The Early Roman Necropolis of Ancient Philadelphia: Results from the 2019-2024 excavations - Paperback

by Basem Gehad (Author)

This volume presents the first comprehensive archaeological study of the Roman period necropolis of ancient Philadelphia in the Fayoum, the site long associated with the famed "Er-Rubbayāt" mummy portraits. Drawing on excavations between 2019 and 2024, it reconstructs the funerary landscape of a multicultural community living at the crossroads of Egyptian, Greek, and Roman traditions. Through detailed analysis of tomb architecture, burial assemblages, mummification practices, ceramics, papyri, and newly discovered mummy portraits, the book restores crucial context to material long dispersed across museums and collections. It reveals a cemetery shaped by complex social identities, evolving artistic practices, and a vibrant local economy of funerary production. By integrating archaeological, osteological, and archival evidence, this study fills a major gap in Roman Egyptian scholarship and offers a new view of daily life, death, and cultural interaction in a provincial village of the ancient world.