The University of Warsaw’s Center for Research on Ancient Civilizations (CRAC) has awarded its Small Grants XII. Among the winning projects is one submitted by Prof. Grzegorz Majcherek the PCMA UW.
The project aims to develop the current conclusions about the economy and trade relations of ancient Alexandria by gathering additional data to determine the provenance of metals, metal alloys, and metal objects discovered at Kom el-Dikka – the largest and most important site in this ancient metropolis. The project involves archaeometric studies of artifacts conducted on-site using a portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (pXRF). The analysis will cover metal objects made of iron and copper alloys, obtained during the research of the Polish-Egyptian archaeological and conservation expedition of PCMA UW from 1960 to 2022. In total, over 700 metal artifacts from Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic layers have been documented. The objects for XRF analyses were selected by Agnieszka Szulc-Kajak (PCMA UW) after the preliminary study of the collection in 2022. The analyses will be done by Dr. Michal Krueger (AMU).
The CRAC Small Grants are aimed at supporting scientific activities and disseminating the results of research on antiquity at the University of Warsaw. The support is focused on activities that will measurably contribute to a better quality of antiquity research and publications and to strengthening foreign contacts and the international position of the University of Warsaw within this field. Calls for applications are announced four times a year.
More information can be found on the CRAC website.
For more information about the work of the PCMA UW expedition, visit the Alexandria project website.