Tell el-Fara´in/Buto

The settlement of Buto (modern Tell el-Fara'in) is situated in the flood plain of the north-western Nile Delta, c. 40km south of the modern shore line of the Mediterranean. The site covers an area of approximately 1km2. It is topographically divided into a northern and a southern Kôm (mound) with mud-brick ruins rising 15m above the cultivation (Fig. 1), and a temple area surrounded by a huge enclosure wall (Fig. 2).

	Departments: Cairo Department
	Further Information on the Section in Charge
	Google Maps

	Map

	druckerfreundliche Version

History


	Fig. 2: Topographical plan of Buto.

	Fig. 3: Labels from the late predynastic king's tomb U-j in Abydos. These labels made of cattle ribs were attached to grave goods and described their origin.

Since the late New Kingdom, the city was known under the name of Per-Wadjet, i.e. "House of the (Goddess) Wadjet" (Uto), from which the Greek name Buto derives. Buto was also identified as early as 1886 by W.M.F. Petrie with the twin cities of Pe and Dep, attested already on Early Dynastic seals and seal impressions. Buto is assumed to have been the archaic capital of Lower Egypt, which played an important role throughout the pharaonic period, as a counterpart of Hierakonpolis in Upper Egypt, both in religious belief and in cultic life. Another name connected with Buto is Djebaut, mainly known from Old Kingdom sources. Earliest evidence for this name, written with the heron on the roof of a building, occurs on small bone labels from the late Predynastic (Naqada IIIA1) tomb U-j at Abydos (Fig. 3).
The impressive mounds of ruins which affect the appearance of Buto today are mostly of Ptolemaic/Roman, and some perhaps of Saite date (26. Dyn., 6th cent. BC.). Although Buto seems to be quite well attested in written sources, until recently, only little is known of the archaeology of the site. This concerns not only the early periods but also Buto's later history.

Objectives

During the early 1980s, W. Kaiser initiated investigations at Buto with the objective to clarify the early history of the site. The aim was not only to locate the settlement of the 4th and early 3rd millenniums but also to gain information on the relations between the predynastic Lower and Upper Egyptian cultures and a better understanding of the process of the unification of both parts of the country which led to the emergence of the Egyptian state.
While this questioning is still valid, the later development of the settlement and its topography, especially its interlocking with the geographical conditions, has become a focal point of interest.
In cooperation with the DAI project at Poitiers University (directed by P. Ballet), industrial activities in the Hellenistic-Roman era are being researched.

History of Research


	Fig. 4: The Ptolemaic double well system in the temples of Buto after the English excavation.

The first archaeological excavations were led by C.T. Curelly in 1904 on behalf of the Egypt Exploration Society. It was not however until sixty years later, with the continuation of English excavations led by V. Seton-Williams and D. Charlesworth in 1965-67, that the focus returned to the settlement mound. These excavations revealed primarily Ptolemaic-Roman ruins in the temple area (Fig. 4) and to the northwest of Buto (pottery-kiln and a bathing house), but sometimes also Late Dynastic stratifications. The oldest settlement remains found were walls dating from the Third Intermediate Period in a deep trench on the southern Kôm. Isolated finds led to speculations that a prehistoric settlement existed. Should one have been present, this must be buried metre deep under later constructions, as the surface around the complete settlement area shows no signs of one having existed. From the 1980s onwards, the University of Alexandria and Tanta as well as the Egyptian Antic Board/Authorities have continued excavating the temple area and found building parts and statues dating from the New Kingdom, including a stela with a written decree from Thutmose III.

Previous Activities


	Fig. 5: The use of pumps made the excavation of relatively small sites possible - Excavation from Th. von der Way in the 1980s.

The investigations of the DAIK directed by Th. von der Way started in 1983/84 with a widespread archaeological and geological survey carried out in cooperation with the University of Marburg. By means of drillings the existence of early settlement layers was confirmed which were subsequently excavated. This was the first time that settlement remains of the predynastic Lower Egyptian culture came to light in the Nile Delta proper. Early Dynastic layers yielded parts of an administrative building complex which underlined the importance of Buto during the early 3rd millennium known from written sources. On the other hand, the investigations emphasized the technical difficulties which accompany the search for Buto's early history (see Methods, Fig. 5).
From 1993 to 1998, D. Faltings (in one campaign together with M. Ziermann) continued this work and yielded a lot of new information, especially on the earliest settlement.
While this is an important step in the research on Buto, it remained obvious that, compared to the extent of the complete settlement mound, the limited excavation area is merely a tiny window revealing only a small portion of the historical events. Therefore, when excavation activities continued in 1999, a survey was initiated which incorporated both geomagnetic recordings as well as core drilling in the terrain (see Methods) in order to study the general history of the settlement.

Current Work


	Fig. 6: Usurped granite sarcophagus of Paraemhab.

Current excavations focus on surveying (see Results) as well as two areas within the settlement (Fig. 2): Studies of the early dynastic building complex were continued to the north of the village of Sechmawy. Studies undertaken since 2006 with the support of DFG (German Research Foundation) to the far northwest of Buto should clarify the unusual building structures made visible using geomagnetic recordings (see Results).
The most recent activities in the autumn of 2006 and spring of 2007 uncovered two Late Period elite burials (Fig. 6) - one could possibly be the burial of a local ruler from the Third Intermediate Period (Iupet II). See the department's Newsletter (2007) for further details.

Methods


	Fig. 7: Hand drill for surveying the ground.

	Fig. 8: T. Herbich carrying out geomagnetic measurements.

Researching Buto's early history is difficult not only because early settlement layers are covered by huge amounts of later deposits but the predynastic remains are also situated below the modern water table and can be reached only if pumps are used (Fig. 5). Technical conditions, such as, the performance of the pump, considerably limit excavation possibilities, meaning only a fairly small area can generally be studied. Regarding the total size of the site, excavations alone appear not sufficient to answer questions about the development of the settlement throughout its long history, its topographical setting in respect to the surrounding landscape, etc. Therefore, in 1999 a systematic survey was started which combines auger drillings and geophysical measurements. While the latter method enables the compilation of a map of archaeological structures not visible on the surface, drillings provide information on the thickness and extent of cultural layers deep below the surface in a simple and effective way. The work is carried out by means of a simple hand set (Fig. 7). The filling of the drill head which comes to light does not only allow observations of the nature of penetrated layers (e.g. mud-bricks, ashy layers, Nile silt etc.) but it also contains enough pottery fragments for dating purposes. The deepest drilling to date was to approx. 14 m. Due to their systematic arrangement in a 40 x 80m grid, it is possible to compare the results of the drillings easily and to reconstruct the spatial extent and the thickness of layers of a distinctive occupation phase on a map (e.g. Fig. 10).
In comparison, geomagnetic data provide a surprisingly detailed plan of building structures close to the surface (but not visible on the actual surface) as well as other features to a depth of approx. 1.5 m. The recordings are conducted over 20 x 20 m large areas in parallel lines that are stepped with the magnetometer (Fig. 8) and measure variations of the magnetic field caused by various materials in the subsoil in a narrow grid. Special software converts the recorded results to a map. Burnt structures or objects such as, kilns, ash, slag or pottery concentrations and also mudbrick walls can be easily recognised. The recordings in Buto are being conducted by T. Herbich (Polish Academy of Science/Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology Cairo). By using both methods, a city plan of the latest occupational level can be expanded to include information on the underlying, older settlement strata. This provides a three dimensional view of the development of the settlement mound that not only depicts the general layers but is also very useful for choosing the appropriate excavation site.

Results


	Fig. 9: Geomagnetic map of the area studied up until 2006 (created by T. Herbich).

	Fig. 10: Location and expansion of the settlement in the first half of the 4th millennium B.C.

	Fig. 11: Vessel from the predynastic settlement of Buto.

	Fig. 12: Excavation site north of Sechmawy. In the foreground, the foundation of a Saite building; in the background, the preserved Early Dynastic walls only a few brick layers high.

	Fig. 13: Schematic plan of the Early Dynastic building complex.

	Fig. 14: Section of the geomagnetic map (see Fig. 9) with marked excavation areas.

	Fig. 15: Cellular foundations of a Saite building.

Survey activities

The area that has been investigated to date using geomagnetic data and drillings covers roughly half of the area of the settlement mound in which such studies are at all possible. Some sections can not be surveyed because the pile of ruins is too steep or too high. Some drillings in surrounding fields have collected information on the old surrounding landscape and can find parts of the settlement that are possibly no longer visible, buried under Nile sediments.
The geomagnetic map provides an impressive image of the preserved remains from the younger settlement in the area (Fig. 9). To the west, for example, there is a dense construction of houses with cellular foundations along a main street that runs north-south; in the south there is an area with internal constructions that is surrounded by a huge enclosure wall. Especially in the northern section, although also in other areas of Buto, dark spots surrounded by light rings depict kilns, which are often found grouped together (Fig. 20). Images of other areas are not as clear due to overlying slag or piles of ceramics (possibly also burials with terracotta sarcophagi) that obliterate the structures.
The results of drillings carried out to date already provide a general overview of the overall settlement development. The first inhabitants in the first half of the 4th millennium used a 200 - 300 m wide strip of land along the banks of a watercourse to the west of a large dune (Fig. 10); these lay above the annual Nile flood levels and therefore offered sufficient protection for a long-term settlement. Throughout time, the settlement expanded considerably to the north and south; within the first centuries of the 3rd millennium, it covered almost 1 km in length. In the following era, during the Old Kingdom, the place appears to have been abandoned step by step. Neither drillings (including earlier ones conducted by Th. von der Way) nor excavations have found settlement strata of the Middle or New Kingdoms. This feature contradicts findings in the temple area (see History of Research) whereby these could have been brought here from other locations, as was customary in Egypt of that time for Late Period furnishing of temples - or the New Kingdom settlement lies still buried under the surrounding field outside today's visible mound of ruins. One way or another, a substantial settlement of this location continues again during the Third Intermediate Period in the late 8th century B.C. The centre of the new city lay, however, further to the east, more towards the middle of the current mound on a considerably higher level due to Nile sedimentation. The settled area expanded immensely during the Twenty-sixth Dynasty (7th/6th century) and large areas of the city were transformed throughout the first half of the 6th century. The geomagnetic map of the western settlement area provides an idea of the new densely constructed buildings. Buto's bloom seems not to have continued for long - large sections of the city were already abandoned as early as the second half of the 6th century. During the Ptolemaic-Roman period, the city covered not only the entire current settlement mound, but probably also a large area under the current surrounding fields. The geomagnetic map shows significant changes to the townscape including an area to the southwest of the settlement mound surrounded by a massive enclosure wall and numerous ovens, probably used mostly for the industrial production of pottery. During this period, the northwest section of Buto was used as burial grounds.

Excavation activities

The first proof of a prehistoric Lower Egyptian culture existing in the actual Nile Delta that was buried deep under Late Period building remains meant Buto became the second named site of the chalcolithic Buto-Maadi culture from the first half of the 4th millennium B.C. Until then, this culture had only been known from locations south of the Delta. Equivalent settlements had in the meantime appeared in other areas of the Delta. According to the finds of Th. von der Way and D. Faltings, the settlement consisted of simple huts of wattle-and-daub. The material culture is very similar to that of the Maadi (Fig. 11), the economical basis being husbandry. As opposed to Maadi, the settlement was not abandoned in the middle of the 4th millennium, but continued into the 3rd millennium. This made it possible for the material culture to follow the gradual increase of Upper Egypt's influence through to their complete unification in the late Predynastic period and therefore gain information on the process of constructing the pharaonic state.
Regarding the Early Dynastic period, the current activity to the north of the village of Sechmawy (Fig. 2 and 12) and the substantial growth of the old excavation site brought about a considerable increase in information on the design of a building complex from the First and Second Dynasties. The uncovering of the entrance area and a store-room wing revealed the subdivision into at least three functional areas that were enclosed by thick walls (Fig. 13). This gives the complex a character similar to that of a palace. The small-scale, convoluted interior construction, after which Th. von der Way called an area uncovered by himself "Labyrinthgebäude" ("labyrinth building"), appears also to be typical for other building sections. Whether the building is identical to that named on labels and cylinder seal impressions from the kings' tombs in Abydos and Saqqara as "Palace of the harpooning Horus" (a localised Royal estate and apparently also temporary residence in Buto) can only be speculated on, as this has not yet been proven by appropriate findings. The complex appears to have been constructed in the early part of the First Dynasty (around 2970 B.C.) and at least partially abandoned around the middle of the Second Dynasty (approx. 2800 B.C.) after a fire destroyed the store-room and possibly other building sections.
See the department's Newsletter (2005, 2006) for further details.
With the extension of the excavations, the strata overlying the early dynastic building complexes and building remains could also be studied. Excavations confirmed the settlement chronology ascertained by the drillings. The Early Dynastic ruins were immediately covered by strata from the late 8th century B.C. The Early Dynastic building remains that had already been extensively eroded over 2000 years were used as a waste tip and for clay for manufacturing bricks. The actual centre of the settlement lay at this time further to the east. Large amounts of ash and numerous small ovens, possibly used to bake bread, are also characteristic of these strata.
Only a few remains are preserved from the successive early Saite construction in the excavated area; they suffered extensively from the expansive construction measures during the first half of the 6th century. Three buildings constructed during this period and also visible on the geomagnetic map (see Fig. 14) were studied exemplarily in the excavation area. As only the fundaments were preserved in all cases, only little can be said about their architecture and function. The largest building measured approx. 22.5 x 22.5 m (Fig 15) and had a foundation up to 3 m deep, meaning it was almost certainly a multistorey building. The foundation chambers were obviously also used as a cellar - built-in round silos were found in some. The building does not however seem to have been in use for too long as some of the cellars were converted into burial chambers during the second half of the 6th century (Fig. 16).
Findings in Buto also reflect the cosmopolitan politic of the Saitic ruler. There is an unusual increase in the amounts of imported ceramics found especially in the strata dating from the 6th century. During this period, Buto also appears to have had close contact with the eastern Mediterranean region with deliveries of wine and oil from the coast of Levant, Cyprus, Asia Minor and Greek islands reaching the city.
The excavation to the northwest of the settlement mound (Fig. 2) began in 2005 in order to conduct archaeological studies on the unusual results from drillings and geomagnetic data. DFG has supported these studies since 2006. Drillings uncovered strata of the Old Kingdom and the early period which rise almost to today's surface and geomagnetic maps showed large rectangular mudbrick structures without the normally present cellular subdivision of the interior areas (Fig. 9). Previous excavations (Fig. 17) have shown that at least three of these structures were walls that surrounded a sand filling. The structures most likely date back to the Twenty-sixth Dynasty. Their function has not yet been clarified, but different finds refer to this place as one of special importance. Bronze parts were found next to a small inscribed cube stool (Fig. 18), donated by a high priest of Per-nu (known as the Lower Egyptian sanctuary). These bronze parts most likely belonged to wooden, at times life-sized Osiris statues, e.g. beards of Gods and parts of feather crowns. The large complexes overlie smaller mudbrick structures from the Third Intermediate Period (2nd half of the 8th century B.C.) of which most recent activity in spring 2007 proved one to be a burial complex that contained an undisturbed elite, possibly even a ruler's burial in an usurped granite sarcophagus (Fig. 6). Another rich burial in a limestone sarcophagus that was revealed in 2006 may have belonged to the same burial site. A concluding assessment can not be made on the finds until the excavation work that has been temporarily interrupted due ground water seepage can continue.
The Late Period complexes appear to have sunken into building remains from the higher Old Kingdom in this area of Buto and are to be further studied in upcoming campaigns. Numerous ceramics also suggest a prehistoric strata lying underneath, confirming the results from the drillings. See the department's Newsletter (2006, 2007) for further details.
Numerous burials from the Ptolemaic-Roman period have also been uncovered at different excavation sites, as the entire area from the village of Sechmawy up to the northern border of the Kôm (see Fig. 1) was taken up by an extensive burial ground of the time. The burials range from simple burials to ceramic sarcophagus (Fig. 19) or also in one larger storage vessel or two pushed together. The majority of the burials are without grave goods, hence it is almost impossible to date most of the burials more exactly. The usage of the burial grounds appears to have extended from the late Ptolemaic Period through to the 3rd/4th century.
Studies on industrial activities from the Hellenistic-Roman period were conducted under the supervision of P. Ballet in cooperation with the DAIK and IFAO (Institut français d'archéologie orientale) and investigated by a project from the Poitiers University which was supported by the French Foreign Ministry. The geomagnetic data proved to be very helpful for this questioning and greatly contributed to work efficiency. Not only could a large number of ovens be localised and excavation sites be chosen based on the geomagnetic map (Fig. 20), but this map also provided an overview on the number and location of ovens overall, neighbouring building structures and other details which excavations alone could not have clarified, at least not in such short time. The activities highlight a special aspect of Buto - that of an innovative centre of ceramic production in early Roman period (Fig. 21), when for the first time in Egypt thin-walled, red glazed fine pottery was produced based on an oven technique that was also known in Italy and Gaul (Fig. 22) and resembled the sigillata in the western Mediterranean region. Other ovens were used to manufacture household goods in the 3rd to 4th centuries.

Cooperation


	Fig. 16: Faience amulets from a burial dating from the second half of the 6th century.

In cooperation with the DAI, P. Ballet (Universität Poitiers) conducted a project on industrial activities in the Hellenistic-Roman period, supported by the French Foreign Ministry and the IFAO (Institute Français d'Archéologie Orientale).

Contact

Dr. phil. Ulrich Hartung

Telefon: +20-(0)2-2735-1460, - 2735-2321
Telefax: +20-(0)2-2737-0770
Email: hartung@kairo.dainst.org

Bibliography


	Fig. 17: Excavation site to the northwest of Buto.

	Fig. 18: Small block statue from Diorit with a votive inscription for Osiris.

	Fig. 19: Late Ptolemaic-Early Roman burial from the 1st century B.C.

	Fig. 20: Section of the northern part of the geomagnetic map (see Fig.9), the large dark spots depict kilns.

	Fig. 21: Early Roman pottery kilns on the north slope of the northern settlement mound.

	Fig. 22: Roman fine ware produced in Buto during the 1st century B.C. (Photo: P. Ballet).

Previous Excavations and General:

W.M.F. Petrie, Ehnasya 1904. EEF 26. London 1905.
M.V. Seton-Williams, The Tell el-Farâ´în Expedition, 1964-1965, in: Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 51, 1965, S. 9-15.
Dies., The Tell el-Farâ´în Expedition, 1966, in: Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 52, 1966, S. 163-171.
Dies., The Tell el-Farâ´în Expedition, 1967, in: Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 53, 1967, S. 146-155.
D. Charlesworth, Tell el-Farâ'în: The Industrial Site, 1968, in: Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 55, 1969, S. 23-30.
Dies., The Tell el-Farâ'în Excavation, 1969, in: Journal of Egyptian Archaeolgy 56, 1970, S. 19-28.
D.B. Redford, Notes on the History of Ancient Buto, in: Bulletin of the Egyptological Seminar 5,1983, S. 67-101.
Sh. Bedier, Ein Stiftungsdekret Thutmosis' III. aus Buto, in: M. Minas/J. Zeidler (Hrsg.), Aspekte spätägyptischer Kultur (Festschrift E. Winter), Aegyptiaca Treverensia 7, Mainz 1994, S. 35-50.

Preliminary reports in publications from the Cairo department:

Th. von der Way/K. Schmidt, Tell el Fara´in - Buto, 1. Bericht, in: MDAIK 42, 1986, S. 191-212.
Dies., Tell el Fara´in - Buto, 2. Bericht, in: MDAIK 43, 1987, S. 241-257.
Dies., Tell el Fara´in - Buto, 3. Bericht, in: MDAIK 44, 1988, S. 283-306.
Th. von der Way/K.Schmidt/E.C. Köhler, Tell el Fara´in - Buto, 4. Bericht, in: MDAIK 45, 1989, S. 275-307.
D. Faltings/E.C. Köhler E.C., Vorbericht über die Ausgrabungen des DAI in Tell el-Fara´in/Buto 1993 bis 1995, in: MDAIK 52, 1996; S. 87-114.
D. Faltings u.a., Zweiter Vorbericht über die Arbeiten in Buto von 1996-1999, in: MDAIK 56, 2000, S. 31-179.
M. Ziermann, Tell el-Fara´in - Buto. Bericht über die Arbeiten am Gebäudekomplex der Schicht V und die Vorarbeiten auf dem Nordhügel (site A), in: MDAIK 58, 2002, S. 461- 499.
U. Hartung u.a., Tell el-Fara´in - Buto, 8. Vorbericht, in: MDAIK 59, 2003, S. 199-267.
U. Hartung u.a., Tell el-Fara´in - Buto, 9. Vorbericht, in: MDAIK 63, 2007.

Monographs and other individual studies:

J. Wunderlich, Untersuchungen zur Entwicklung des Westlichen Nildeltas im Holozän, Marburger Geographische Schriften 114, Marburg 1989.
Th. von der Way, Untersuchungen zur Spätvor- und Frühgeschichte Unterägyptens, SAGA 8, Heidelberg 1993.
Ders., Tell el-Fara´in-Buto I, Ergebnisse zum frühen Kontext, Kampagnen der Jahre 1983-1989, AVDAIK 83, Mainz 1997.
Ders., Zur Datierung des "Labyrinth-Gebäudes" auf dem Tell el-Fara´in (Buto), in: Göttinger Miszellen 157, 1997, S. 107-111.
E.C. Köhler, Tell el-Fara´in-Buto III, Die Keramik von der späten Naqada-Kultur bis zum frühen Alten Reich (Schichten III bis VI), AVDAIK 94, Mainz 1998.
D. Faltings, Ergebnisse der neuen Ausgrabungen in Buto, Chronologie und Fernbeziehungen der Buto-Maadi-Kultur neu überdacht, in: H. Guksch/D. Polz (Hrsg.), Stationen - Beiträge zur Kulturgeschichte Ägyptens (Festschrift R. Stadelmann), Mainz 1998, S. 35-45.
Dies., Canaanites at Buto in the early fourth millennium BC, in: Egyptian Archaeology 13, 1998, S. 29-32.
Dies., The Chronological Frame and Social Structure of Buto in the Fourth Millennium BCE, in: E.C.M. van den Brink/T.E. Levy (eds.), Egypt and the Levant. Interrelations from the 4th through the Early 3rd Millennium B.C.E., London/New York 2002, S. 165-170.
H. Wilde/K. Behnert, Salzherstellung im vor- und frühdynastischen Ägypten? Überlegungen zur Funktion der sogenannten Grubenkopfnägel in Buto, MDAIK 58, 2002, S. 447-460.
U. Hartung, Bouto, fouille d'habitat dans le Delta du Nil, in: Archéo-Nil 13, 2003, S. 73-76.
T. Herbich/U. Hartung, Geophysical investigations at Buto (Tell el-Fara´in), in: Egyptian Archaeology 24, 2004, S. 14-17.
P. Ballet, The Graeco-Roman pottery workshops of Buto, in: Egyptian Archaeology 24, 2004, S. 18-19.
F. Förster, Eine saitische Votivstele aus dem Tempelbezirk von Buto/Tell el-Fara´in, in: MDAIK 60, 2004, S. 47-56.

Translation by Liesl Baldock


	updated: 11.01.2010	Copyright 2002-2006 German Archaeological Institute \| Impressum & Disclaimer Sitemap