Issue 3, 2006
News
Macquarie student breaks new ground in Egypt
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A mummified skull from Luxor |
Archaeological research being conducted by Macquarie University PhD student Ronika Power looks set to begin a new era of interaction with human remains.
Power, who recently spent three months excavating ancient cemeteries in Egypt, is examining child and infant burials in the Egyptian archaeological record an area that to now has received little attention by Egyptologists.
"Surprisingly, the mortuary data from this demographic segment of the ancient community has not yet been pursued as a subject worthy of independent study within Egyptology," explains Power. "To date, it seems that conclusions regarding this group are based on scholars' personal and cultural assumptions, rather than consultation of the available historical, archaeological, and skeletal evidence.
"My research thus far, however, indicates that these interments represent valuable research opportunities not only to observe the ancient community's reproduction of its structure, but also to see children and infants as independent social actors who make distinct contributions to their communities, and therefore, to history."
Power found herself in the privileged position of being able to attend three different excavations over the season - with the l' Institut Francais d' Archeologie Orientale at the Predynastic cemetery of Adaïma; in Luxor with Macquarie University's Dr Boyo Ockinga on his Australian Centre for Egyptology Theban Tombs Project and in Cairo with Macquarie's Dr Christiana Köhler on her Australian Centre for Egyptology Helwan Project.
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Ronika Power at work in Egypt |
"I found myself diagnosing infantile tuberculosis one week, analysing a decapitated mummified head the next week, then excavating cattle bones from the staircase of a subterranean tomb the week after that!" she says.
Power was recently awarded a sought-after Commonwealth Scholarship to pursue a Master of Science in Human Osteology and Palaeopathology at Bradford University in the UK. The scholarship, which she will take up in October this year, will allow her to obtain the specialist qualifications she requires to complement her research and build on her career.