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ORIENTALIA LOVANIENSIAANALECTA

204

UITGEVERIJ PEETERS en DEPARTEMENT OOSTERSE STUDIESLEUVEN PARIS WALPOLE, MA

2011

UNDER THE POTTERS TREE

Studies on Ancient EgyptPresented to Janine Bourriau

on the Occasion of her 70th Birthday

edited by

DAVID ASTON, BETTINA BADER, CARLA GALLORINI,PAUL NICHOLSON and SARAH BUCKINGHAM


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CONTENTS

EDITORIALFOREWORD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XI

H.S. SMITH Janine A Teachers Tribute . . . . . . . XIII

P.G. FRENCH Janine A Husbands View . . . . . . . XV

Elham Ahmed EL-TAWEIL, Mahmoud Mohamed EL-SHAFEI, MohamedALIABDEL-HAKIEM, Mohamed Naguib REDA, Nermeen Shaa-ban ABAYAZEED, Shaimaa Rasheed SALEM, and Sherif MohamedABDEL-MONAEM Mother of the Ceramicists Umm El Fakharyien A Students Tribute . . . . . . XIX

TABULAGRATULATORIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XXI

JANINESBIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XXV

ARTICLES IN HONOUR OF JANINE BOURRIAU

Susan J. ALLENFish Dishes at Dahshur . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Sally-Ann ASHTONAncient Egyptian Hair-Combs in the Fitzwilliam MuseumCambridge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

David ASTONtprtwty. The Saqqara Embalmers Caches Reconsidered;Typology and Chronology . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Marie-Pierre AUBRY, Christian DUPUIS, Holeil GHALY, ChristopherKING, Robert KNOX, William A. BERGGREN, Christina KARLSHAUSENand Members of the TIGA Project

Geological Setting of the Theban Necropolis: Implications forthe Preservation of the West Bank Monuments . . . . . 81

Bettina BADERVessels in Ceramics and Stone: The Problem of the Chickenand the Egg? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125


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VI CONTENTS

Donald M. BAILEY

Wine Containers: Aswan Flasks . . . . . . . . . . 173Pascale BALLET

Les ateliers hellnistiques de Bouto (Tell el-Farain) et ledcor surpeint (Overpainted) . . . . . . . . . . 189

Daphna BEN-TORPolitical Implications of New Kingdom Scarabs in Palestineduring the Reigns of Tuthmosis III and Ramesses II . . . . 201

Elizabeth BETTLES, with a contribution by Olaf E. KAPERThe Divine Potters of Kellis . . . . . . . . . . . 215

Charles BONNETLa Nubie face la puissance gyptienne . . . . . . . 253

Rosalie DAVIDAncient Egyptian Medicine: An Appraisal Based on ScientificMethodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Catherine DEFERNEZFour Bes Vases from Tell el-Herr (North-Sinai): AnalyticalDescription and Correlation with the Goldsmiths Art of

Achaemenid Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Jacobus VANDIJKThe Date of the Gebel Barkal Stela of Seti I . . . . . . 325

Aidan DODSONTwo Mummy-Masks from the Dawn of the New Kingdom . 333

Amanda DUNSMOREA Wedgwood Canopic Vase in the National Gallery of Victoria . 349

Dina A. FALTINGSDid the Ancient Egyptians have Bottle Brushes? Some Con-siderations about Milk Bottles in the Old Kingdom . . . . 355

Carla GALLORINIA Cypriote Sherd from Kahun in Context . . . . . . . 397

Alison L. GASCOIGNEand Gillian PYKENebi Samwil-Type Jars in Medieval Egypt: Characterisationof an Imported Ceramic Vessel . . . . . . . . . . 417


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CONTENTS VII

M. Cristina GUIDOTTIQuelques curiosits typologiques de la cramique dAntinoopolis 433

Yvonne M. HARPUREarthenware Vessels in Old Kingdom Two-dimensional Art:Their Manufacture and Direct Use by Minor Human Figures . 441

Rita HARTMANNRitzmarken auf Brotformen aus der frhdynastischen Siedlungvon Tell el-Farain/Buto . . . . . . . . . . . . 469

Ulrich HARTUNG

Eine elfenbeinerne Gefdarstellung aus dem prdynastischenFriedhof U in Abydos/Umm el-Qaab . . . . . . . . 483

Colin A. HOPEPossible Mid-18th Dynasty Examples of Blue-Painted Potteryfrom the Egypt Exploration Societys Excavations at Memphis 495

Salima IKRAMA Ceramic Divinity for a Divine Ceramicist . . . . . . 513

Helen JACQUET-GORDONMiniature Pots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521

W. Raymond JOHNSONA Ptah-Sokar Barque Procession from Memphis . . . . . 531

Peter LACOVARAA Nubian Model Soldier and the Costume of a Kerma Warrior 541

Anthony LEAHYNecho in Late Period Personal Names . . . . . . . 547

Mara J. LPEZGRANDEField Notes from Dra Abu el-Naga on the First IntermediatePeriod/Early Middle Kingdom Pottery . . . . . . . . 575

Sylvie MARCHANDLa transposition cramique dans lgypte Ancienne . . . . 603

Geoffrey T. MARTINThe Dormition of Princess Meketaten . . . . . . . . 633

Aurlia MASSONJarres au dcor polychrome du Muse Pouchkine: manifestations

originales de la tendance archasante des 25e-26e dynasties? . 645


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VIII CONTENTS

Marleen DEMEYER, Stefanie VEREECKEN, Bart VANTHUYNE, StanHENDRICKX, Lies OPDEBEECKand Harco WILLEMS

The Early Old Kingdom at Nuwayrat in the 16th UpperEgyptian Nome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 679

Paul T. NICHOLSONIm not the saggar-maker, Im the saggar-makers mate:Saggar Making and Bottom Knocking in Stoke-on-Trent as aGuide to Early Saggar Technology . . . . . . . . . 703

Hans-ke NORDSTRM

The Significance of Pottery Fabrics . . . . . . . . . 723

Lies OPDEBEECKand Stefanie VEREECKENPottery from Sidmant and Haraga in the Royal Museums of Artand History, Brussels . . . . . . . . . . . . . 731

Mary OWNBYThrough the Looking Glass: The Integration of Scientific,Ceramic, and Archaeological Information . . . . . . . 751

Stephen QUIRKEPetries 1889 Photographs of Lahun . . . . . . . . . 769

Maarten J. RAVENDesheret Bowls and Canopic Jars . . . . . . . . . 795

Pamela ROSEand Gillian PYKESnakes and Udders: Ceramic Oddities from Qasr Ibrim . . 809

Teodozja I. RZEUSKA, with an Appendix by K.O. KURASZKIEWICZAn Offering of a Beer Jar or a Beer Jar as an Offering? The

Case of a Late Old Kingdom Beer Jar with an Inscription from

West Saqqara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 829

Margaret SERPICO, with an Appendix by Ben STERNThe Contents of Jars in Hatshepsuts Foundation Deposit at Deir

el-Bahri and their Significance for Trade. . . . . . . . 843

Karin N. SOWADA

An Egyptian Imitation of an Imported Two-Handled Jar fromthe Levant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 885


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CONTENTS IX

Kate SPENCE, with a drawing by Will SCHENCKAir, Comfort and Status: Interpreting the Domestic Features ofSoul Houses from Rifa . . . . . . . . . . . . 895

Sally SWAINA New Interpretation of Two C-Ware Vessels from

el Mahasna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 915

Pierre TALLETDeux nouvelles stles rupestres sur le plateau de Srabit

el-Khadim (Sud-Sina) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 933

Ana TAVARESand Sabine LAEMMELSome Post-Old Kingdom Pottery from Giza . . . . . . 949

Ren VANWALSEMScenes of the Production of Pottery in Old Kingdom EliteTombs of the Memphite Area. A Quantitative Analysis . . . 977

Helen WHITEHOUSEEgyptian Blue and White: A Ceramic Enigma of the Early19th Century AD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1001

Anna WODZINSKAPottery and Chronology. Preliminary Remarks on CeramicMaterial from Tell el-Retaba . . . . . . . . . . . 1015


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ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HAIR-COMBS IN THEFITZWILLIAM MUSEUM CAMBRIDGE

Sally-Ann ASHTON

Hair combs have received relatively little attention within the Egypto-logical literature. As a consequence, Petries dating system for both Pre-

dynastic combs and his subsequent sequence for later combs is stillwidely used in museum publications and catalogues. Discussion relatingto hair ornaments is typically restricted to articles within edited volumes,is far from exhaustive, and tends to lack the cultural significance of hairand grooming within a wider African context.

Hair and grooming have always played an important role in the cultureof Africa and the African Diaspora. The traditional African comb, knownalso as the Afro comb, Afro rake, and Afro/hair pick or pic, has playeda crucial role in the creation, maintenance and decoration of styles.1In

some West African societies the hair comb symbolises status, groupaffiliation, and religious beliefs and is encoded with ritual properties.2The handles of the comb are decorated with objects of status, such as thehead rest, human figures, and motifs that reference nature and the tradi-tional spiritual world. It is here that the closest parallels for the earliestAncient Egyptian combs can be found. The concept of decorating thehandle of combs and thus imbuing an inanimate object with a non-mate-rial power is an important part of the meaning of the African comb. Theimage of the Adinkra duafe or hair comb associated with the Asante

people represents femininity and beauty and has been adopted as a tattoodesign in the United Kingdom and the United States.

In the 20th century afro combs took on a wider political and culturalmessage, perhaps most notably in the form of the black fist comb thatreferences the Black power salute, as displayed by Tommie Smith andJohn Carlos at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City to represent powerand unity amongst Black Americans and human rights.3In her article onmodern Afro combs Carol Tulloch speaks of the impact of a design of a

1 C. TULLOCH, Resounding Power of the Afro Comb, in: G. BIDDLE-PERRY andS. CHEANG(eds.),Hair Styling Culture and Fashion(New York, 2008), 124-125.2 J.A. ANTIRI, Akan Combs, inAfrican Arts8 No. 1 (Autumn 1974), 32-35.

3 C. TULLOCH, Resounding Power of the Afro Comb, 133-135.


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ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HAIR-COMBS IN THE FITZWILLIAM MUSEUM 21

6W.M.F. PETRIE,Prehistoric Egypt, British School of Archaeology in Egypt 31 (Lon-don, 1920), 30, pl. XXX.5-8; UC 15464, 15465, 15455 and UC 5624; see also G. BRUN-TON, The Badarian and Predynastic Remains near Badari, British School of Archaeologyin Egypt 46 (London, 1928), pl. LXXII.30; UC 10159.

7 I would like to thank Dr Mie Ishii for suggesting this and for sharing her specialistknowledge of the process of manufacturing textiles. 8 D. WENGROW, The Archaeology of Early Egypt. Social Transformation in North-EastAfrica, 10,000 to 2650 BC(Cambridge, 2006), 70.

that hair combs were used for styling and also de-lousing, and that thelatter form has much finer teeth. From the Late Period the two types ofcomb were combined in a single instrument. In the Badarian Period andslightly later, however, there are examples of small, extremely fine-toothcombs that only seem to be paralleled in the Late Roman and Copticperiods.6

There is further potential confusion in that many museum displays failto differentiate between hair combs and textile combs, and even whenthe differences are apparent, they are still displayed, confusingly,together. Within the Fitzwilliam Museum collection there is an example

of a comb that could have functioned as either. It is uncertain in date butappears to fit more comfortably with later examples of less carefullycarved and undecorated wooden forms of hair comb (E.GA.2671.1932).The comb is small, measuring 56 mm in height and 32 mm wide and isproportionately deeper than many examples at 11 mm at the handle. Thespaces between the teeth are packed with soil and seeds, which we ini-tially believed to be head lice carcasses (pl. 1.a). There are nine teeth intotal and all, but one, are preserved in their entirety. The teeth are 2.9 mmwide and have a gap of 2 mm. There is a hole through the handle, pre-

sumably for suspending the comb. It is too small to be a beater for weav-ing; however, it is possible that the comb was used for teasing woolbefore it was spun.7

Pre-dynastic and Early combs

A brief survey of hair combs found during the British excavations inEgypt during the late-19th and early-20th centuries reveals that they occurmost frequently in the publications of Pre-dynastic and Early Dynastic

periods. The recording of tombs in which hair combs were found andPetries analysis of forms of combs indicate that these objects were morethan simply cosmetic tools.8

The forms of decoration found on the handles accord with other Pre-dynastic depictions, perhaps most notably on the figurative pottery deco-


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22 S.-A. ASHTON

9 W.M.F. PETRIE,Prehistoric Egypt, 29-30 10 C. MARTNDEL RO LVAREZ and E. ALMENARA ROSALES, An Analysis of theTheriomorphic Representations on Combs and Hairpins from the Predynatic Period, in:S. HENDRICKX, R.F. FRIEDMAN, K.M. CIAOWICZ and CHODNICKI (eds.),Egypt at itsOrigins. Studies in Memory of Barbara Adams, Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 138(Leuven, 2004), 884. 11 B. MIDANT-REYNES, The Prehistory of Egypt. From the First Egyptians to the FirstPharaohs(Oxford, 2006), 196.

12 L. KEIMER, Notes prises chez les Basarin et les Nubiens dAssouan, IIepartie,Bulletin de lInstitut de lgypte33 (1952), 43-84. 13 W.M.F. PETRIEand J.E. QUIBELL, Naqada and Ballas, British School of Archaeo-logy in Egypt 1 (London, 1896), 10.

ration. Animals, birds, and humans formed popular handle motifs inwhat Petrie identified as the first period. These combs had long teeth,with wide gaps and were believed by Petrie to have performed a decora-tive and practical function of fastening the hair. According to his chron-ological sequence, the earliest combs had a plain, flat top. Quadrupeds,a single bird and then multiple bird motifs then appear as part of therepertoire.9A study of theriomorphic representations on 110 combs and146 hair pins revealed that birds are the most popular handle design.10The reference to animals and the appearance of male anthropomorphicfigures, and lack of female imagery, has led some scholars to suggest

that early hair combs reference masculinity.11

Keimer cited the exampleof the male nomads of the Eastern desert, who wear combs in their hair.12The intricacy of the handles and the fragility of the teeth of many earlycombs led Petrie to conclude that this category of objects was intendedsolely for ornament. However, wear marks on some of the examples inthe Fitzwilliam Museum suggest that the combs were used for eithercombing or fixing the hair.13

One of the Fitzwilliam Museums combs fits into this early sequence,but does not have a known archaeological context. E.GA.3204.1943 was

part of the Gayer-Anderson collection and was presumably bought inEgypt from a dealer. There are traces of a sticker on one side of the combwhich has a sign written in pencil and G.A.V.10 in ink. The han-dle is carved in the form of the popular double bird motif on a triplerhomboid design. Inspection under the microscope revealed strands offibre and a seed (pl. 1.b). Fine tool marks are also visible around therhomboid shaped area of the handle. The comb measures 82 mm inheight, and is very narrow measuring 17 mm wide and 2 mm thick. Thetotal number of teeth was originally four; all are broken close to the top

and one is missing completely. They are spaced at 0.025 mm and are3 mm wide. There are other examples of other pre-dynastic combs with


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14 W.M.F. PETRIE, Prehistoric Egypt, pl. XXIX and J. CROWFOOTPAYNE, Catalogueof Predynastic Egyptian Collection in the Ashmolean Museum(Oxford, 1994), fig. 78 15W.M.F. PETRIEand J.E. QUIBELLNaqada and Ballas, pl. LXIII.56, and W.M.F. PETRIE,Prehistoric Egypt, pl. XXIX.12.

16 W.M.F. PETRIE,AbydosI, Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoir 22 (Lon-don, 1902), 35. 17 J. CROWFOOTPAYNE, Catalogue, fig. 77.1903 and fig.78.1918 or 1917.

18W.M.F. PETRIE, Prehistoric Egypt, 29, pl. XXIX.9 and 10; W.M.F. Petrie andJ.E. Quibell,Naqada and Ballas,pl. LXIII.57; J. CROWFOOTPAYNE, Catalogue,fig. 78.1908. 19 B. ADAMS,Ancient Hierakonpolis Supplement(Warminster, 1974), 119 and 158. 20 For example J. CROWFOOTPAYNE, Catalogue,fig. 78.1921.

either four or five teeth.14Examples of the double bird motif were foundat Naqada, the closest parallel being a single rhomboid, long toothcomb.15

Another early comb is carved from bone rather than ivory and belongsto the longer tooth, decorated variety. E.62.1900 (pl. 2.a) was found ingrave G78 in the southern cemetery at Abydos, which is multi-period.16There are several examples of this form of comb with either a doublebird motif17or bovine horns,18however, the form of this particular combcould fall into either category. The flat inner edge of the handle is per-haps more suggestive of bovine horns. The comb has 8 prongs (7 remain-

ing) and a rhomboid design on the base of the handle. It measures208 mm in height, is 45 mm at its widest point and is 3 mm thick. Theteeth measure 65 mm to 68 mm in length and are 5 mm at the top and2 mm at the bottom. The gap between the teeth measures between 1 mmand 1.5 mm in width. The cemetery where this comb was found waspositioned south of the Wadi, and is multi-period.

Although the next comb appears to belong to a different group to theaforementioned, its fragmentary state of preservation may be misleadingin terms of its original form. E.4.1898 (pl. 2.c) is from an unidentified

context 234 at Hierakonpolis.19

The comb has eight teeth, four aremissing, which measure 3 mm wide and are spaced with a gap of 1.3 mm.The comb itself measures 63 mm in height by 26 mm wide and is 3 mmthick. At first glance this example is similar to other pre-dynastic combswith an undecorated squared handle. However, the teeth are longer inproportion to the body, at 36 mm in length, than on other published ver-sions of this early form of comb.20Furthermore, the angle of the surviv-ing shoulder alongside the proportionally longer teeth suggests that theremay have been a decorative element forming the upper section of the

handle, which is now missing.Amongst the early combs is an example of the shorter tooth form that

was identified by Petrie. E.59.1900 (pl. 2.b), is a short pronged comb


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24 S.-A. ASHTON

21 W.M.F. PETRIE,Prehistoric Egypt, pl. XXIX.17-19. 22 W.M.F. PETRIE,Prehistoric Egypt, 30.

23 W.M.F. PETRIEand J.E. QUIBELL,Naqada and Ballas, 10. 24 W.M.F. PETRIE,Prehistoric Egypt, 30, pl. XXX.2-4. 25 W.M.F. PETRIE, Objects of Daily Use, British School of Archaeology in Egypt 42(London, 1927), 25.

with a plain, rounded handle and from the same cemetery; it was foundin grave G48 and is marked 1287. The majority of this form of combhave a square top.21The comb originally had eight teeth (one is missing),and measures 46 mm in height, 28 mm wide and is 3 mm thick. Theteeth are 2 mm wide at the top and are spaced 1 mm apart. The closestparallel is UC 4444 from Naqada, which measures 8.3 cm by 3.1 cm andoriginally had eight teeth (four are missing). Like the Fitzwilliam Muse-ums comb, the Petrie Museum example is not published in the excava-tion reports.

In his discussion of combs from Predynastic Egypt Petrie stated that

this form of short-tooth variety did not appear until S.D.40.22

He alsonoted that there were examples of this form in materials other than boneor ivory, including stone. The examples that are illustrated in Prehis-toric Egyptare proportionately different to E.59.1900 in that the bonecombs have much finer teeth and a larger handle. In fact this form ofcomb appears in the Late Period on the double-sided hair combs, whereit has been suggested the very narrow teeth were made specifically fordelousing hair or wigs. The existence of stone combs with abbreviatedteeth might suggest that these objects were used as amulets rather than

actual combs; and the holes at the top of many of these would supportthis suggestion rather than the idea that hair combs degenerated intomere ornaments, as suggested by Petrie in his discussion in Prehis-toric Egypt. It was also noted in his publication of the material fromBallas that hair combs and pins were often found lying south of thehead, sometimes with hair around them, again suggesting that theseobjects served a specific purpose within the grave other than being dec-orative or serving the function of a practical cosmetic tool for the after-life.23 The symbolic importance of the comb can also be seen in Pre-

dynastic hair-pins that are decorated with a hair comb.24Petrie concludedthat such combs, which he described as notched combs were appar-ently for scratching heads, once again preferring a functional ratherthan symbolic explanation for this form.25 As mentioned, the impor-tance of the hair comb beyond its practical function is paralleled inWest Africa.


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26 Numbers that are prefaced E.W., especially those early in the sequence, weretypically excavated objects that came into the Museum before the Second World War butwhich had lost their original documentation. At this point where possible objects wereaccessioned by year of entry and material type (Egyptian Wood) were used for such

examples. 27 G. BRUNTON, Qau and Badari I, British School of Archaeology in Egypt 44 (Lon-don, 1927), 26, pl. LX.14. 28 W.M.F. PETRIEand J.E. QUIBELL,Naqada and Ballas,28, pl. LXIII.52.

One possible example of an abbreviated comb is E.W.6 (pl. 3.a) asmall ivory comb without a documented provenance. It is, however,probable that it came into the collection from an Egypt Exploration Fundor British School of Archaeology in Egypt excavation26and is marked inink with the number 111, suggesting an archaeological context. Thecomb measures 51 mm in height, is 27 mm wide and 4 mm thick. It hasnine teeth measuring between 2 mm and 4 mm in width and which arespaced at 1.5 mm. The teeth of this comb appear to be completely abbre-viated in form. The ends of the teeth are abraded and a thinner extensionon a single prong is visible under a microscope, suggesting that the teeth

were originally longer. Microscopic inspection also revealed small gran-ules of soil between the teeth. Proportions of a long body and short teethare similar to UC 17787, which was found at Qau in an undisturbedburial of an adult female dated to the 6th Dynasty.27Like the FitzwilliamMuseums example the teeth of the Petrie Museum comb are worn.The combs are not identical: the Petrie Museum example originally had11 teeth (nine remaining), compared to nine on the Fitzwilliam Muse-ums example. Furthermore, the Petrie example has a plain squared han-dle and the Fitzwilliam Museum example consists of a shaped handle

with a rounded top. However, both combs share an unusual feature of agroove around the upper diameter of inner teeth. There is a further paral-lel found by Petrie at Naqada.28This particular comb was found posi-tioned at the feet of one of the bodies in a double grave. However, it isnot entirely clear from the drawing whether the teeth were originallylonger, or whether they had the wear-marks characteristic of the afore-mentioned examples.

Finally in this section it is worth considering another comb from theGayer-Anderson collection, which is carved from bone and decorated

with an anthropoid hippopotamus forming the handle E.GA.3178.1943(pl. 3.b). The comb measures 96 mm in height and is 27 mm at its widestpoint and 4 mm thick. The hippopotamus is carved on both sides. Therewere originally seven teeth on the surviving section of the comb, and ofthese only three survive and are worn down in a similar manner to


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26 S.-A. ASHTON

29 See for example E.M. NOWAK, Egyptian Predynastic Ivories Decorated withAnthroporphormic Motifs, in: S. HENDRICKX, R.F. FRIEDMAN, K.M. CIAOWICZ andCHODNICKI(eds.),Egypt at its Origins. Studies in Memory of Barbara Adams, OrientaliaLovaniensia Analecta 138 (Leuven, 2004), 899-890. 30 For the Middle Kingdom examples see W.M.F. PETRIE,Illahun, Kahun and Gurob1889-90(London, 1891), 29, pl. VIII.30-31; and for the New Kingdom examples see 35,

pl. XVIII. 31 W.M.F. PETRIE, Objects of Daily Use, 25. 32 J. v.DABBADIE, Muse du Louvre Dpartement des Antiquits gyptiennes. Cata-logue des objets de toilette gyptiens(Paris, 1972) 141-147.

E.W.6, and include the same grooved finish at the base on one of theprongs. The teeth are 2 mm wide and are also spaced at 2 mm. The combwas dated in the museums records as 14th-13th centuries BC. How-ever, in its form it has more in common with early ivory combs. Somecombs dated to the New Kingdom have gazelles or other quadrupedsdecorating the top of the handle (see below). However, the New King-dom combs are of the short-tooth rectangular variety rather than the longthin examples found in earlier periods. The standing pregnant hippopota-mus clearly represents Tawaret and so does not compare to the moregeneric representations of this animal that are found in the pre-dynastic

period. Parallels for the more careful attention to detail in the carving ofthe back, the legs, breasts and eyes of the hippopotamus are only paral-leled on the hair combs depicting humans.29

New Kingdom combs

Petrie noted in Objects of Daily Use that few hair combs had been found

on Old Kingdom sites and suggested that the men had very short or shaven

hair and that the women wore wigs but also shaved their own hair. Some

combs dating to the Middle Kingdom were identified, but in their style theexamples cited share stylistic similarities with combs that are dated to the

New Kingdom. The New Kingdom combs can be distinguished from

examples of the Middle Kingdom by their shallower handles.30

According to Petries excavated material, hair combs changed sub-stantially between Dynasty 16 and 18.31As noted, Petries chronologicalsequence is still the main point of reference for dating examples ofNew Kingdom combs and is specific in dividing between the 18th and19th Dynasties. However, such sequences do not take account of varia-

tions within a particular date range and a larger study of material fromsecure archaeological contexts would be helpful in establishing to whatextent the different styles of handles on such combs were chronologicalindicators.32


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33 W.M.F. PETRIE, Objects of Daily Use, pl. XX.4 and 10. 34 R.E. FREED, Wigs and Hair Accessories, in: E. BROVARSKI, S.K. DOLLand R.E.FREED (eds.),Egypts Golden Age: The Art of Living in the New Kingdom, ExhibitionCatalogue (Boston, 1982), 197, no. 229.

The new style of comb was rectangular and could be either decoratedwith a quadruped or notches along the handle. The Fitzwilliam Museumhas examples of both types; however, none have an archaeological prov-enance. Fortunately Petrie excavated examples of the notched variety.E.1.2009 (pl. 4.a), is of a particular type with deep back ridges asdescribed by Petrie.33 These examples were excavated at Rifeh andKahun and were dated to Dynasty 18. E.1.2009 had been on loan to theFitzwilliam Museum from Westminster College since 1995, and waspurchased from the owner by the Friends of the Fitzwilliam Museum in2009. The comb has the number 5 written in ink on one side and on the

other is a provenance of the comb: Ancient Egypt display from GizehMuseum. Compared to the other notched combs this form is longer andnarrower, measuring 90 mm in width by 43 mm in height; the comb is8 mm thick at the handle. The teeth are also slightly smaller with a largergap than the other examples within this group.34There are 27 teeth and2 wider tangs. The teeth are 19 mm long and between 1.5 and 2 mmwide at the top; the gap between them is 1.5 mm.

There are three other examples of combs with a notched handle; allwere previously part of the Gayer-Anderson collection (E.GA.4720.1943,

E.GA.509.1947, and E.GA.2696.1943). E.GA.2696.1943, not illustrated,is the least well preserved and has 13 out of the 29 teeth missing or dam-aged. The two outer tangs are 5 mm thick compared to the thinner innerteeth measuring 1.5 to 2 mm; the teeth that are preserved vary in lengthbetween 21 mm and 25 mm. The gap between the teeth measures 1.5 mmin width. The handle of the comb has four notches and is decorated onboth sides with two parallel horizontal grooves above the teeth and twobelow the notches on the handle. There is a label with a biro mark read-ing IX 141.

The second comb from this group, (E.GA.509.1947, pl. 4.b), has anidentical label reading IX 140 and, overall, is better preserved but ismissing one of its ends. Three notches are preserved and it is decoratedwith the same parallel grooves as the previous comb. The remaining endis wider than the other teeth measuring 6 mm at the top compared to1 mm for the majority. The gaps in between the teeth are between 1 mmand 1.2 mm at their widest. The teeth are 25 mm long and are more eventhan the previous example of this type of comb and are better preserved;


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28 S.-A. ASHTON

35 W.M.F. PETRIE and G. BRUNTON, Sedment I, British School of Archaeology inEgypt 34 (London, 1924), 17-18, pl. XLIII.2. 36 W.M.F. PETRIE, Objects of Daily Use, pl. XXX.5 and W.M.F. PETRIE, Illahun,Kahun and Gurob,pl. XVIII.

the tips of two are missing. This comb is smaller in scale but is the samein terms of its design.

The third example within this category of comb, (E.GA.4720.1943,

pl. 5), is even smaller measuring 44 mm in height and 59 mm in

width, but is completely preserved. It has three notches at the top of

the handle and has incised lines around each notch in addition to the

two sets of parallel lines. The teeth are evenly carved; the outer two

are 4 mm and 3 mm at their widest point compared to the more usual

1mm and the space between the teeth is 0.5 mm making this a verynarrow comb in comparison to the others of this date. An example of

a comb that is similarly finished but with four rather than three notcheswas found at Sedment in grave 1288. The burial was that of a female

and included a reed basket that contained the comb along with six

shells, four rough pieces of wood, a wig with plaits, a painted bone

awl, beads, a small box and smaller basket, a bronze knife, kohl pot

and stick and wooden disk.35The comb is now housed at the Petrie

Museum (UC 38367). All three examples of the Fitzwilliam Muse-

ums combs have soil between the teeth of the combs and in the

deeper decorative grooves.

There are four further examples of combs of a type dated by Petrie tothe 19th Dynasty by comparison with an excavated example from Illahunfrom the time of Ramesses II.36 Three of the Fitzwilliam Museumsexamples are decorated with an ibex. The most complete example isE.GA.4577.1943 (pl. 6.a). This is a miniature comb preserving the fronthalf of the animal and nine teeth, two of which are broken and the outertooth is wider than the central. The comb is 49 mm high and 21 mmwide; the teeth are 0.5 mm wide except for the outer which is 3 mm;they are evenly spaced but now warped and the gaps between them are

between 0.5 and 1 mm at their widest point. Like two of the combs withnotches on the handles, this example has a white label reading XI, buthas no find spot associated with it.

There are two further fragments of flat wooden ibex figures that mayhave once been attached to a comb (E.GA.526.1947 and E.GA.527.1947,both of which are not illustrated in this paper). The latter is closer inscale to the aforementioned and better preserved comb. The flat base ofthe former is suggestive of the top of a comb and there are several exam-


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37 R.E. FREED, Wigs and Hair Accessories, 197, no. 230. 38 G.T. MARTIN, The Sacred Animal Necropolis at North Saqqara: the SouthernDependencies of the Main Temple Complex, Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Mem-oirs 50 (London, 1971), 20-21; 25-26, pl. 5.247.

ples of this form of decoration on the top of rectangular combs dated tothe New Kingdom.37

E.GA.4578.1943 (pl. 6.b) is decorated with a seated animal (possiblya bear) forming a handle, underneath which is an incised wavy line. Thecomb is 52 mm high, 17 mm wide and 5 mm thick. The teeth are roughlythe same length with the exception of the wider outer tooth which isshorter; they measure 1.5 mm with a 2 mm space between them. TheMuseum records suggest that this example is a modern forgery. How-ever, the fact that the comb is only partially preserved and that there areparallels for the form if not the animal work in its favour.

Finally, within the New Kingdom material is another unusual comb ofthe more traditional long variety that finds its closest parallel in decora-tive fan handles. E.GA. 2704.1943 (pl. 6.c), was also given to theMuseum by R.G. Gayer-Anderson. The teeth are poorly preserved andonly 5 remain. The comb measures 49 mm by 21 mm and is 3 mm thick.The teeth are 12 mm long with a width of 1.5 mm and the space betweenthen is between 0.5 mm and 1 mm. The handle is ornately decorated withdeeply cut linear and floral patterns, including lotus flowers; there aretraces of blue frit in the spaces between the carved designs.

Late Period and Ptolemaic Period- the introduction of double combs

As noted, combs are not easily dated and there is something of alacuna in the Late and Ptolemaic Periods. E.81.1975 (pl. 6.d), is the leastdecorative hair comb within the Fitzwilliam Museums collections, butis nevertheless important because it comes from an excavated context.The comb was given to the Museum by the Egypt Exploration Societyand came from its excavations at Saqqara. It was found in a room (J)

within an area indentified as block 2 and can be dated from its contextto the Late or Ptolemaic Period.38The design of comb shows a develop-ment that would remain for later periods in that it has two sets of teeth:one narrowly spaced at 0.02 mm with a width of 0.03 mm; and the othermore broadly spaced at 1mm with a width of teeth in the centre of 3 mm.Both sides of the comb have wider tangs and there is what appears to bea narrow rectangular handle at the side. The other side of the comb ismissing. The comb itself is 122 mm in length and 40 mm wide; it is


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30 S.-A. ASHTON

39R.L. PALMA,Ancient Headlice on a Wooden Comb from Antino, Egypt,Journal

of Egyptian Archaeology77 (1991), 194.40 D.B. HRDY, Analysis of Hair Samples of Mummies from Semna South (SudaneseNubia),American Journal of Physical Anthropology49 (1978), 277-282. 41 W.M.F. PETRIE,Hawara, Biahmu and Arsinoe(London, 1889), pl. XIX.23.

6.5 mm thick. It has been suggested that the narrower teeth would havebeen used to remove head lice and the wider spaced end would be usedfor combing and styling the hair.39The wood is not well finished and itseems likely given the context of its find-spot that this object was usedand then discarded.

Roman combs

With the advent of the Roman occupation we find an entirely differentform of hair comb emerging. Its origins are with the aforementioned

E.81.1975, but the teeth become proportionately much narrower at bothends, presumably marking a difference in hair types. For instance, astudy of hair type from X-group and Meroitic graves at Semna South inSudan revealed that X-group males in particular showed more Africanfeatures than the Meroitic remains.40What this study shows is that migra-tion can affect physical characteristics and this is important to note withregard to hair combs. It would make sense to some degree if the types ofhair comb, and in particular the fineness of the teeth, were adaptedaccording to different hair types.

The Fitzwilliam Museum has one traditional Romano-Egyptian haircomb (E.W.20, pl. 7.a). The comb most likely came into the museumfrom one of Petries excavations in the Fayoum. Comparative combswere found at Hawara.41E.W.20 has two faded ink marks on one side:the first reads E and the second Echmtm. It is possible that the combwas excavated at Ehnasya. At this site Petrie marked finds from theRoman houses with a letter. However, there is no mention in the publica-tion of a wooden comb from House E. The comb has rounded ends andis divided into wide and narrow teeth on each side. There are 13 teeth

and two tangs measuring 30 mm in length and spaced at 1.5 mm with awidth at the top of 3 mm. On the opposite side are 44 narrow teeth meas-uring 26 mm in length, with two tangs and spaced at 0.05 mm apart; theteeth are around 0.30 mm wide. There is compacted dirt and sand grainspacked between the narrow teeth.

In general there are two types of this form of comb. The first hasrounded ends, as in the case of the Fitzwilliams example, but there are


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42 W.M.F. PETRIE, Objects of Daily Use, 26, pl. XX. 43 D. PEACOCKand V. MAXFIELD, The Roman Imperial Quarries: a Survey and Exca-vation at Mons Porphyrites 1994-1998, Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoirs

67 (London, 2007) 12, 330-331. 44 S.E. SIDEBOTTOMand W. WENDRICH,Berenike 1999-2000(Oxford, 2007), 52. 45 S. WALKERand M. BIERBRIER,Ancient Faces: Mummy Portraits from Ancient Egypt(London, 1997), 210-214.

double combs with a squared end. Petrie did not distinguish between thedates of these, nor did he state whether they were Roman or Coptic.42More recent excavations at Roman period sites have allowed for a tighterdating of both forms of comb. At Mons Porphyrites both forms of combwere found in deposition levels dating to the post Antonine period.43Within these deposits were pottery, coins and ostraka dating from theearly second to the mid-2nd century AD. At Berenike a similar form ofcomb with rounded ends was found in an early Roman dump.44It is ofcourse possible, even likely, that this form of comb was produced overone or more centuries. An example dated by Petrie to the latter half of

the 3rd century AD was excavated from the tomb of a woman at Hawaraand was allocated a 3rd century AD date by the excavator. The groupwas more recently dated to the late 2nd century AD.45

Coptic and later combs

As with combs from earlier periods the dating of so-called Coptichair combs is far from certain. Nevertheless this type of comb forms anindividual group and also represents a return to combs with longer, albeit

narrower, teeth whilst retaining the feature of double ends. There arethree combs of this variety from the Edward Towry Whyte collection,bequeathed to the Fitzwilliam Museum in 1932. Whytes collection wascatalogued in two volumes which included hand-painted watercolours ofmany of the objects, plus a brief description. The catalogue states that thethree combs (catalogue number 1509) were purchased together as part ofa single lot (#191) on December 16 1926. However, only two are illus-trated in Whytes hand-drawn catalogue (E.361.1932 and E.361B.1932).The caption with the sketches reads: 3 ancient Coptic combs 1 carved

in fretwork manner to represent an ibex. All combs are of a similar dateand form. However, E.361.1932 (pl. 7.b), (described as lattice with anibex in Whytes catalogue) has a central panel that is decorated withwhat appears to be a sheep or gazelle. This example is more ornate thanthose cited by Petrie in Objects of Daily Use, where he suggested thatthere were pieces of glass or mirror between the wooden sections in the


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32 S.-A. ASHTON

46 W.M.F. PETRIE, Objects of Daily Use, 26, pl. XXI.54 and 55.

middle.46However, a detailed inspection of these examples in the PetrieMuseum (UC 58631 and 59632) reveals that the carved interior has beenfiled with a smooth finish that would not have supported glass. In con-trast the wood on the Fitzwilliam Museums comb is roughly finishedwhere the central design has been filed away. The comb contains piecesof straw, mud and small pebbles between the teeth. It measures 239 mmin height and is 74 mm wide; the wood is 4 mm thick. The wider-spacedteeth are ten in number with 2 wider tangs; they are 52 mm long andmeasure between 3 and 4 mm in width. The spacing between the teeth isvaried between 1.5 mm and 3 mm. 21 of the narrower teeth survive,

along with 1 tang; this is roughly half of the original number. The teethmeasure 53 mm in length and are 0.5 mm wide with a gap of between0.1 and 0.3 mm.

E.361a.1932 (pl. 8.a) measures 240 mm by 71 mm and is 5 mm thick.The teeth with a wider gap are 12 in number with two tangs and are55 mm long. The gaps between the teeth are 3 mm wide and the teeththemselves measure 4 mm at their widest point. At the other end of thecomb are 39 teeth and two tangs with a gap of between 0.09 and 0.05 mm.The teeth are 0.05 mm wide and 49 mm long. The comb has a white

label with a red star written on it; this was used to identify objects fromthe E. T. Whyte collection that were destined for the FitzwilliamMuseum. There are two other stickers on the comb reading: 1509 and1 no. 191 S Dec 16 1926. The wood has warped especially around thenarrow teeth and there are seeds, soil and fragments of small pebbleswedged between the teeth. The comb is decorated on one side only withfive large concentric circles accompanied by a single circle and dot motif

joining the larger circles together.The final comb from the Whyte collection (E.361b.1932, pl. 8.b) has

the same white label with no. 2 191 and S Dec 16 1926 written on it.Presumably the two were part of a single lot 191 at the same auc-tion. The decoration is once again on one side only and is a variation onthe circle and dot design. There are 13 concentric circles joined onceagain by a circle and dot chain forming three bands. There is an addi-tional decoration of four incised lines on both sides of the comb at thetop of the teeth. Like the aforementioned comb, the teeth are warped atboth ends. Petrie concluded that the awkward size of these combs andthe fact that they were in such good condition suggested that they were

not used, but show pieces of the bridal trousseau. He noted that only


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47 W.M.F. PETRIE, Objects of Daily Use, 26. 48 J.A. ANTIRI, Akan Combs, 32-35.

one example he had found showed any signs of wear.47However, it isworth noting that combs of a similar size are still commonly used in Sub-Saharan Africa and that oils applied to the wooden teeth prevent thesplitting of the material and would have perhaps protected the combsagainst wear.

Finally two combs made from a darker, harder wood have been datedto the Coptic period in the Museums records. The first (E.1.1935,pl. 9.a) was one of 232 objects given to the Museum by G.F. Rogersbetween 1923 and 1935. Rogers was Consul in Cairo from 1868-1874and was a collector of antiquities and Islamic coinage. Both this example

and the other (E.71.1966) share some similarities in common with theWhyte collection examples; most notable in respect to the concentriccircle pattern and the double ends. However, the teeth on the finer edgeof the darker wood combs are not as narrow as the so-called Copticexamples, and the wider teeth are spaced more widely than those on thesquare variety. The Rogers comb is 177 mm long and 55 mm wide witha thickness of 11 mm. There are seven teeth on the wider section whichare 80 mm long and 5 mm wide with a gap of 3 mm. The opposite endof the comb has 18 finer teeth measuring 26 mm in length, 2 mm in wide

and with a gap of 1 mm. The depth of the teeth varies and towards theends the teeth are only partially cut away from the wood.The second comb was given to the museum in 1966 (E.71.1966,

pl. 9.b) by Major C.B. Green of Great Shelford, a local village. The combis dated in the Museum records to around the 6th-8th centuries AD. It islarge compared to earlier Dynastic combs measuring 231 mm in length,70 mm in width and 11 mm at its deepest point. There are eight widerteeth measure 90 mm in length and are 6mm wide with a gap of 4.7 mm.There are seven narrow teeth preserved and some missing from a single

edge; they are 20.2 mm long, 2 mm wide with a space of 1.7 mm. Thecomb appears to have been used because inside the finer teeth there arefibres including strands of thick, black, curly human hair (measuring3 micro m). There are no parallels in Petries typology for this form ofcomb. In fact these combs have more in common with combs from WestAfrica dating to the late 18th to early 19th centuries.48

This paper is intended as a starting point for a much larger project onAfrican hair combs and perhaps raises more questions than answers inregard to the dating of this category of object. The Museum is hoping to


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34 S.-A. ASHTON

have some of the so-called Coptic hair combs radiocarbon dated inorder to establish a more accurate date. In the meantime research and thesearch for parallels from excavated contexts continues.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Julie Dawson and Mie Ishii for their help andsupport in researching and investigating the hair combs; Henry Disneyand David Pinniger for looking at the possible insect remains; and toStephen Quirke and Susanna Pancaldo for allowing me access to thePetrie Museums examples. I am also grateful to Carol Tulloch forbibliographic advice on later African combs. Finally, I am extremelygrateful to Anna Karbownik and Michael Jones for the photography. Thephotographs taken through a microscope were taken by Julie Dawson.

Bibliography

J. v. DABBADIE, Muse du Louvre Dpartement des Antiquits gyptiennes.Catalogue des objets de toilette gyptiens(Paris, 1972) 141-147.

B. ADAMS,Ancient Hierakonpolis Supplement(Warminster, 1974).

J.A. ANTIRI, Akan Combs,African Arts8 (No. 1 Autumn 1974), 32-35.G. BRUNTON, Qau and Badari I, British School of Archaeology in Egypt 44(London, 1927).

G. BRUNTON, The Badarian and Predynastic Remains near Badari, BritishSchool of Archaeology in Egypt 46 (London, 1928).

A.D. BYRDand L.L. THARPS, Hair Story. Untangling the Roots of Black Hairin America, (New York, 2001).

J. CROWFOOT PAYNE, Catalogue of Predynastic Egyptian Collection in theAshmolean Museum(Oxford, 1994)

R.E. FREED, Wigs and Hair Accessories, in: E. BROVARSKI, S.K. DOLL andR.E. FREED(eds.),Egypts Golden Age: The Art of Living in the New

Kingdom, Exhibition Catalogue (Boston, 1982), 196-198.D.B. HRDY, Analysis of Hair Samples of Mummies from Semna South (Suda-

nese Nubia) in American Journal of Physical Anthropology49 (1978),277-282.

L. KEIMER, Notes prises chez les Basarin et les Nubiens dAssouan, IIepartie,Bulletin de LInstitut de Lgypte33 (1952), 43-84.

C. MARTNDELROLVAREZand E. ALMENARAROSALES, An Analysis of theTheriomorphic Representations on Combs and Hairpins from the Predy-nastic Period, in: S. HENDRICKX, R.F. FRIEDMAN, K.M. CIAOWICZandCHODNICKI(eds.),Egypt at its Origins. Studies in Memory of Barbara

Adams, Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 138 (Leuven, 2004), 883-889.G.T. MARTIN, The Sacred Animal Necropolis at North Saqqara: the SouthernDependencies of the Main Temple Complex, Egypt Exploration SocietyExcavation Memoirs 50 (London, 1971).


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B. MIDANT-REYNES, The Prehistory of Egypt. From the First Egyptians to theFirst Pharaohs(Oxford, 2006).

E.M. NOWAK, Egyptian Predynastic Ivories Decorated with Anthroporphor-mic Motifs, in: S. HENDRICKX, R.F. FRIEDMAN, K.M. CIAOWICZandCHODNICKI(eds.),Egypt at its Origins. Studies in Memory of Barbara

Adams, Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 138 (Leuven, 2004), 891-904.R.L. PALMA,Ancient Headlice on a Wooden Comb from Antino, Egypt,Jour-

nal of Egyptian Archaeology77 (1991), 194.D. PEACOCKand V. MAXFIELD, The Roman Imperial Quarries: a Survey and

Excavation at Mons Porphyrites 1994-1998, Egypt Exploration SocietyExcavation Memoirs 67 (London, 2007).

W.M.F. PETRIE,Hawara, Biahmu and Arsinoe(London, 1889).

W.M.F. PETRIE

,Illahun, Kahun and Gurob 1889-90(London, 1891).W.M.F. PETRIE, AbydosI, Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoir 22(London, 1902).

W.M.F. PETRIE, Prehistoric Egypt, British School of Archaeology in Egypt 31(London, 1920).

W.M.F. PETRIE, Objects of Daily Use, British School of Archaeology in Egypt42 (London, 1927).

W.M.F. PETRIEand G. BRUNTON, Sedment I, British School of Archaeology inEgypt 34 (London, 1924).

W.M.F. PETRIEand J.E. QUIBELL,Naqada and Ballas, British School of Archae-ology in Egypt 1 (London, 1896).

G. ROBINS, Hair and Construction of Identity in Ancient Egypt, c. 1480-1350BC, Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 36 (1999),55-69.

S.E. SIDEBOTTOMand W. WENDRICH,Berenike 1999-2000(Oxford, 2007).C. TULLOCH, Resounding Power of the Afro Comb, in: G. BIDDLE-PERRYand

S. CHEANG(eds.)Hair Styling Culture and Fashion(New York, 2008),128-39.

S. WALKERand M. BIERBRIER, Ancient Faces: Mummy Portraits from AncientEgypt(London, 1997).

D. WENGROW, The Archaeology of Early Egypt. Social Transformation in North-East Africa, 10,000 to 2650 BC, (Cambridge, 2006).


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36 S.-A. ASHTON

a. E.GA.2671-1932

b. E.GA.3204-1943

Plate 1. Hair Combs in the Fitzwilliam Museum.


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a. E.62.1900ht. 208 mm

b. E.59.1900ht. 46 mm

c. E.4.1898ht. 63 mm



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38 S.-A. ASHTON

a. E.W.6 ht. 51 mm

b. E.GA.3178.1943 ht. 96 mm



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a. E.1.2009 l. 90 mm

b. E.GA.509.1947 ht. 53 mm



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40 S.-A. ASHTON

E.GA.4720-1943 l. 59 mm



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a. E.GA.4577-1943ht. 49 mm

b. E.GA.4578-1943ht. 52 mm

c. E.GA.2704-1943ht. 49 mm

d. E.81.1975ht. 122 mm



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42 S.-A. ASHTON

a. E.W.20 ht. 80 mm

b. E.361.1932 ht. 239 mm



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a.E.361a.1932

ht.

240mm

b.E.361b.1932

ht.240mm

Plate8.HairCombsintheFitzwilliamMuseum.


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44 S.-A. ASHTON

a.E.1.1935h

t.177mm

b.E.71.196

6

ht.231mm

Plate9.HairCombsintheFitzwilliamMuseum.

Hair Combs OLA204_Ashton-Libre

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