif
ied
plan
t rem
ains
7120
597
3839
2427
925
759
conc
entr
atio
n [r
emai
ns/li
tre]
284
410
388
380
390
160
270
5032
033
7.5
triv
ial n
ame
scie
ntifi
c nam
e
WEE
DS/
WIL
D P
LAN
TSbr
ome g
rass
Brom
us sp
.1
1go
osef
oot
Chen
opod
ium
cf. m
ural
e15
22
chic
ory/
endi
veCi
chor
ium
inty
bus/
endi
via
coro
nopu
sC
oron
opus
cf. n
ilotic
a1
dodd
erCu
scut
a sp.
(see
d)2
2ba
rnya
rd g
rass
Echi
noch
loa s
p.(g
rain
)2
1w
oodr
uff
Gal
ium
sp.
1lo
tus s
wee
tjuic
ecf
. Glin
us lo
toid
es1
gras
s pea
cf. L
athy
rus s
ativ
us (s
eed)
rey
gras
sLo
lium
sp. (
smal
l)1
21
boxt
horn
cf. L
yciu
m sp
.m
allo
wM
alva
sp. (
seed
)3
22
93
cana
ry g
rass
Phal
aris
cf. m
inor
(gra
in/c
haff
)tim
othy
/mea
dow
gra
ssPh
leum
/Poa
1pu
licar
iacf
. Pul
icar
ia sp
. (ac
hena
)pl
anta
inPl
anta
go sp
.be
ard
gras
sPo
lypo
gon
cf. m
onsp
elien
sis9
134
purs
lane
Port
ulac
a ole
race
a1
wat
er cr
owfo
otRa
nucu
lus s
ubg.
Bat
rach
ium
dock
Rum
ex cf
. den
tatu
s (w
ith p
eria
nth)
22
dock
Rum
ex sp
. (nu
tlet)
16
5clu
b-ru
shSc
hoen
ople
ctus
pra
elong
atus
2br
istle
gra
ssSe
taria
ver
ticill
ata/
virid
is3
whi
te m
usta
rdSi
napi
s arv
ensis
(fru
it)w
hite
mus
tard
Sina
pis a
rven
sis (p
edic
el)ta
mar
iskTa
mar
ix (t
wig
g w
ith le
aves
)clo
ver
Trifo
lium
sp. (
seed
)8
23
4clo
ver
Trifo
lium
sp. (
frui
t with
caly
x)1
111
cape
r bea
ncf
. Zyg
ophy
llum
cocc
ineu
m (s
eed)
21
VARI
Afig
-mar
igol
d fa
mily
Aiz
oace
ae (c
f. A
izoo
n) (s
eed)
3su
nflo
wer
fam
ilyA
stera
ceae
1se
dge f
amily
Cype
race
ae (t
uber
)1
4gr
ass f
amily
Poac
eae
1no
t ide
ntifi
able
inde
t. ba
d re
serv
ed2
12
1no
t ide
ntifi
able
min
eral
ized
++
+sh
eep/
goat
copr
olith
s+
+4
(con
tinue
d)
u0038253Sticky Notebadly preserved
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Sticky Notecoprolites
-
14
E. Marinova et al.
sam
ple l
abor
ator
y no.
DA
LB 0
7/14
DA
LB 0
7/16
DA
LB 0
7/63
DA
LB 0
7/40
DA
LB 0
8/4
DA
LB 0
8/7
DA
LB 0
8/8
DA
LB 0
8/10
DA
LB 0
8/17
DA
LB 0
8/21
DA
LB 0
9/7
DA
LB 0
9/11
site
DA
LB
zone
7 /s
ect.2
DA
LB
zone
7 /s
ect.2
DA
LB T
omb
16L2
5/2
DA
LB T
omb
16L3
4/1
AH
-roo
m 2
2A
H-2
2A
H-1
9A
H-1
9A
H-2
3A
H-2
3A
H-3
8A
H-4
, so
uth
wal
lst
ruct
ure
plas
ter
plas
ter
plas
ter
plas
ter
plas
ter o
n wa
llpl
aster
on
wall
lime
plas
terlim
e pl
aster
plas
ter o
n wa
llpl
aste
rpl
aste
rpl
aste
rvo
lum
e [l]
0.1
0.05
0.1
0.08
0.2
0.15
0.25
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.05
0.5
sum
iden
tifie
d pl
ant r
emai
ns49
2954
2817
939
136
3610
659
2742
conc
entr
atio
n [r
emai
ns/li
tre]
490
580
540
350
895
260
544
360
1060
590
660
514
scie
ntifi
c nam
e
CERE
ALS
Cer
ealia
(glu
mes
)17
411
97
317
89
5C
erea
lia (g
rain
)2
1cf
. Cer
ealia
(clu
m n
ode)
29
42
cf. C
erea
lia (c
lum
nod
e with
root
s)H
orde
um v
ulga
re (g
rain
)1
32
1H
orde
um v
ulga
re (r
achi
s fra
g.)
22
53
28
22
1H
orde
um sp
. (gl
umes
)3
121
33
43
Triti
cum
aesti
vum
/dur
um (g
rain
)1
12
Triti
cum
aesti
vum
/dur
um (r
achi
s fra
g.)7
27
37
72
4Tr
iticu
m cf
. aes
tivum
/dur
um (g
lum
e)2
65
96
71
Triti
cum
cf. d
urum
(rac
his f
rag.
)3
51
214
342
PULS
ESLe
ns cu
linar
is (s
eed)
Pisu
m sa
tivum
(see
d )
1O
IL/F
IBRE
CRO
PSCa
rtha
mus
tinc
toriu
s (ac
hena
)1
1Li
num
usit
atiss
imum
(see
d)2
Raph
anus
sp. (
frui
t par
t)1
481
114
9Ra
phan
us sp
. (se
ed)
31
Raph
anus
sp. (
pedi
cel)
54
4
FRU
ITS/
VEG
ETA
BLES
Apiu
m cf
. gra
veol
ens
Citr
ullu
s sp.
Cucu
mis
sp.
11
2Fi
cus s
p. (n
ut)
1Ph
oeni
x da
ctyl
ifera
(fru
it)Vi
tis v
inife
ra (s
eed)
11
Zizi
phus
spin
a-ch
risti
WEE
DS/
WIL
D P
LAN
TSAc
acia
sp. (
seed
)Ac
acia
sp. (
leav
e)1
cf. A
egilo
ps sp
. (gl
ume b
ase)
12
1A
nthe
mis
cf. p
seud
ocot
ula
212
223
Aven
a cf.
steril
is (r
achi
s)3
23
(con
tinue
d)
EMDurchstreichen
-
15
Plant Economy and Land Use in Middle Egypt during the Late
Antique/Early Islamic PeriodPROOFSsa
mpl
e lab
orat
ory n
o.D
ALB
07/
14D
ALB
07/
16D
ALB
07/
63D
ALB
07/
40D
ALB
08/
4D
ALB
08/
7D
ALB
08/
8D
ALB
08/
10D
ALB
08/
17D
ALB
08/
21D
ALB
09/
7D
ALB
09/
11sit
eD
ALB
zo
ne7
/sec
t.2D
ALB
zo
ne7
/sec
t.2D
ALB
Tom
b 16
L25/
2D
ALB
Tom
b 16
L34/
1A
H-r
oom
22
AH
-22
AH
-19
AH
-19
AH
-23
AH
-23
AH
-38
AH
-4,
sout
h w
all
stru
ctur
epl
aste
rpl
aste
rpl
aste
rpl
aste
rpl
aster
on
wall
plas
ter o
n wa
lllim
e pl
aster
lime
plas
terpl
aster
on
wall
plas
ter
plas
ter
plas
ter
volu
me [
l]0.
10.
050.
10.
080.
20.
150.
250.
10.
10.
10.
050.
5su
m id
entif
ied
plan
t rem
ains
4929
5428
179
3913
636
106
5927
42co
ncen
trat
ion
[rem
ains
/litr
e]49
058
054
035
089
526
054
436
010
6059
066
051
4sc
ient
ific n
ame
WEE
DS/
WIL
D P
LAN
TSBr
omus
sp.
11
Chen
opod
ium
cf. m
ural
eCi
chor
ium
inty
bus/
endi
via
11
12
Cor
onop
us cf
. nilo
tica
12
Cusc
uta s
p. (s
eed)
11
Echi
noch
loa s
p.(g
rain
)3
11
Gal
ium
sp.
cf. G
linus
loto
ides
11
cf. L
athy
rus s
ativ
us (s
eed)
21
Loliu
m sp
. (sm
all)
cf. L
yciu
m sp
.M
alva
sp. (
seed
)2
14
Phal
aris
cf. m
inor
(gra
in/c
haff
)2
298
81
Phle
um/P
oa1
cf. P
ulic
aria
sp. (
ache
na)
11
Plan
tago
sp.
11
Poly
pogo
n cf
. mon
speli
ensis
62
2617
18
Port
ulac
a ole
race
a3
1Ra
nucu
lus s
ubg.
Bat
rach
ium
11
83
Rum
ex cf
. den
tatu
s (w
ith p
eria
nth)
51
1Ru
mex
sp. (
nutle
t)3
Scho
enop
lect
us p
raelo
ngat
us1
11
1Se
taria
ver
ticill
ata/
virid
is1
1Si
napi
s arv
ensis
(fru
it)23
2Si
napi
s arv
ensis
(ped
icel)
1Ta
mar
ix (t
wig
g w
ith le
aves
)1
Trifo
lium
sp. (
seed
)1
624
87
161
Trifo
lium
sp. (
frui
t with
caly
x)11
49
92
cf. Z
ygop
hyllu
m co
ccin
eum
(see
d)
VARI
AA
izoa
ceae
(cf.
Aiz
oon)
(see
d)A
stera
ceae
11
1Cy
pera
ceae
(tub
er)
11
1Po
acea
e1
31
1in
det.
bad
rese
rved
12
2m
iner
aliz
ed+
++
++
(con
tinue
d)
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Sticky Notebadly preserved
EMDurchstreichen
-
16
E. Marinova et al.
sam
ple l
abor
ator
y no.
DA
LB 0
8/28
DA
LB 0
8/29
DA
LB 0
8/72
DA
LB 0
9/12
DA
LB 0
9/9
DA
LB 0
8/75
DA
LB 0
9/8
DA
LB 0
8/69
DA
LB 0
8/27
site
AH
-12
AH
-12
AH
-12
AH
-9,
east
wal
lA
H-1
4A
H-3
3A
H-3
9A
H-1
2A
H-1
2
stru
ctur
elo
w co
arse
pl
aste
rco
arse
pla
ster
coar
se p
laste
r on
bric
k 1
coar
se p
laste
rpl
aste
r on
floor
plas
ter u
pper
la
yer
fine p
laste
r fin
e pla
ster
uppe
r fin
e pl
aste
rvo
lum
e [l]
0.1
0.1
0.08
0.5
0.03
0.05
0.03
0.05
0.05
sum
iden
tifie
d pl
ant r
emai
ns42
2957
2533
1634
2418
conc
entr
atio
n [r
emai
ns/li
tre]
420
290
712.
511
883
3.33
680
1400
480
360
scie
ntifi
c nam
e
CERE
ALS
Cer
ealia
(glu
mes
)11
77
23
63
4C
erea
lia (g
rain
)cf
. Cer
ealia
(clu
m n
ode)
63
11
cf. C
erea
lia (c
lum
nod
e with
root
s)2
Hor
deum
vul
gare
(gra
in)
1H
orde
um v
ulga
re (r
achi
s fra
g.)
814
11
2H
orde
um sp
. (gl
umes
)6
27
Triti
cum
aesti
vum
/dur
um (g
rain
)Tr
iticu
m ae
stivu
m/d
urum
(rac
his f
rag.
)9
149
61
3Tr
iticu
m cf
. aes
tivum
/dur
um (g
lum
e)2
32
Triti
cum
cf. d
urum
(rac
his f
rag.
)5
25
PULS
ESLe
ns cu
linar
is (s
eed)
Pisu
m sa
tivum
(see
d )
OIL
/FIB
RE C
ROPS
Cart
ham
us ti
ncto
rius (
ache
na)
11
Linu
m u
sitat
issim
um (s
eed)
Raph
anus
sp. (
frui
t par
t)14
16Ra
phan
us sp
. (se
ed)
1Ra
phan
us sp
. (pe
dice
l)2
1
FRU
ITS/
VEG
ETA
BLES
Apiu
m cf
. gra
veol
ens
1Ci
trul
lus s
p.Cu
cum
is sp
.Fi
cus s
p. (n
ut)
3Ph
oeni
x da
ctyl
ifera
(fru
it)1
Vitis
vin
ifera
(see
d)Zi
ziph
us sp
ina-
chris
ti
WEE
DS/
WIL
D P
LAN
TSAc
acia
sp. (
seed
)Ac
acia
sp. (
leav
e)3
1cf
. Aeg
ilops
sp. (
glum
e bas
e)A
nthe
mis
cf. p
seud
ocot
ula
1Av
ena c
f. ste
rilis
(rac
his)
1
(con
tinue
d)
-
17
Plant Economy and Land Use in Middle Egypt during the Late
Antique/Early Islamic PeriodPROOFSsa
mpl
e lab
orat
ory n
o.D
ALB
08/
28D
ALB
08/
29D
ALB
08/
72D
ALB
09/
12D
ALB
09/
9D
ALB
08/
75D
ALB
09/
8D
ALB
08/
69D
ALB
08/
27sit
eA
H-1
2A
H-1
2A
H-1
2A
H-9
, ea
st w
all
AH
-14
AH
-33
AH
-39
AH
-12
AH
-12
stru
ctur
elo
w co
arse
pl
aste
rco
arse
pla
ster
coar
se p
laste
r on
bric
k 1
coar
se p
laste
rpl
aste
r on
floor
plas
ter u
pper
la
yer
fine p
laste
r fin
e pla
ster
uppe
r fin
e pl
aste
rvo
lum
e [l]
0.1
0.1
0.08
0.5
0.03
0.05
0.03
0.05
0.05
sum
iden
tifie
d pl
ant r
emai
ns42
2957
2533
1634
2418
conc
entr
atio
n [r
emai
ns/li
tre]
420
290
712.
511
883
3.33
680
1400
480
360
scie
ntifi
c nam
e
WEE
DS/
WIL
D P
LAN
TSBr
omus
sp.
Chen
opod
ium
cf. m
ural
e1
13
Cich
oriu
m in
tybu
s/en
divi
a1
Cor
onop
us cf
. nilo
tica
25
Cusc
uta s
p. (s
eed)
1Ec
hino
chlo
a sp.
(gra
in)
Gal
ium
sp.
1cf
. Glin
us lo
toid
es2
cf. L
athy
rus s
ativ
us (s
eed)
Loliu
m sp
. (sm
all)
3cf
. Lyc
ium
sp.
Mal
va sp
. (se
ed)
1Ph
alar
is cf
. min
or (g
rain
/cha
ff)
21
14
Phle
um/P
oacf
. Pul
icar
ia sp
. (ac
hena
)Pl
anta
go sp
.1
Poly
pogo
n cf
. mon
speli
ensis
32
4Po
rtul
aca o
lera
cea
Ranu
culu
s sub
g. B
atra
chiu
mRu
mex
cf. d
enta
tus (
with
per
iant
h)Ru
mex
sp. (
nutle
t)2
Scho
enop
lect
us p
raelo
ngat
us1
Seta
ria v
ertic
illat
a/vi
ridis
Sina
pis a
rven
sis (f
ruit)
17
Sina
pis a
rven
sis (p
edic
el)Ta
mar
ix (t
wig
g w
ith le
aves
)Tr
ifoliu
m sp
. (se
ed)
21
22
Trifo
lium
sp. (
frui
t with
caly
x)5
53
cf. Z
ygop
hyllu
m co
ccin
eum
(see
d)2
1
VARI
AA
izoa
ceae
(cf.
Aiz
oon)
(see
d)A
stera
ceae
1Cy
pera
ceae
(tub
er)
Poac
eae
2in
det.
bad
rese
rved
min
eral
ized
+1
1+
Tabl
e 1 (e
nd)
u0038253Highlight
u0038253Sticky Notebadly preserved
-
18
E. Marinova et al.
sam
ple l
abor
ator
y no.
DA
LB07
/66
DA
LB07
/67
DA
LB07
/70
DA
LB07
/71
DA
LB07
/72
DA
LB08
/74
DA
LB08
/76
DA
LB08
/77
DA
LB08
/78
DA
LB08
/79
site
SS co
ptic
w
all
SS co
ptic
w
all
SS fr
ont
Wer
irni t
omb
DA
LB T
omb
16K8
6/1
DA
LB T
omb
16K8
6/1
AH
-12,
easte
rn ro
om 1
AH
-12,
easte
rn ro
om 1
AH
-12,
ea
stern
room
1A
H-1
2,
easte
rn ro
om 1
AH
-12,
ea
stern
room
1
volu
me [
ml]
12
32
13
43
32
Aiz
oace
ae (c
f. Ai
zoon
) (se
ed)
12
1An
them
is (c
f. ps
eudo
cotu
la)
53
Aste
race
ae1
11
Cer
ealia
(glu
mes
)4
5Ch
enop
odiu
m cf
. mur
ale
612
91
18Co
rono
pus n
ilotic
a2
Fim
brist
ylis s
p.12
5M
alva
sp. (
seed
)1
Phal
aris
cf. m
inor
(gra
in w
ith ch
aff)
5Po
acea
e (gr
ain)
11
16Po
lypo
gon
sp.
24
1Po
rtul
aca
oler
acea
11
Rum
ex cf
. den
tatu
s (w
ith p
eria
nth)
2Ru
mex
sp. (
nutle
t)1
Scho
enop
lectu
s pra
elong
atus
111
Trifo
lium
sp. (
frui
t with
caly
x)5
64
Trifo
lium
sp. (
seed
)2
12
Triti
cum
cf. a
estiv
um/d
urum
(glu
me)
92
cf. Z
ygop
hyllu
m co
ccin
eum
(see
d)3
2in
det.
1
34
1
2
21
Tabl
e 2. B
otan
ical
com
posit
ion
of th
e she
ep/g
oat d
ropp
ing
sam
ples
.
EMNotizFimbristylis bisumbellata