Production and consumption of pottery in Coptos between the 1st and 2nd centuries AD

Abstract

International audienceThe site of Coptos, the current city of Qouft, is located a few kilometers south of Qena city, Egypt, a place where the Nile forms a loop towards the East, approaching as close as possible to the shores of the Red Sea.Since 2005, the collaboration between the French Institute of Oriental Archeology in Cairo (IFAO), HiSoMA laboratory (CNRS, UMR 5189), and University of Lumière-Lyon 2 has resumed the excavations at Coptos, under the direction of Laure Pantalacci.The excavation carried out in 2009 revealed reddened and ash layers including elements of kiln-like structures, which can clearly be attributed to a ceramic production area. These stratifications also yielded consumption ceramic products, such as amphorae, cooking ware, and fineware.According to the ceramological study, conducted by Delphine Dixneuf, the functioning of this potential production area is significantly questioned. Was this workshop able to produce such a diversity of ceramic products?Chemical analyses using a portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and petrographic approach, of macro and microscopic studies, were carried out on 130 ceramic fragments of different typologies, at the Center of Alexandrian Studies (CEAlex) and the French Institute of Oriental Archeology (IFAO). In general, the conducted studies made it possible to identify the clay raw materials selected for the fabrication of these types of ceramics, in addition to shedding the light on the characteristics of the prepared clay paste used in their manufacturing.The elucidated results, from both the chemical and petrographic studies, discuss the possibility of having a ceramic production at the excavated area, and checking the ceramological hypotheses related to the fabricated typologies. The studies resulted in the classification of 4 petrographic and 3 chemical compositional groups, covering all the different forms. In fact, the variance between the two results, represented by the additional petrographic group, seems to delineate a specific functionality related to the typology (notably water storage). Nevertheless, two compositional groups that represent the majority of the sherds, confirm the presence of local production according to their compatibility with the surrounding geological environment. On the other hand, some fabrics appeared to have been imported to the site, although they were supposed to be from the same workshop.In conclusion, the cross-correlation between the archaeometric and ceramological studies refines and clarifies the establishment of coherent fabrics and typological assemblages. Although this multidisciplinary study aided in confirming the hypothesis about the existence of local production in the vicinity of the excavated site, it also marked the usage of another clay raw material than the widely used Nile deposits, despite their proximity to the supposed workshop