Dana Grant Report: Bioarchaeology of Deir el-Medina Research Project
Anne Austin, University of Missouri, St. Louis
Note: This report includes data derived from and images of human remains.
The 2024 season of the Bioarchaeology of Deir el-Medina Research Project was made possible through a Stevan B. Dana Grant. This funding allowed us to complete research in three tombs that we have been working in since 2019.
Deir el-Medina was the village for the families of workmen who cut and decorated the royal tombs during Egypt’s New Kingdom period (1550-1070 B.C.E.). This site offers a critical window into ancient Egypt due to its thousands of daily life texts documented on ostrich and papyri. Excavations of the village and surrounding tombs have also elucidated non-royal burial practices and domestic architecture, lending incredible insights into ancient Egyptian daily life. Despite its importance, however, the human remains at the site were never studied prior to our research team joining the Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale mission.
Since 2013, the Deir el-Medina Bioarchaeology Project has been inventorying, analyzing, documenting, and conserving the human remains at Deir el-Medina to learn more about ancient Egyptian health practices, tattooing, burial practices, and demography. This season, our objective was to complete the analysis of human remains from three tombs where we have worked previously: Theban Tomb 217, Theban Tomb 298, and Pit 1340. These three tombs span the site’s occupation and their completion allows us to interrogate new research questions including differences in health across family tombs and periods.
One of the most important research areas this season was the burials from the 18th Dynasty. This early period of Deir el-Medina’s history is also the one we know the least about since few texts have been recovered. We studied these men, women, and children side-by-side with experts on linen, mummification, and coffins to build rich biographies of each person from the 18th Dynasty both during their life and after their death.
We also worked inside the tombs to maintain the best environmental conditions for the preservation and conservation of the human remains. In TT 298, this meant descending a 5-meter ladder into the tomb shaft where ASOR grant funds allowed us to purchase storage to organize and protect the human remains while keeping them in their original resting place. TT 298 has provided fascinating insights into daily life including unusual examples of pathology and tattooing.
