Australasian Egyptology Conference 4 : papers from the fourth Australasian Egyptology Conference, Monash University, Melbourne, 16-18 September 2016, dedicated to Gillian E. Bowen

This volume presents papers from the Fourth Australasian Egyptology Conference held at Monash University, Melbourne 16–18 September 2016. Both the conference and the papers in this volume are dedicated to Gillian E. Bowen who retired from Monash that year, and a brief tribute to her is presented at the opening of the volume. The contributions include several on Egypt’s Western Desert where Monash has been engaged in fieldwork for many years in the the Dakhleh Oasis. Relating to the Roman-period village of Kellis, Bassett discusses economic policy in the settlement of the region and Rindi the elaborately decorated funerary cartonnage from one of its cemeteries. Long explores ceramic traditions of the Third Intermediate Period in Dakhleh while Warfe discusses aspects of the proscription of Seth, who was venerated at the ancient capital of Dakhleh, based on data from Luxor Temple in the valley. Livingstone presents textiles of the late Roman Period from Christian burials and Kucera examines a Roman military campaign in the northern Western Desert. The other papers reflect the wide range of research being undertaken by other Australasian scholars. These range from studies of early ceramics from Hamamieh by Pilgrim and the breakage of Predynastic figurines by Ordynat, to a study of a Fifth-century icon of the Virgin Mary by Marsh-Letts. From periods in between come studies of women in the family of high officials at Beni Hassan and in religious practices of the New Kingdom by Paull and Lisle respectively; aspects of the iconography of the Book of the Dead and a new representation of a sailing vessel by Volk and Stephens; the interface between text and visual image by Thorpe and finally mummification practices of children by Davey. Cover 1 Title Page 3 Copyright Information 4 Gillian E. Bowen: A Brief Tribute 5 Publications by Gillian E. Bowen 11 Contents 13 A Note on the Cultural Status of Rural Settlements in Roman Egypt 15 Interpretation of Mummification Practices in Child Mummies of the Graeco/Roman Period 21 A Roman-Egyptian Military Campaign of the Third Century CE in the Northern Region of the Western Desert 27 Preliminary Discussions on a Prosopographic Study of the Involvement of Non-Royal Women in New Kingdom Religious Practices 35 Three Funerary Textiles from Dayr Abu Matta, Dakhleh Oasis 43 Oasis Ceramics of the Third Intermediate Period: Identifying Regional Traditions 51 A Fifth Century Virgin Mary: Enthroned as the Queen of Heaven? 63 Intention or Accident? Discussion of Deliberate Breakage of Human Figurines in Predynastic Burials 71 The Mothers, Wives and Daughters of the High Officials at Beni Hassan 79 A Technological Study of Badarian Pottery from Hemamieh 87 Cartonnage Mummy Masks from Kellis (Ismant al-Kharab, Dakhleh Oasis) Featuring the Jackal Motif 99 Can a Menesh Vessel be Identified at Gebel el-Silsila? 105 An Extra Dimension: The Important Personal Insight Ancient Egyptian Private Letters Provide to Augment Visual Evidence 115 Where are the Funerary Figurine Depictions (or The Nature of Work) in Book of the Dead Spell 110 Vignettes? 121 Iconoclasm in Degrees: On the Proscription of Seth (again) 129 Western,Desert;,Proscription,of,Seth;,Predynastic;,ceramics;,figurines;,women;,iconography;,private,letters;,mummification Western Desert,Proscription of Seth,Predynastic,ceramics,figurines,women,iconography,private letters,mummification Papers from the Fourth Australasian Egyptology Conference held at Monash University in 2016 and dedicated to Gillian E. Bowen who retired from Monash that year. The contributions include several on Egypt’s Western Desert where Monash has been engaged in fieldwork for many years in the the Dakhleh Oasis.