Resurrecting the archive:

Revitalising records of Hogarth’s excavations in the Gebel Asyut el-Gharbi necropolis, Egypt 1906-1907

Abstract

Inaccurate sketch maps from historic excavations may be the only source for the physical location and archaeological
context of hundreds of archaeological features and objects. David George Hogarth’s (1862–1927) sketch map of his
excavations for the British Museum in 1906–1907 is the only map of early 20th century excavations in the north of the
ancient Egyptian necropolis of Asyut. Flawed in many ways, these excavations have largely defied reidentification or
spatial analysis. In this paper, GIS-based georeferencing is combined with the excavation records in the British Museum
archive, a high-resolution satellite image of the site, and archaeological evidence to re-contextualise these excavations.
This process revealed new aspects of Hogarth’s excavation methods and improved the positioning of the tombs recorded in the sketch map. The results are significant for further analysis of the documented tombs, including those not recorded in the sketch map. Better contextualising Hogarth’s excavations in relation to the topography of the Gebel Asyut el-Gharbi necropolis will revolutionise understanding of this now largely destroyed and otherwise poorly documented site, potentially allowing more tombs to be relocated. The combination of GIS, satellite remote sensing, documentary, and archaeological evidence represents a method for revitalising excavation archives of variable quality. It has considerable potential for future research under both the archaeological science and digital humanities umbrellas.