Geo-referencing and mapping

The geospatial registration of Tarkhan’s map represents a cornerstone for all subsequent work. Petrie’s original plans were overlaid onto contemporary satellite imagery (Google Earth and ESRI&Maxar base map) using GIS and compared in the field with characteristic points in the landscape (Figure 1). The result revealed the dramatic shrinkage of the ancient necropolis; modern legal boundaries now encompass about 15–20 per cent of the area originally explored by Petrie (Figure 2). Much of the ancient cemetery has since vanished beneath modern agricultural fields or urban expansion.

Figure 1. Google Earth image overlaid with geo-referenced map of Petrie’s excavations (referenced by Julia Chyla based on Mawdsley Reference Mawdsley2020: 10).

Figure 2. Comparison of the cemetery boundaries recorded by Petrie (red) with the current concession area (green) (image by Julia Chyla & Anna Wodzińska).

During fieldwork, three new base points were established, and a north–south/east–west grid system was implemented, providing the spatial framework for surface collection, geophysical prospection and future excavation.

Magnetic prospection

Magnetic prospection (with use of fluxgate gradiometer) has proved effective in the recording of mudbrick structures in desert conditions (Herbich Reference Herbich, Persico, Linford and Piro2019) and its application across an area of 2.5ha at Tarkhan (Figure 3) verified the location of three large mastabas excavated by Petrie (1060, 2038, 2050). In addition, the survey revealed a previously unidentified large rectangular structure—probably a mastaba—east of the cemetery. Surface ceramics collected from above this anomaly, including cylindrical jars (Figure 4), suggest a First Dynasty (c. 3150–2730 BC) date. The magnetic data also reveal areas within the concession devoid of tombs, information crucial for understanding ancient space use and for targeting areas for future investigations.

Figure 3. Results of the magnetic survey, sampling grid 0.25 × 0.5m (image by Tomasz Herbich and Konrad Jurkowski).

Figure 4. Surface finds from above the newly identified underground structure (drawings by Anna Wodzińska).

Surface survey and material culture

A systematic surface survey was conducted across the site with the assistance of a mobile GIS application and GPS-enabled devices to ensure accurate spatial data collection. The assemblage of artefacts collected includes pottery, stone vessel fragments, flint tools, organic matting, human remains, coffin wood and sporadic faience and shell fragments.

The material evidence points to a multifaceted history of site use, spanning multiple cultural phases. Notable diagnostic types include:

• Late Predynastic (c. 3350–3150 BC): cylindrical jars (Figure 5, no. 1) (Petrie Reference Petrie1953: pl. VIII, type W 46d);

• Early Dynastic (c. 3150–2590 BC): cylindrical (Figure 5, no. 2) (Petrie Reference Petrie1953: pl. IX, type 50b-g), storage and wine jars (Figure 5, no. 3) (Petrie et al. Reference Petrie, Wainwright and Gardiner1913: pl. XX), alongside stone vessels made from travertine (Figure 5, no. 4) and limestone breccia (Figure 5, no. 5), and a flint tool (Figure 5, no. 6) (Petrie et al. Reference Petrie, Wainwright and Gardiner1913: pls. XV, XIX);

• Old Kingdom: Third–early Fourth Dynasty (c. 2592–2540 BC)—Meidum bowls (Figure 5, no. 7) (Raue Reference Raue2020: 124), as well as fragments of beer jars (Figure 5, no. 8) (Raue Reference Raue2020: 260) and possibly early Third Dynasty (ca. 2590 BC) bread moulds (Figure 5, no. 9) (Raue Reference Raue2020: 359);

• Possibly First Intermediate (c. 2118–1980 BC): Marl C jar fragments;

• Late Period (664–332 BC): a large number of sherds associated with looted tombs (Figure 5, nos. 10–11: see Petrie & Mackay Reference Petrie and Mackay1915: pl. XXXIII), along with wooden coffin planks (Figure 6) and faience fragments.

Figure 5. Selection of finds collected during the surface survey (drawings by Anna Wodzińska).

Figure 6. One of the wooden coffin fragments found during the surface survey (photograph by Anna Wodzińska).

Heavy looting has displaced large amounts of human remains from Late Period shaft tombs. In the area around one of the shafts, at least 23 individuals of various ages—from prenatal to adult—were identified, indicating collective burial, likely of family or community groups. Comparison with nearby late Predynastic burials suggests similar reuse practices across periods. Some materials, like matting and coffin fragments, remain in less disturbed areas, but much of the bioarchaeological evidence was affected by modern disturbance, limiting interpretation of the original contexts.

Petrie documented material from the Ptolemaic and Roman periods at Tarkhan (Petrie & Mackay Reference Petrie and Mackay1915: 37–38) but no artefacts from these periods were encountered during the recent survey. This highlights how site use and material deposition have fluctuated over time.