Trash from a temple: a deposit next to the Isis Temple at Berenike (Egypt)

Abstract

The article discusses the stratigraphy and chronological phasing of a late antique trash deposit discovered just outside the north wall of the Isis Temple courtyard. It appears to be consumption waste collected from a large-scale event taking place in the immediate vicinity over a short period of time. Several elements of architectural decoration were found among the rubble, including three fragments of ‘Ionic’ cornice blocks that are an indication of the presence of at least one building with a classical-style architecture in the urban landscape. The fragments are quite unusual in the southern part of the Eastern Desert of Egypt and the first and somewhat unexpected attestation of this style recorded from Berenike.

Keywords

• Graeco-Roman Egypt
• Berenike
• classical architecture
• cornice
• architectural decoration