Early Dynastic metal finds in the collection of Egyptian Museum - Georg Steindorff - of Leipzig University
Abstract
Ägyptisches Museum der Universität Leipzig has in its collection material from two important Early Dynastic sites. Early Dynastic cemetery at Abusir was partially excavated by Georg Steindorff in 1910.
Yet it entered the literature as "Bonnet cemetery", because Hans Bonnet (1928) published later the material. A part of the material was destroyed during the Second World War; only fragments are left from one of the earliest mirrors known from ancient Egypt (ÄMUL 2177).
In better state of preservation are two bowls (ÄMUL 2160, ÄMUL 2162). The third vessel (bowl or lid) has well preserved metal core (ÄMUL 2162).
The museum collection was then enriched by a selection of model tools from the deposit found by Flinders Petrie in the tomb of the last king of Dynasty 2, Khasekhemwy (ÄMUL 2211 - ÄMUL 2223). Ten model tools, needles, axe, adze, harpoon and chisel, were recently published by Robert Kuhn (2011), they have been so far not analysed for their chemical composition.
The listed artefacts were sampled in the cooperative projects of the museum with the University of Chemistry and Technology and Czech Institute of Egyptology in Prague. Selected artefacts were X-rayed, in order to examine their internal structure.
The samples were submitted to X-ray fluorescence, neutron activation analysis and lead isotope analysis. The poster offers a discussion of the results, with a special attention to a bowl ÄMUL 2162 with unusually high content of nickel.