Ancient students' school exercises found in Egypt

The excavations at Atribis are being carried out by archaeologists from the University of Tübingen in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

Details

Since 2005, more than 43,000 ostracones - fragments of pottery used in ancient times as inexpensive writing material - have been found here.

A variety of records have been preserved on them:

• tax documents
• supply lists
• short letters
• religious texts
• educational exercises.

According to archaeologists, these texts provide a literal glimpse into the daily life of an ancient city, from trade to learning.

Benefits

Most of the texts are written in Demotic script, which was widely used in Egypt during the Hellenistic and Roman periods.

There are also entries in Greek, hieroglyphics, Coptic, and Arabic.

Some texts are astrological records and horoscopes, which helps scholars better understand ancient people's ideas about fate and the stars.

Background

Atribis is located about 10 kilometres west of the Nile, opposite the ancient city of Ahmim. In ancient times, the site was the religious centre of the lion goddess Repit.

Source

University of Tübingen Athribis Project (archaeological survey (2005-2026)