Berenike's natural riches: rocks and minerals in the archaeological record

Abstract

The article reviews the published and unpublished evidence for selected natural rocks and minerals collected from the excavations between 1994 and 2015 at the harbor site of Berenike on the Red Sea. This assemblage is part of the natural resources and commodities that were either traded through the port or used by local residents over the 800 years of the harbor’s existence: as an elephant-transfer station and fort in Ptolemaic times, a global emporium in early Roman times (from the rule of Augustus through the 3rd century) and a briskly trading harbor, apparently under Blemmyan control, from the late 4th through the mid-6th century CE when it was ultimately deserted. Aseparate category is building stone, both locally procured and imported. The tabularized review of the material provides abase for a preliminary analysis broken down by utilitarian categories, chronological phases and, last but not least, topographical units, such as harbor-related trenches, domestic quarters, religious buildings and trash dumps. One of the objectives of this approach is to work toward a network visualization of the resources (and other commodities, which include spices/condiments, incense/frankincense, minerals and metals, gold included, precious and semiprecious stones, cameo blanks, ivory, cowry shells, turtle shell, raw glass, as well as botanics/foodstuffs and exotic and domestic animals, not to mention human slaves; also the less obvious resources attested indirectly in the archaeological record like water, wine and olive oil). The results can then be compared in the future to the existing network visualization of the list of goods extracted from the Periplus Maris Erythraei, a 1st-century-AD sailing and trading guide.

Keywords

• Berenike
• mineral resources
• natural rocks
• chalcedony
• carnelian
• sard