INTERDISCIPLINARY GEO-ARCHEOLOGICAL RESEARCH ENCOURAGING SUSTAINABLE EDUCATION AND MINISTRY INTERACTION, URGES RESEARCHERS AND MINISTRIES TO THINK BROADLY IN A MORE REGIONAL CONTEXT

Traditionally archeologists work one site in Egypt with a narrow focus. Proposals not following this format can be rejected. Work permits are judged yearly in a top down management system. Unexpected road blocks arise especially after the Arab Spring. Presently many officials are hesitant to make decisions as foreign missions wait. Turn over results in loss of institutional memory. Each time new administrators have to be updated about project sites. This complex approach can be restrictive and political.

Our interdisciplinary geo-archeological work includes geophysics to map water tables, aquifers, confining beds and fast horizons revealing clusters of artifacts at Hierakonpolis. Temperature, monitoring wells and chemical surveys define changing water patterns and groundwater pathways. Buried mud brick walls and excavations make models complex but reveal a clay layer breached by ancients and archeologists enhancing rising water. Time-sequenced remote sensing images and field observations identify the source of recharge 1.5 to >13 km away as the cause of rising water. Effective water control and conservation measures must consider both the regional and site specific hydrogeologic setting.

Artifacts, building materials, source clay for various pottery types, carved ebony, rocks for temple walls, stone tools and offerings from distant quarries place our site in a regional context raising questions about trade. Aswan Granite found in Hierakonpolis, Osireion, the Valley of the Kings beg questions about ancient extraction, shipping methods and trade. Knowledge of regional geology: soils, climate, geomorphic, hydraulic and environmental framework help define the site and its cultural context.

Our geo-archeological US-Egyptian interdisciplinary approach helps guide excavation, effective water control, site preservation and land management. We strive to educate villagers, workers, inspectors as well as the Ministries of Antiquities, Housing, Agriculture, Irrigation and Drainage. We are committed to community engagement, encourage Ministry interaction, public policy and sustainability education, while dealing with land management, agricultural and housing practices, trying to guide how to protect archeological treasures from encroaching salty water at several important archeological sites.