Analysis of the stone dressing technology used on anhydritic building blocks discovered in the Blemmyan Necropolis at Berenike
2025, 34, No. 1
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Abstract
The Tool Marks Pattern Analysis method was applied to describe and analyze the stone dressing technology used in the production process of anhydrite stone blocks uncovered in the Blemmyan Necropolis and the Hellenistic-Roman Isis Temple precinct at Berenike. Based on the numerous diagnostic stone blocks collected during the 2023 and 2024 excavation seasons in the necropolis, it was possible to reconstruct their surface dressing process and compare it with parallel material found in the vicinity of the temple. The analyzed anhydrite blocks provide evidence of the stone blocks dressing technology used within three technological industries identified at the site, spanning the Hellenistic period, the Roman period, and Late Antiquity, when Berenike was conquered and inhabited by the nomadic Blemmyes from the Eastern Desert.
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