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PRE-DYNASTIC CEMETERY

AT

EL MAHASNA

BY

EDWARD T. AVI!T()X

AND

W. L. S. LOAT

THIRTY-FIRST MEMOIR OF

THE EGYPT EXPLORATION FUND

PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF Till'; COMMITTEE

L o X D 0 N

SOL 1 1 AT

The OFFICES OF THE EGYPT EXPLORATION FUND, 37, Cheat Russell Street, W.C.

and 527, Tremont Temple, Boston, Mass., U.S.A. ; and by KEGAX PAUL, TRENCH, TRTJBNER & CO., Dryden House, 43, Gerraed Street, Soho, \V. ; B. QUARITCH, 11, Grafton Street, New Bond Street, W. ; ASHER & CO., 14, Bedford Street, Covknt Garden, W.C, and 56, Unter den Linden, Berlin; and HENRY EROWDE, Amen Coenee, E.C., and 29-35, West 32nd Street, New York, U.S.A.

1911

p

t

PRE-DYNASTIC CEMETERY

AT

EE MAHASNA

BY

EDWARD R. AYRTuX

AND

W. I, S. LOAT

THIRTY-FIRST MEMO I It

OF

THE EGYPT EXPLORATION FUND

PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF THE COMMITTEE

LONDON:

SOLD AT

The Offices of the EGYPT EXPLORATION FEND, 37, Great Russell St., W.C., and 527, Tremont Temple, Boston. Mass., U.S.A.;

and by KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRUBNER & CO., Dryden House, 43, Geerard Street, Soho, W.;

BERNARD QUARITCH. 11, Grafton St., New Bond St., W. ;

ASHER & CO., 14, Bedford St.. Covent Garden, W.C., \\i' .J6, Unter den Linden;

HENRY FROWDE, Amen Corner. E.C., and 29, West 32nd St.. New York, U.S.A.

57

£52

LONDON :

PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,

DUKE STM3ST, MAMFORD STREET, S.E., AND GREAT WINDMILL STREET, W.

EGYPT EXPLOEATION FUND

©resident THE RT. HON. THE EARL OF CROMER, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.M.G., K.C.S.I.

The Rev. Prof. A. H. Sayce, M.A., LL.D. Field Marshal Loud Grenfell, G.C.B.,

G.C.M.G., etc. F. G. Kenyon, Esq., C.B., D.Litt. Pkof. W. W. Goodwin (U.S.A.) The Hon. Chas. L. Hutchinson (U.S.A.)

Dice presidents

Prof. Wallace N. Stearns, Ph.D.

Prof. Ad. Erman, Ph.D. (Germany)

Prof. G. Maspero, D.C.L. (France)

Prof. Edouard Naville, D.C.L., etc. (Switzerland)

Josiah Mullens, Esq. (Australia)

1bon. {Treasurers H. A. Grueber, Esq., F.S.A. Chester I. Campbell, Esq. (U.S.A.)

J. S. Cotton, Esq., M.A.

"Iljou. Secretaries Dwight Lathkop Elmendorf, Esq., Ph.D., etc. (U.S.A.)

Somers Clarke, Esq., F.S.A.

Newton Crane, Esq. (U.S.A.)

Sir Arthur John Evans. M.A., D.Litt., F.R.S.

Prof. Ernest A. Gardner, M.A.

F. Ll. Griffith, Esq., M.A., F.S.A.

H. R. Hall, Esq., M.A., F.S.A.

The Rev. Arthur Cayley Headlam, D.D.

D. G. Hogarth, Esq., M.A.

F. Legge, Esq.

Prof. Alexander Macalister, M.D.

Mrs. McClure.

/Ifccmbcrs of Committee

The Rev. W. MacGregor, M.A.

J. Grafton Milne, Esq., M.A.

Robert Mond, Esq., F R.S.E.

The Marquess of Northampton, K.G.

Francis Wm. Percival, Esq., M.A.. F.S.A.

Dr. Allen Sturge.

Mrs. Tirard.

John Ward, Esq., F.S.A.

T. Herbert Warren, Esq., MiA.

E. Towry Whyte, Esq., M.A., F.S.A.

CONTENTS

PAGE

Chapter I. Introduction ... ....... 1

Chapter II. Description of the Various Types of Grave ..... 3

Chapter III. Catalogue of Important Graves ....... 10

Chapter IV. Description of the Plates ........ 26

LIST OF PLATES

PLATE I.	Types of graves				. 4,	PAGES 10, 26
II.					. 11, 12,	26, 27
III.	...					. 13, 14,	15, 26
IV.	?? ...					15,	16. 26
V.	5J ...					. 16, 17,	18, 26
VI.	. , ...					4. 13, 14, 18, 19,	25, 26
VII.	. . ...					. 4, 5, 17,	25, 26
VIII.	Wood-lined graves					6, 7, 20,	22, 26
IX.	;j					. 6,	21, 26
X.	Brick-lined graves					7, 8, 23,	24, 26
XI.	Objects from graves					11,	26, 28
XII.	n					11, 27, 28,	31, 33
XIII.	>>					11, 12, 26, 27.	29, 32
XIV.	Painted pottery vases					.	13, 28
XV.	Objects from graves					13, 14, 15, 2G,	28, 29
XVI.	,, Grave H 4 1					13, 1G, 27,	29, 31
XVII.	)> ;>					Hi, 26, 28,	30, 34
XV in.	graves					16, 17, 27,	31, 33
XIX.	jj					14, 18, 19,	31, 35
XX.	JJ !>					22, 24, 25,	31, 32
XXI.	5! :>					11, 12, 17, 24.	27, 33
XXII.	J! !)					.	. 33
X XIII.	Worked Hints and slates					12, 15, 19,	24, 34
XXIV.	Objects from graves					10,	12, 34
XXV.	Pottery vases					14,	22, 34
XXVI.	>>				.		10, 34
XXVII.	Objects from graves						27, 34
XXVIII.	Black-topped pottery					,	. 35

LIST OF PLATES

PLATE

XXIX. Black-topped pottery

XXXI. XXXII. Polished red pottery

XXXIII. Wavy-handled pottery

XXXIV. Rough pottery vases XXXV.

XXXVI. Later XXXVII. XXXVIII.

PAGES

35 35 35 35 35 35 35 35 35 35

PRE-DYNASTIC CEMETERY AT EL MAHASNA.

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTION.

In the month of November, 1908, we began our excavations on the ancient site of Abydos. After we had been digging there for a couple of months, a friendly Arab, with an eye to his own profit, told us that small parties of natives were setting out every night during the full moon to loot a pre-dynastic cemetery at El Mahasna, which lay some eight miles to the north of our concession. Wonderful stories were told us of the stone vases and flint knives, not to mention the gold, which were brought back each morning by the tired but happy robbers.

Unfortunately one cannot believe implicitly in such rumours, and we accordingly rode north- wards to verify the news for ourselves, before applying for an official permit to excavate the spot. Although, after a cursory examination, we found that the place had been badly plundered, yet we decided to ask the Govern- ment for permission to, at least, test the ground. We knew that we should not have the time at our disposal to open every grave, plundered and unplundered, but we hoped to save the unplundered graves. The site lies so far out on the desert that to guard it would be difficult, and every day lost meant some five or six more graves dug out and lost to science.

The Director-General of Antiquities, M. Maspero, with his usual kindness, at once sent us the necessary permit, and we pitched our

tents at El Mahasna in the first week of the New Year.

Our camp, which we set up on the edge of the north side of the cemetery, consisted of five tents, in which were lodged our two selves, a cook, three dogs, and twenty-five workmen, the shallow depth of the average pre-dynastic burial rendering unnecessary a larger staff of men.

The desert at this spot is very flat and quite unbroken by hillocks or anything that might lessen the force of the wind, and we were con- sequently exposed to the hurricanes which, sweeping down from the north over a long stretch of level desert, were so strong as to force us to stop the work on several occasions. On such days life in tents was anything but pleasant, and the way in which our cook, in his small tent and with the most primitive apparatus, kept our food from becoming encrusted with sand was little short of marvellous.

The cemetery lay at about half a mile from the cultivated land on the north bank of a broad wadi (dry watercourse). It occupied an oval stretch of ground about 180 (N. and S.) x 150 yards in area, and on a line at right angles with the southern end of the later cemetery of El Mahasna.

On starting work we found that the cemetery had been dug into no less than four times. The first excavation had evidently taken place in

B

PRE-DYNASTTC CEMETERY AT EL MAHASNA.

quite early times, since, although we opened numerous graves on the east side of the site in ground which looked quite untouched, more than three-quarters of the graves were empty or contained only a solitary vase. Two halves of a Hint spear-head, one of which was found in a grave and the other in the debris above, show a great difference in colour, pointing to the very early date of these first excavations. The second visit was marked by the shallow hollows which were distributed fairly evenly over the site. The third was even more noticeable, and the fourth was barely a month old and the graves still lay open.

This last digging had taken place on the southern part of the site, and had just touched the oldest part of the cemetery which had so far escaped notice owing to the fact that, being on the sloping side of the wadi, the sand carried by the north winds had accumulated here to the depth of several feet and thus concealed all traces of burials. It was here that we found the richest graves.

The graves of the cemetery ran through the whole pre-dynastic period to the simplest form of the brick-lined tombs of the early 1st Dynasty. The later burial-ground changed its site and burials took place along the edge of the cultiva- tion. This later cemetery was excavated by Professor Garstang in 1900-1, and he here also found traces of a pre-dynastic settlement of which our site was possibly the burial-ground.

A probable estimate of the original number of graves in our cemetery would be about six hundred, and of these we excavated about one half, ignoring those which had been too obviously plundered to repay digging again.

Throughout the work we did not find a single intrusive burial of any other period, and we were therefore spared this difficulty. The site had never before been dug by Europeans, but it is po ibly the same place that is mentioned by M. hi: Moki.an in his Recherchett sur les Origines d'E'jypU (page 76), as situated at the fool of the

mountains which bound the left bank of the Nile at El Mahasna. He did not himself visit the spot, but objects from the place were brought to him by the natives.

In many respects the cemetery could not be considered rich. Stone vases and the finer worked flints were rare, but on the other hand valuable ivories were found and several interest- ing objects in copper. AVe have therefore felt ourselves justified in publishing these results in a separate volume rather than waiting to incor- porate them in the larger publication of Abydos, which will not be published until more work has been done on that site. At the same time, the objects from a few pre-dynastic graves opened by us at Abydos are here included, since they naturally belong to this early period. These graves are the result of tentative diggings among a number of already opened graves which occupy two slightly raised spits of land about half a mile to the south-east of the early Royal Tombs. They are perhaps connected with that great cemetery which seems to have gradually crept further towards the west until the site was abandoned, apparently in the Ilnd Dynasty, in favour of the necropolis on the edge of the cultivated land. These two small cemeteries had been so thoroughly dug out that we did not find a single burial intact, and we therefore did not continue the work.

In the following chapters we have confined ourselves to a bare statement of facts. None of the innumerable disputed questions are discussed. The description of the plates, however, has been made as full as possible, though of a general character, without tedious references to other works which the studeni will know and the general reader will not require.

Our sincere thanks are due to Miss Paterson, Secretary of the Egypt Exploration bund, for much kind belp.

Edward I!. AlYRton.

W. L. S. I. OAT.

CHAPTER II.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIOUS TYPES OF GRAVES.

Ix the following pages the plan has been followed of grouping the burials according to the form of grave in which they were found. Within these classes they are again subdivided, so far as has been found practicable, according to their date in the whole period.

For this subdivision Professor Petrie's method of "sequence dating" (hereafter referred to as s.d.) has been utilised. This system is fully explained in Diospolis Parva (Chapter I.), but for general convenience it may be as well if a short summary of the results obtained be given here.

By a careful study of the pottery found in several cemeteries, the entire pre-dynastic period is artificially distributed over a scale of fifty divisions numbering from 30 to 80, the earliest graves falling on the date 30 (called S.D. 30) and the latest on the date s.d. 80, thus forming a most convenient means of accurately dating any object to its place in the period, by a com- parison of the pottery or objects found with it with those already so placed, irrespective of the actual length in years of the whole period, which is at present unknown.

The later sequence dates probably overlap, to some extent, the period of the 1st Dynasty, since many graves such as the brick-lined tombs have recently been shown to belong to that date.

As regards the earlier dates, however, the sys- tem is, as a whole, sufficiently accurate, and has been therefore adojjted here, though to give the student a more complete control over our results, we have thought it better to publish drawings

of all the types of pottery found on the site Such a large corpus of this pottery, however, has already been made by a convenient system of numbering used in Nagada, Diospolis Parva, and El Amra and Abydos that we have chosen to interpolate our pottery vases in the general numbering rather than to number them afresh. In this way it will be a matter of no difficulty to make a complete corpus of all the known pre-dynastic pottery at some future date. The last-named publication has been followed in the arrangement of the graves.

The following are the various classes of tombs found in the cemetery at El Mahasna : —

(A) Round shallow graves.

(B) Oblong or roughly oval graves.

(C) Burials in pottery coffins.

(D) Woodlined graves.

(E) Mud and reed-lined graves.

(F) Brick-lined graves, simple quadrangular.

It will be seen from the above that two types of the earlier graves which occur at Naeada and El Amra, namely, —

Graves with a recess cut in the rock, and Graves with a rock recess and a coffin,

are absent from our list. Graves were found with a slight recess in which pottery wras placed, but these are not of quite the same type, and they have therefore been included with Class B. Of the brick graves the only type found was the simple quadrangular grave without recess or partition, and the cemetery was apparently abandoned early in the 1st Dynasty.

PRE-DYNASTIC CEMETERY AT EL MAHASNA.

Class A. Round Shallow Graves.

Burials of this class were rare in the cemetery, only five examples in all having been found. The graves were circular in shape and of a depth not exceeding 4 feet, though from the great cmantity of blown sand over the ground it would be impossible to estimate exactly the original depth.

The body in most cases lay in a contracted position (cf. PI. i. 2) and wrapped in a reed or grass mat. Traces of a goat-skin wrapping, which is usually found with this type of burial, were lacking ; but this may have been owing to rapid decay, since skin was in no case found on the bones, and the matting itself was so decayed as to be excessively difficult to detect in many cases.

Three of the graves contained burials of children. Grave H 90 contained the bodies of three children, two of which were buried with head to the south and facing west, whilst the third looked towards the east and lay with head to the north. None of these burials contained objects of much value, and the majority had only a single pottery vase.

One case was found in which the bones lay in a heap in the centre of the grave, but from the scattered fragments of matting it is evident that tli is was due to an ancient opening of the grave, and not to intentional dismemberment before burial. These round shallow graves obviously come first as regards the evolution of tomb shapes, but they also overlap in date with the next class anil are found as late as s.d. 4G ; whilst several graves of Class B are as old as the five graves recorded by us on the site. After s.d. 40 they become rare ami arc soon quite replaced by burials of Class B.

Class B. Oblong or Roughly. Oval Graves.

(1) I'n roofed oblong or roughly oval shaped graves were the commonest type found in the cemetery and are certainly the mosl typical of

the pre-dynastic period. The body, as a rule, lay in a contracted position on the left side, with head to the south. One or two exceptions to this were found, notably the burial H 143 (PI. vii. 32), where the skeleton lay on its back, with arms folded on the breast, the thighs straight in line with the body, but with the shins and feet bent back on the right side until the heels almost touched the jielvis ; indeed, a good deal of force must have been used unless the knee tendons were first severed. The direction of the graves varied around due magnetic north and south, the majority being N.N. -West and S.S.-East, whilst several were N.-West and S.-East and a few X.-East and S.-West.

The corpse was laid on a mat (cf. PI. vi. 29), which was then doubled over and the edges apparently tied together (cf. grave H. 137). In some cases the whole of the funerary furniture was included in the mat, in others all of the larger vases were placed either on the mat or between it and the side of the grave. As the matting was of stiff coarse type, very similar to the coarse hasira still used in Egypt, traces of it generally extend up the sides of the grave for some 12 inches, and it must have acted as a kind of roofing over the corpse until the weight of the sand above forced it down. In a few instances, traces of very tindery cloth were discovered on the bones, generally at the neck, in which the corpse may have been wrapped. As has been said above, no traces of goat-skin were found, probably owing to decay.

No cases of disarticulated burials were noted which could not more readily be attributed to ancient plundering.

The graves, of course, varied considerably in size. The commonest were only large enough to contain a single skeleton and a few vases, whilst others were of big dimensions and held a large amount of funerary furniture. One or two of these larger graves had a ledge at- one end slightly raised above the bottom of the grave, on which the larger vases were place. I.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIOUS TYPES OF GRAVES.

Thus grave H 33 measured 75x64x48 inches deep, and had at the north end a ledge 20 inches broad and standing 8 inches above the floor of the tomb. In this grave was found the only instance of the valuable black incised pottery discovered on the site. In one or two instances in the smaller graves the pottery was placed in a slight recess. Double interments were found in several of the large graves, and were placed side by side.

(2) A certain number of graves were found of a late date in the period (in fact H 122 is certainly contemporary with the graves of Class F), roughly oval in shape and about 50 inches deep, which, from the numerous fragments of wood and clay found in them which bore impress of reeds or twigs on one side, must have been roofed over. In grave H 66 we were so fortunate as to find a piece of this roofing intact, and from it were able to reconstruct a typical roof of this class of grave. Lone; lathes of wood 2 inches broad and 1 inch thick were placed across the breadth of the grave, and on this was laid a thick layer of reeds or grass ; this was then covered with a layer of mud 5 to 1 inch thick. In the photograph (PI. vii. 34) the mud has been partially broken in one corner to show the successive stages. The measurements of the grave at a depth of 25 inches from the surface were 58x36 inches broad, but the measurements of the roofing were only 47 X 22 inches broad.

It is of course possible, since this was a plundered grave, that the edges of the roofing were broken away and that these measurements do not represent its original length or breath ; but at the same time the broad lathe shown in the photograph had left no fragments in the side of the grave, as one would have expected had it been properly imbedded. This certainly lends some force to the theory that these were not true roofs, but were laid on the top after the grave had been partially or completely filled with sand. Most of the other graves of this type, however, show a layer of mud, wood, and twigs running

round the sides of the graves at some height above the burial, and there is no reason to suppose that these were not properly roofed at a few inches below the level of the ground.

In grave H 68 the upper part of the shaft had been cut back some distance, and under two stones remaining in position on each side were found fragments of reeds and mud, as if these stones had been placed there to weigh down the sides of the roof. In another case lumps of mud had been used for the same purpose. It is most un- fortunate that no grave of this class was found intact. From the pottery found in these graves they seem to belong to a very late date, and are to be placed at quite the end of the pre- dynastic period, if not in the 1st Dynasty.

The bodies were wrapped in mats and laid on the left side in a contracted position with the head to the south. Two interesting cases occurred in which a narrow strip of wood had been placed under the corpse. In grave Hill (PI. vii. 36, 37) this board measured 38 inches long and 4 inches broad. In another grave, II 142, the body of a child had been laid on a tray of matting stiffened with strips of wood round the sides. Another mat was laid over the corpse, and from the fragments of mud and wood in the debris (the grave had been opened anciently) the burial had probably been roofed in as has been described above.

Class C. Burials in Pottery Coffins.

Only two burials of this class were found, and they seem to be connected with Class D, since there was not a true pottery coffin, in that the bottom is made of matting, but what is rather to be regarded as the clay counterpart of the wooden lining. Grave H 92 (PI. vii. 38) was fortunately discovered unplundered. The bottom of the " coffin " consisted of a thick mat, and the unbaked clay sides rose to a height of lli| inches and were rounded at the top. A lid had also been formed of matting and mud.

PRE-DYNASTIC CEMETERY AT EL MAHASNA.

a fragment of which was found tightly wedged between a large flat stone and the side of the coffin. The skeleton lay in the usual position, but the only objects found with it were glazed faience beads, the pottery (six vases) being placed between the coffin and the side of the grave. The measurements of the coffin were 45x21 x llg inches deep (inside measurements) X f inch thick.

In H 105 (a plundered grave) the dimensions of the "coffin" were 18x10x7 inches deep \ (inside measurements) xl| inches thick. It was also of sun-dried mud and intended probably for a child's burial.

Class D. Graves with a Wooden Lining.

The above name has been chosen, in default of a better, for the particular type of tomb into the construction of which woodwork enters either as a lining, a "fence" round the body, or a lidless box enclosing the corpse. The name perhaps scarcely covers the last variation, but since this is obviously derived from the two preceding types, the name may be allowed to remain until a better is found.

The graves may lie divided into three types :—

(1) (-laves in which the sides ami ends

are lined with boards.

(2) Graves in which the body and a few

vases lie within the woodwork, the larger vessels standing outside.

(3) Graves in which the body lies in a lid-

less (f) wooden box.

To take these types separately in the above order :—

(l) The graves are oblong in shape and about 4 feet deep. They are of no great size, the largest measuring 53 X 27 inches broad. Single planks I inch to l£ inches in thickness were placedaround the bottom of the grave against the -ide or a few inches from it. Within this lining lay the body in the usual contracted position and

wrapped in a mat, together with the necessary funerary furniture (PI. ix. 43 and 45). The woodwork was in all cases too decayed to admit of our ascertaining with certainty, except in one instance, how far up the side of the tomb the woodwork was carried or in wdiat manner the boards were joined together.

In grave H 108, at a height of 12 inches above the body and running round the sides of the grave, were horizontal traces of wood (f to 1^ inches thick) covered with a layer of mud ; this had evidently formed a roof over the whole burial, and is especially important as showing that in this grave at least the total height of the wooden lining could not be more than 12 inches, and therefore, in all probability, consisted of single hoards about 12 inches broad. This breadth is not too great, as will be seen by referring to grave H 21 in the (2) type of this class where a board 1^ inches thick and 12 inches broad was found in position at one end of the grave.

(2) The majority of the graves of this type were large and contained a great deal of pottery. The body, wrapped in a mat, lay in the usual contracted position and, with a varying number of the finer vases, was surrounded by a " fence " of boards similar to that described above. Out- side the planks were placed the larger vases. In tomb H 107 (PI. viii. 42) the body, with two or three vases at the face, was surrounded by planks of wood 1 inch in thickness. Traces of this woodwork can be seen as a dark patch opposite the knees of the skeleton in the photo- graph. Outside the woodwork to the south were placed the finer vases of polished red pottery, and along the west and north sides were placed the large coarser vessels.

The same plan was followed in grave H 48 (PI. ix. 4G, 47), though here large vases also occupied the eastern side of the grave outside the woodwork. II 21 (PL ix. 44) included more vases inside the wooden " fence," but the large coarse ones were placed outside.

in a I

hese graves there were no signs of wood

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIOUS TYPES OF GRAVES.

under the burial which might lead one to think that the woodwork had originally been a large box. The planks were probably joined at the corners, but they were too decayed to enable one to come to any sound conclusion on this point. The thickness of the boards varied from ^ to 1 inch, and in H 21a board was found in position with a breadth of 12 inches. This seems to have been the general height of the " fence," since in H 21 and H 48 at a height of 13 and 14 inches respectively from the floor traces of a roof of twigs covered with mud were found running round the sides of the graves.

An interesting innovation was found in the plundered grave H 112. Here the body had been surrounded by the wooden lining, but outside this lining before the face a hollow had been scooped in the rock to accommodate three jjottery vases.

(3) To this type only two graves can be assigned, and that not with absolute certainty. Since, although the bodies lay on boards and were surrounded by boards, it would be quite impossible to say whether the lower boards were properly attached to the sides so as to form a box or coffin, or were merely separate planks laid down rather as a bier beneath the body. Grave H 124 did not differ from the graves of the second type, except that both the sides and bottom of the grave had been lined with wood 1^ inches thick. Three vases had stood outside the woodwork and two lay within, but the skeleton had been carried off. A roof consisting of a coarse mat over which had been spread a layer of mud, the whole probably resting on branches, had been laid on a level with the tops of the vases.

In H 23 (PI. viii. 39, 40), the only other grave of this type found, the skeleton and weapons were discovered lying on boards of wood, and, on the right side, remains of a plank placed on edge which formed one side of the " box." The woodwork was 2 inches thick and the "box" must have measured at least 30 inches across.

The grave was of a large square type, and the body in a semi-contracted position lay in the coffin at the north end. The tomb had un- fortunately been excavated anciently, and the position of the pottery is therefore uncertain.

('lass E. Mod and Reed-lined Graves.

This type of tomb, which by the pottery is certainly of a late date, is represented by only one grave from this site. The grave (H 126) was oblong in shape and measured 42 x 27 x 60 inches deep, lying N.N. -West and S.S.-East. The sides had first been coated with a layer of mud, against which on three sides had been pressed a single row of reeds, placed close together in an upright position. On the fourth side the reeds were perhaps placed in the ground at some distance from the mud-coated side, thus forming a recess in which had stood at least two vases, or it is possible that they stopped at the recess. The tomb had been plundered anciently.

Class F. Brick-lined Graves.

The graves of this type lay almost entirely on the north side of the cemetery. The greater number had been completely gutted of their contents, but those that remain (although no single one was found intact) furnish us with one or two interesting points, especially as regards the use of wood in linmo; these tombs.

All the graves were simple four-sided enclosures of brick, beginning at about 3 feet below the desert surface and with a depth of brickwork of 10 to 40 inches.

The graves varied considerably in size, one tomb (H 116) measuring 88 X 40 x 27 inches deep, whilst another (H 115, PI. x. 50) was only 46 x 24 x 11 inches deep. The brickwork was only one brick thick and was plastered on the inside with a layer of mud, and in tomb H 120 a thin coating of clay also covered the floor, which was bare desert sand in the other cases.

In all the graves which had not been completely cleared out it was found that a wooden lining

PRE-DYNASTTC CEMETERY AT EL MAHASXA.

had been placed within the brickwork. In tomb H 120 (PI. x. 49) this lining was formed of boards l| inches thick, which completely surrounded the burial and vases, but did not quite touch the sides of the grave. It must therefore have been pinned or dovetailed at the corners to give it sufficient strength to stand alone ; but as no bottom was found and there were not sufficient fragments of wood lying about to justify one in assuming that it had a lid, we are forced to regard it as a plain wooden lining formed of four boards, and not, in any sense of the word, as a coffin.

In tombs H 128 and H 129 the wooden lining- seems to have been of the same type, but was too fragmentary to enable one to draw any conclu- sions as regards form, etc.

In tomb H 115 (PI. x. 50) the wooden lining is much smaller, and only the body and six of the smaller vases are placed within it, the larger vases occupying spaces at the north and south ends and on the west side between the lining and the brickwork. This is more nearly an approach to a box or coffin, though again no wooden bottom or lid were found. It is possible that this was the next step in the evolution of the rectangular wooden coffin of the Old Kingdom, which would thus be the outcome of an attempt to keep back the sand by a simple lining of boards which, losing its original object on the introduction of brickwork for tomb construction, was yet retained and finally became merely an extra protection for the body in the form of the coffin.

The graves were roofed (PL x. 48) by 1 teams or planks laid on the top of the brickwork and thrust back some distance into the sand, occa- sionally a single layer of bricks being placed on them to steady them. Over these were laid twigs or reeds, and the whole was then covered with a thick layer of mud, thus making a strong and compact roof. Whether the hollow above was then filled in or not is uncertain, though the roofing would probably have been quite strong enough to bear the strain.

The objects from these graves, which are fully enumerated in Chapter III., consisted chiefly of pottery and a few beads and slate palettes.

An ivory cylinder seal and an ivory spoon with a hawk in relief on the handle were the most valuable objects found in this type of tomb.

All the evidence which we possess at present as to the dating of these brick-lined tombs points to the early 1st Dynasty as the most probable period at which they were constructed. This was pointed out by Mr. Eandall-Mclver in his publication of the excavations carried out by the Egypt Exploration Fund at El Amrah. These graves are identical with the " tombs of domestics" around the Royal Tombs at Abydos and Neqadah, and from the shape of the pottery and stone vases (of the latter of which a greater number were found at El Amrah than on our site) there is " no evidence for putting them earlier" than the 1st Dynasty.

CLASSIFICATION OF GRAVES.

CLASS A.	CLASS B 1.		CLASS B 2.	CLASS C.	CLASS D.	CLASS E.	CLASS F.
H 13	Before s.D. 41.	Before s.D. 56.	H 65 H 92	(a)H4	H 126	H 115
H 14	H 15	H 1	II 66 H 105	H 76		H 116
H 19	H 17	H 5	H 68	H 108		H 120
H 28	H 26	H 6	H 78		H 121		H 128
H 35	H 29	H 10	H84		(1.) H 21		H 129
H 90	1 1 30	H 22	H 109		H 48
	H 34	H 25	H 111		(c) II 23
	H 36	H 38	11 122		11 107
	H 37	H 41			H 1 1 2
	H 45	H 49			H 124
	H 53	II 52
	H 88	H 57
	H 97	H 58
	H 135	H 93 H 134
	Before s.D. 4G.	H 137
	H 12
	H 27	Before s.D. 61.					UNPLACED
	H 32	H 60					GRAVES.
	H 42	H 74					H 51
	H 55	H 77					H59
	H 56	H 82					H 104
	H 99	H 86 H 102					H 143
	Before s.D. 51.v	H 136
	H 16
	H IS	After s.D. CO.
	H 20	H 2
	H 24	H 8
	H 33	H 47
-"""	H 39	H 70
	II 40	H 72
	H 46	H 75
	11 50	H 79
	H54	H 80
	H 6 1 A and B	H 81
	H 133	H83
	H 140	H85 H 89 H 110 II 134 a 1

10

CHAPTER III.

CATALOGUE OF IMPORTANT GRAVES.

(Pottery vases. B = Black topped. P = Polished red. D = Deco- rated. R = Rough. W = Wavy handled. L = Late pottery.)

This catalogue includes nil graves which were worth noting

in full.

Class A. Round Shallow Graves.

H 13 (PL i. 2).— Circular grave 18 inches deep. Body of a child lying on the left side in a slightly contracted position with the head to the south. On the right forearm lay a black- topped pottery vase (B 22m). The whole burial had been wrapped in a mat.

H 14 (PI. i. 3). — Circular grave 25 inches deep. Skeleton lying on the left side in a slightly contracted position with the head to the south. Behind the neck stood a black- topped pottery vase (B 19c.)

H 19 (PL i. 4).— Circular grave 37 x 32 x 24 inches deep. Body of a child lying on the left side in a contracted position with the head to the south-east. Before the face stood a large black-topped pottery vase (B 21d).

H 28.- — Circular grave 42 x 41 x 38 inches deep, south-east and north-west, plundered. Bones of a child lying in a heap in the centre. Two vases (P 16'/, B 74a) stood against the wc-i side of the grave.

II 35. — Circular grave 54 x 54 x 60 inches deep. Plundered. The body