The 2023 season has undoubtedly been the most productive and interesting in terms of results of all those carried out by the Sikait Project in Wadi Sikait. The large number of relevant finds made have allowed further progress in the knowledge of the Smaragdos and its socio-economic and cultural characteristics in Antiquity.
As every season, the work has been divided into three main tasks: archaeological dig in Sikait, documentation of the emerald mines and conservation-restoration works. To these, this year we were able to add the survey and topography of certain sites in Wadi el Gemal.
Surveying in Wadi el Gemal National Park
Wadi el Gemal National Park is an area rich in cultural and archaeological heritage, but unfortunately it is under great threat from activities such as illegal gold , uranium mining, the use of metal detectors and vandalism. All these dangers have increased exponentially and from the project we consider it one of our duties to try to contribute to the protection of the archaeological sites in the region.
That is why this year, thanks to the granting of the corresponding permits by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, before starting the campaign in Sikait, 15 days were devoted to survey two of the most important sites in the area, while prospecting their surroundings. These were the sites of Geli and Kab Marfu’a East, already known before, but never before accurately documented. The campaign was a resounding success, documenting more than 600 archaeological structures, including a new, previously unknown site: Geli South.
Digging in Sikait
In relation to the excavation in the ancient Senskis, this year we continued investigating some of its most unique buildings. Specifically, this campaign excavated the so-called «Advanced Building», a powerful building located at the base of the eastern slope of the site that receives this name for being the most advanced towards the interior of the wadi. As with most of the buildings and complexes at Sikait, it consists of a large courtyard and a central room, which were fully excavated from test pits 018 and 019. The test pits were directed and supervised by the project director, Joan Oller Guzmán, and the professional archaeologist Patxi Ozcoz Benito.
The results were truly spectacular, identifying one of the most unique and powerful buildings found in Sikait to date. Without being able to go into details about the soundings, we can advance that it would link with the characteristics already seen in some of the complexes excavated in previous campaigns, such as the Six Windows Building or the Tripartite Building, with a clear relationship with productive and storage activities, in this case from various combustion structures found in the courtyard.
In the case of the main room, it would probably be an area of management of productive activity and could be linked to some owners of certain wealth, from the high number of materials recovered and their quality. The chronology, again, would place the use of this building in the Late or Blemian period.
The mines documentation
The other major task carried out would be the continuation of the documentation of the emerald mines in Wadi Sikait. This process involved a team led by Sergio García-Dils de la Vega and with the participation of archaeologists such as David Fernández Abella, Laia Sagristà Mallol and Sònia Salvia Vidal. This year the work focused on the so-called mining area G, which has clearly become the most powerful and extensive in the area. More than 150 mines have already been documented, so that overall the 370 mines documented by the project and the 47 ha of registered mining areas have been exceeded.
More specifically, the prospecting work allowed us to identify new areas with mines in this area G, including spaces of chronologies that would be located at the end of the first century B.C. and with unusual elements until now as possible temples or warehouses with the presence of highly interesting amphorae materials, studied by our ceramologist Jerzy Oleksiak.
It is worth mentioning the discovery and study of what, for the moment, would be the largest mining complex identified: the SKPUS-229 mine. Also located in zone G, it is formed by dozens of galleries, reaching more than 40 meters deep. Inside it, the first tools ever found in an ancient emerald mine were recovered, together with a new set of graffiti engraved on the walls of great interest and possible religious function. In fact, once again the ritual aspect has been one of the most relevant of the mining campaign, with new evidence almost everywhere: possible temples, altars, graffiti, iconographic representations… The team is eager to return and continue analyzing these magnificent mining evidences!
Conservation and restoration
As every year, the restoration team, formed by Delia Eguiluz Maestro, Adriana Molina Pérez and Bernat Burgaya Martínez, has been present throughout the campaign, supporting and reinforcing the archaeological and speleological work, extracting delicate materials, stabilizing the structures that were being excavated, etc. They have also been in charge of the cleaning, consolidation and packaging of all the materials that have been recovered. This is a challenge for the team as they are faced with a wide variety of objects made of a multitude of materials such as metal (coins, figurines, pendants, etc.), stone, bone, glass and even plant fibers (ropes, remains of baskets or remains of clothing).
But the main objective of this campaign was the recovery of the existing system of terraces at the foot of the Southern Temple. This is a set of three terraces located on the northern slope of the temple and that act as reinforcement and closure of the area of this great building. Until now, only the central area was preserved, the lateral ones being in a state of collapse. Thus, after a study carried out by the architect of the project, Estefanía Martín García, it was decided to recover these terraces in order to, in some way, give back to the whole its original volume and reinforce the settlements of the temple.
Finally, it is worth mentioning that the criteria applied in all cases have focused on carrying out minimal interventions, respecting the needs of the objects and using reversible and environmentally sustainable materials. In addition, it should be noted that the restoration team has been formed by highly qualified restorers specialized in archaeology.
Finally, it is worth mentioning that the criteria applied in all cases have focused on carrying out minimal interventions, respecting the needs of the objects and using reversible and environmentally sustainable materials. In addition, it should be noted that the restoration team was made up of highly qualified restorers specialized in archaeology.
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