While the Early Dynastic cemetery at North Saqqara is arguably one of the most relevant archaeological sites in Egypt, various factors have limited our understanding of it. Aerial images show that the efforts of Quibell, Firth, and especially Emery uncovered a very large portion of the plateau in the first half of the 20th century, but only selected areas and tombs were ever published.
The first part of this lecture will provide an overview of the excavations carried out at the plateau in the last century, reflecting on the fragmentary nature of the published material and the potential of the archives of Firth and Emery—with more than 160 unpublished tombs—to fill in the gaps. The second part of the lecture will show the preliminary results of a season of archaeological survey carried out in the Fall of 2023, which included a photogrammetric survey of the northern end of the site. Finally, the third and last part of the lecture will show the first steps of the analysis of the acoustic properties of the Early Dynastic tombs of the plateau. Did acoustics play a role in the changing architectural designs?
Sergio Alarcón Robledo is working on his PhD in Egyptology at Harvard University. He studied Architecture in the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, holds an MPhil in Egyptology from the University of Cambridge, and an MA in Archaeology from the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, UCLA. His dissertation approaches architectural development in the Early Dynastic period through a sensory analysis of the North Saqqara plateau.
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The lecture starts at 6 pm. We work on a first-come, first-served basis as the number of seats is limited. We open our doors at 5:30 and close them at 6:15 or earlier when the lecture room reaches its full capacity. This talk will not be recorded nor livestreamed.
