Ricontestualizzare le collezioni smembrate:analisi tecno-tipologica dei manufatti litici predinastici e dinastici egiziani

The introduction of the partage system in 1883 led to the dispersal of numerous Egyptian artefacts, many of which are now housed in various Western museums. Among these are many lithic artefacts that have yet to be studied. The rediscovery of the Museo delle Civiltà's lithic collections in Rome, alongside other related collections, have provided new insights into artefacts from the Predynastic and Dynastic periods. This has enabled long-term production systems and socio-economic dynamics to be reconstructed. This raises questions about investigating typological and technological transformations from a diachronic perspective in order to understand whether the introduction of new types corresponds to technical innovations, and how the organisation of production changed over time. Due to the unique nature of museum collections, the adopted methodology is based on integrating different types of sources and data. The analysis combines a direct study of stone artefacts with an examination of archival documentation and recent archaeological research. The results suggest that a substantial degree of technical continuity persisted over a period of approximately two millennia, despite the introduction of new types and formal variations linked to changing tastes. Evident since the Predynastic period, technical specialisation continued uninterrupted until the Middle Kingdom. Alongside technical specialisation, forms of economic specialisation also emerged during the Pharaonic period. This is particularly evident in quarry production, which exhibits an increasingly complex organisation from the Old Kingdom onwards and was probably controlled by the Egyptian administration. This system appears to have disappeared during the New Kingdom, when production seems to have become more fragmented, possibly on a domestic scale. Although these collections have not yet been studied, analysis has revealed their significant potential to inform the study of Egyptian lithic production between the 4th and 2nd millennia BC. On the one hand, the research has revealed significant changes attributable to shifts in Egyptian society. On the other hand, it has demonstrated how these developments are embedded within technological traditions dating back to the Predynastic period.