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Youarehere:Home ExplorethePredynasticCemeteries HK6EliteCemetery

SiteHK6
HK6:theElitePredynasticandEarlyDynasticcemetery
ExcavationsatHK6beganin1979andarestillinprogressasareourinterpretationsofwhatwehave
unearthedhere.OneofthemostexcitingareasofthesiteofHierakonpolis,discoveriesmadehereare
continuallyrewritingthehistorybooks.DiscoveriesincludethelargesttombsoftheearlyNaqadaII
period,theearliestabovegroundfuneraryarchitecture,thefirstfunerarytemples,themostextensive
andvariedanimalburialsknownfromanyearlysite,remarkablefigurinesinflint,earlyceramic
masks,limestonestatuaryandthefirstfalconsthelistgoeson.Herewepresentabriefdiscussionof
wherewearesofar(December2012planatJune2013.ForinformationaboutTomb72discovered
inMarch2014clickhere)andwhatarecurrentthoughtsareaboutcertainaspects.Thecemeteryisa
workinprogressandwitheachyearwelearnmore,sometimesourfindingoverturnearlierideas,
whilepresentingdifferentquestionstoinvestigate.Itissometimeseasytogetconfused,sowealso
includehereanupdatedchecklistofthenearly60tombsdiscoveredtodate.

Thefirstexcavations(ofascientificnature)atHK6wereundertakenfrom1979to1985byMichael
Hoffmanwhodemonstratedthespecialstatusofthiscemeterywiththediscoveryofmassivebrick
lined(andonerockcut)tombsoftheNaqadaIIIperiod(Tomb1,210,11),thelargesttombsin
UpperEgyptoutsideofAbydos.Despiteextensiveplunderingtheystillcontainingsomeoffineand
exoticmaterialsshowingthatevenafterpowerhadshiftednorthtoAbydosandthentoMemphis,
Hierakonpoliswasstillaveryrichandimportantplace.
Applyingtechniquesofsettlementexcavationinthecemetery,Hoffmanalsorevealedtheremnantsof
theuniquewoodenarchitecturethatoncesurroundedthesetombs,atypeunknownatanyothersite,
whichwenowtheytheyinheritedfromtheirancestors.

Hewasalsothefirsttouncovertheburialsofanimals(Tombs7,12)whichatthetimehewasunable
todate.GravesoftheearlyNaqadaIIperiodwerealsodiscovered,manyalsocontaininganimalsin
conjunctionwithhumanoccupants(Tombs3,5,6,9).Largetombs,theywereundoubtedlyoriginally
quiterich,buttheywerenotanylargerthanelitetombsatothersitesoftheNaqadaIIperiod,and
containednothingthatsetHierakonpolisaheadofthepacktocorrespondwiththesophisticatednature
ofthesettlement.Thiswaseventuallytochange.
From1997to2000,BarbaraAdamsresumedtheexcavations,workinginthecentralpartofthe
cemeteryinsearchofevidencetodeterminewhethertheperceivedgapinburialactivityinthe
NaqadaIICDperiodwasreal(sofaritdoesappeartobe).Sheuncoveredseveralmoregravesofboth
theNaqadaIIandIIIperiod,buthermostsignificantdiscoverywasTomb23(althoughshewas
unabletocompletetheexcavations).Measuring5.5mlongby3mwide,itisthelargestknowntomb
oftheNaqadaIIBperiod,whichinadditiontoitssize,was,atthetimeofitsdiscovery,theearliestin
Egypttoexhibitabovegroundfuneraryarchitecture.Thisinvolvedanenclosurewallallmadeof
woodenpostssurroundingapillaredsuperstructureabovethetomb,ontheeastsideofwhichwasa
specialcolumnedareawecallanofferingchapel,basedonthedepositsoffineobjectsfoundinit.
Theseobjectsincludeanimalfiguresknappedfromflint(anibexandtheheadofaBarbarysheep),an
ivorycylinder,whichispossiblyamacehandle,andmoredisturbinglyahumanvertebrawithcut
marksindicativeofdecapitation.


ItisalsofromthechapelthatfragmentsofEgyptsfirstnearlifesizehumanstone(indurate
limestone)statuewererecovered.Thestatuessizeandshapearebasedonthewellcarvednoseand
twoears,whiletherestofitisrepresentedbyover600smallfragmentsthathaveproveddifficultto
mend.Theoverwhelmingmajorityofthefragmentshaveworkedsurfacessuggestingthestatuehad
beenintentionallydefacedwithglancingblowsanditscorehauledawayforreuse.Asaresultitis
impossibletodeterminewhothisstatuerepresented,andwecanonlyspeculateonwhetheritwas
standingorseated.

Furtherexplorationoftheadjacentareasin20062007revealedanotherlargetomb(Tomb26)with
clearevidenceofwoodensuperstructure(aswellasascorpionstatuetteandanimportedwinejar),but
moreremarkablewerethestructures,belowwhichtherewerenotombs,whichtooktheformofmulti
columned,orpillared,halls.

Thesepillaredhallsnotonlyprovidethefirstexamplesofanarchitecturalstyle(thehypostylehall)
onlypreviouslyhypothesizedforthePredynastic,butalsogiveampleevidencefortheexistenceof
developedmortuarytemplesandritualsfromaveryearlytime.Thesewoodenbuildingsapparently
stretchedbackforgenerations,asatleastthreebuildingphasesweredetectedasearlierstructures
werereplacedovertimebyevengranderstructures.Aradiocarbondateonthebarkfromoneofthe
woodenpillarsofalaterphasehall(StructureE8)of37903640BC(4930+/50BP)provestheir
antiquity.Theiroriginalappearanceishardertodetermine,butfragmentsofplasterwithredand
greenpigment,andsomewithfiguraldesigns,indicatethatthesestructureswerebothcolourfuland
impressive.

Oftheeightstructuresknown,thebestpreservedisStructure0715mlongand10.5meterswide,24
woodencolumnsoriginallyfilleditsinterior.Althoughmuchdenuded,avarietyofobjectswerefound
withinthepostholesapparentlyasfoundationdeposits.TheseincludeseashellsfromtheRedSea,
ivoryobjects,acowhorn,andabundleofclothcontainingmalachite.Furtherobjectswerefound
concentratedinthecorners.Inthenortheast,weremassesofostricheggshellsattestingtotheoriginal
presenceofatleastsixrareandvaluablewholeeggs,someofwhichwereincisedwithahunting
scene.Inthesoutheastcornerwereobjectsofdifferenttypes,includingauniqueivorywandcarved
withaprocessionofhippopotamialongthetop,atinysteatitehippofigurineandafalconfigurine
masterfullycarvedfrombrittlemalachite.ThisisEgyptsearliestfalconimagefalconsonly
becomingcommonjustbeforetheFirstDynasty,especiallyasmarkersofroyalnames.Whetherthis
falconalreadycarriedroyalconnotationsisunknown,butgiventheelitecontextandthestrong
associationofthelocalfalcongodHoruswithearlykingship,itseemshighlylikely.

Fromthecornerswealsocollectedalargenumberofeleganthollowbasearrowheads,someoflarge
sizeanticipatingthegigantismofthevotivemaceheadsandpalettesoftheMainDeposit.Theskill
involvedleaveslittledoubtthatthesamecraftsmencreatedtheflintibexalsodiscoveredinStructure
07.Moreflintanimalswerefoundinthecornersofotherstructures,alwaysinassociationwith
arrowheadsandotherhuntinggear,andsuggestritualactivitiessymbolicofcontrol.Membersofa
relativelyrareclassofartifact(onlyabout65examplesarenowknown),theseflintfigurinesfromthe
HK6cemetery,nowrepresentsthelargestsingleassemblageofflintanimalswithknownprovenance
fromanywhereinEgypt.
(FormoredetailsandpicturesseeEarlyKings:
http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/field07/6.html)

Thisprecinctofpillaredhall,locatedinthecenterofthecemetery,wasnodoubtusedforthe
mortuarycultsofthoseburiedhereandprovideusaviewofanelaboratemortuarylandscapeona
scalehithertounexpectedforthistime.Buttheirdiscoveryleftuswithaproblemasthethe
configurationofpillarsaroundTomb23lookedsuspiciouslylikeareusedorborrowedpillaredhall.

Further,whenwerealizedthatseveralpostsofpillaredhallE8hadbeenremovedtoburytheAfrican
elephantfoundinTomb24andpresumedtobepartoftheTomb23entourage,ascenarioof
borrowingbecameevenmorelikely.(formoreinformationonTomb24followalongat
http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/field/elephant1.html)

Thusitbecamecriticaltodeterminewhetherotherelitetombsoftheperiodwereendowedwith
architecturalfeatures,andinhopesofdiscoveringthiswereturnedtotheareafirstinvestigatedby
BarbaraAdamsin1999totakeanotherlookatTomb16,anotherlargeelitetomboftheearly
predynastic,Naqada1CIIAperiod,aroundwhichremnantsofwoodenpostshadbeenobserved.
AlthoughabricklinedtomboftheNaqadaIIIA2periodhadlaterbeeninsertedintoTomb16inwhat
appearstohavebeenanactofrespectfulrenovationratherthanusurpation,itwasstillpossibletoget
themeasureoftheoriginaltomb.Roughly4.3x2.6mandabout1.45mdeep,itisamongstthe
largestknownfromtheNaqadaICIIAperiod.Despiteplunderingandreuse,itwasstillaveryrich
tombcontainingahugeamountofpottery.Morethan115vesselshavebeenrecordedfromit,
includingoneincisedwiththeearliestknownemblemofBat,showinghercloseassociationwith
powerfromthebeginning.

Twoofthebestpreservedoftheceramicmasksknownexclusivelyfromthiscemeteryalsoprobably
originatefromthistomb.Curvedtofitoverthehumanheadandattachedbymeansofastringpassed
throughholesbehindtheears,theyareEgyptsearliestfunerarymasks.Theystandatthebeginningof
atraditionwhoseoriginhaslongbeenamatterofconjecture.Soifanytombwasgoingtohave
superstructure,Tomb16wasgoingtobetheoneanditdidnotdisappoint.

Investigationsfrom20092011revealedanumberofwoodenpostssuggestingasubstantial
superstructurewasraisedaboveit,whilesixpostholesalongthenorthsidemarkedasmalloffering
chapel.AndlikeTomb23,surroundingitallwasawoodpostfence,butinthecaseofTomb16it
interconnectedwithawidercomplexofenclosurescontainingarangeofsmallertombs.Together
theseelementsformacomplexthatwetentativereconstructasimitatingtheownersearthlyresidence
withhouseholdmembersholdingtheirplaceindeathastheydidinlife.Althoughallofthesatellite
tombshavebeenheavilyplundered,enoughremainsoftheircontentstosuggestthattherewas

nothingarbitraryabouttheirlayoutortheiroccupants:theinnerrungflankingTomb16wasreserved
forhumanburials,whilethegravesofanimalsandpossiblytheirkeepersformanouterperimeter,
attestingtoanextensivemenagerieofanimalsbothdomesticandwild.

Thefineartifactsinallofthehumantombsindicatehighstatusowners,presumablyfamilyand
courtier,amongstwhichapparentlyespeciallyfavouredwasamaleachondroplasticdwarfburiedin
subsidiaryTomb47,whostoodjustunder4feet(120cm)tall.

DwarfswerehighlyprizedinthecourtoftheFirstDynastykingswheretheywerehonouredwith
burialamongsttheretainersaroundtheroyaltombsandcommemoratedwithhighqualitystelae,
showingthattheywerevaluedaspersonalattendantsastheywouldcontinuetobeintheOld
Kingdom.ButthereareseveralindicationsthattheTomb47dwarfwasalreadyhighlyvalued
companioninthepredynasticperiod.Foremostamongthemisthelocationofhisgrave,whichis
beneaththefloorofthepillaredchapel.Burialherewouldseemtobeanincredibleprivilege,
associatinghimintimatelywiththeownerofTomb16indeath,ashenodoubtwasinlife.
Furtherrecognitionisalsosuggestedbyhispossibleportraitinflint.
Althoughfoundinsurfacelevelstothenorthwest,thisremarkablepiecemay
wellrepresentthedwarfwithhisbowedlegsandshortarms.

Butperhapsthebestindicationofthespecialstatusofthedwarfishisage.At
approximately40yearsofage,heistheoldestpersoninthetombcomplex.Ofthe39individuals
foundwithinthe14tombsdirectlyflankingTomb16,nooneisyoungerthan8yearsofageandno
oneisolderthan35yearsovertwothirdsofthemwerejuvenilesunder15yearsofageandyoung
women.Thesampleisstilllimited,butthisisfarfromnormalmortalityandstronglysuggeststhat
few,ifany,ofthemdiedofnaturalcauses.Theymayinfacthavebeenspecificallychosenforthe
honourofaccompanyingtheirlord.
Ifthisistrueforthehumans,itiscertainlytrueforthemajorityofanimalsamongstwhichdifferent
levelsofcareandvalueareevident.Nearidenticalradiocarbondatesfromtwooftheseanimals
indicatethatbothmettheirendatthesametime:atsomepointbetween3660and3640BC.These
animals,buriedwhole,includeanAfricanelephant,anaurochs(wildcattle),apregnanthartebeest,a
younghippopotamus,acrocodile,twobaboons,15domesticcattle,twolargegoats,and28dogs52
animalsinall(sofar).

PerhapsnotsurprisinglythemostprizedappearstobethetenyearoldmaleAfricanelephant(Tomb
33)andtheaurochs(Tomb19),bothrequiringextraordinaryeffortstoacquireasprobablyneither
werelocallyavailableatthetime.Bothwerefoundaloneinlarge,fencedtombs,wrappedinvast
amountsoflinenandmatting.Whethertheywereendowedwithadditionalgravegoodsremains
unclear,butbothweregivenasubstantialfinalmeal,asagreatdealofitwasstillpresentinsidethem.
Inadditiontohalfdigesteditemsofsettlementdebris,detailedanalysisofthebotanicalcontentofthe
elephantsfinalmealindicatethathedinedonriverplants,acaciatwigsandemmerwheat,bothchaff
andgrains,suggestinghewaswellmaintained.

Althoughneithertheelephantnortheaurochsshowexplicitevidenceoflongtermcaptivity,thatthe
animalsweresustainedaliveforsometimeisindicatedbythehartebeestwhoexhibiteddeformation
ofherdentitionsimilartothatseenonwildanimalskeptinprolongedcaptivityinzoostoday.In
addition,shewasalso3monthspregnant,andthearticulatinglegbonesofthefetuswerefoundin
placewithinthewombtissue.Thusitislikelythatbreedingherdsofwhatwasbecomingan
increasinglyrarebreed,andisinfactnowextinct,werebeingmaintained.

Likewisekeptinbreedingtroopswerethebaboons,whicharenotnativetotheNileValley.Healed
fracturesontheforearmsarecommontoalmostallofthem,indicatingtheyweresubjectedto
probablydisciplinaryviolence,butthennursedbacktohealthoverthecourseofaminimumof4to6
weeks,whichisthetimetakesforthebonetoknit,afterthatwecannottellhowlongtheysurvived.
Formoreaboutthebaboonsfromthecemeterysee:
http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/animals.html

Acquiredclosertohome,wasa4montholdhippo.Althoughthehippostombwasbadlydisturbed,
almosttheentireskeletonwasrecovered.Amongstthebones,ahealedfractureonthelowerbackleg
indicatesthatthisyounghippowasprobablytiedtoatreeandheldincaptivityforseveralweeks
beforeitsdeath,breakingitsownlegasitstrainedtobefree.Alsofromtheriver,cameacrocodile
(Tomb45),thesizeofitsheadindicatingitwasoriginallyabout2mlong.

Dogsarebyfarthebestrepresentedspeciesandwerefoundinterredinsevendifferentgraves.Most
ofthemwerefairlylarge,highqualityanimals,butmongreltypeswerealsopresent.Interspersed
aroundthecomplex,theyprobablyservedashunters,herdersorcontrolleroftheotheranimals,

especiallythewildanimals,whichcanbeconsideredstatementsonthepoweroftheirowner.Butthe
dogsprobablyalsoherdedthedomesticanimals,whichappeartobeexpressionsofhisostentationand
excess.

Thesacrificeofvaluableassetsisvisibleintheburialoneoldbullinalargetombofhisown(Tomb
43),aswellastheneighbouringtombwithacowandcalf(Tomb36),butthesearenothingcompared
toTomb49,along,trenchliketomb13.5m(45feet)long,whichcontained12cattle,buriedwhole
andunbutchered,allunder3yearsofage,andthusprimefood.

Itisnotentirelycleartowhomthese12cattlebelonged.FromthelocationofTomb49,theycouldbe
partoftheTomb16complexorjustaseasilypartofanothercomplextothesouth,sincewecannow
confirmthatseveralsuchcomplexeswereconstructedacrossthecemetery.
Duringthe2012seasonasetoftombs(Tomb5060)dueeastofTomb16wasinvestigatedandthese
appeartobelongtoadifferentcomplex,probablyjustalittlelaterindate,perhapsonlyageneration.
Sofarwehaveexamined10gravesinthisnewcomplexwhichrevealareassuringrangeof
similaritiesbutalsoanintriguingrangeofdifferences,showingthattheruleswerefarfromfixed.The
inhabitantsthusfarincludealeopard,anotheraurochs,anothercrocodile,anostrich,sixmore
baboons,eightlargesheep,aswellas14humans,oneofwhichwasanotherdwarf!Findoutmorein
NekhenNewsvol.24,availabletoFriendsofNekhen.

Butwhyburyalloftheseanimals?Thisisnotaneasyquestiontoanswer.Withinthevarious

complexes,thedifferentlevelsofefforttakenintheburialoftheanimalssuggestthattheirmeaning
neednotbethesame.Ingenerally,itseemsthatthewidevarietyoftaxainterredaroundtheperimeter
oftheTomb16complexsymbolicallyprovidedprotectionagainstthenaturalchaostheyrepresented.
Theburialofdomesticanimalsmayalsohaveinsuredaneternalfoodsupplyandcompanionshipas
wellasbeinganostentatiousdisplayofthewealth.Buttheburialofthelargewildanimalswas
probablymorethananythingelseadisplayofpower.Theownershipoftheseexoticanimalswould
havebeenstrongvisualstatementoftheirownerspowerandwealth.Thecreationandmaintenance
ofroyalmenageriesisknowntohavebeenameansoflegitimizingNewKingdompharaohsandmay
alsohaveservedthispurposeatthisearlytime.Yetthepowerexhibitedherewasnotsimplythe
authoritytocontrolorkillthesecreatures,butalsotobecomethem,takingtheirformidablenatural
attributesforonesown.Inthisway,thesegravesreflectthephysicalrealitybehindtheanimalbased
iconographiesofpowerthatdominateintheearlyperiodsofEgyptianhistory,asseenforexampleon
theNarmerpaletteandotherdocuments,whereroyalpowerismanifestinseveralanimalguises.The
evidencefromHierakonpolisnowsuggeststhisroyalsymbolismwasnotmetaphorical,butcanbe
tracedbacktoactualphysicalmasteryoversomeofthemostpowerfulcreaturesoftheirworld.
ToreadaboutthediscoveriesfromTomb73,clickhere.
TofollowalongonourvoyageofdiscoveryatHK6,seetheNekhenNews.Justabouteveryissuehas
somethingtosayaboutthisamazingcemetery.

Formoreontheanimalssee:
http://www.naturalsciences.be/active/expeditions/egypt/index_html

Formorepicturesofthesiteanditsfindsseeolder(butnotalwaysoutofdate)reportsat
archaeology.orgsee
ElitecemeteryIntro:http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/cemetery.html
Weirdanimals:http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/animals.html
EarlyKings:http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/field07/6.html
Tomb23:http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/hierakonpolis/

TofollowalongasweexcavatetheelephantinHK24see
Elephant:http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/field/elephant1.html

ForfurtherinformationseeBasicBibliographywherethemostsignificantpublicationsarelisted.

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NewtombdiscoveredatHierakonpolis
Readallaboutthediscoveryin2014ofanearlyintacttombfromthepredynasticperiodatthesiteof
KomelAhmar,ancientHierakonpolis,whichcontainedsomeastonishinganduniquefindsfromthe
tomb.
ForaPressReleaseaboutthetomb'sdiscoverynearEdfu,Egypt,bytheinternationalteamfromthe
BritishMuseum,clickhere.

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