Hendrickx, S.; Förster, F. & Eyckerman, M., Filling stations along a desert highway: The pharaonic pottery deposits of the Abu Ballas Trail [in:] Förster, F. & Riemer, H. (eds.), Desert road archaeology in the ancient Egypt and beyond. Africa Praehistorica 26. Köln, 2013: 339-379. (original) (raw)

Hendrickx, S., F. Förster & M. Eyckerman (2013), The Pharaonic pottery of the Abu Ballas Trail: ‘Filling stations’ along a desert highway in southwestern Egypt

In: F. Förster & H. Riemer (eds.), Desert Road Archaeology in Ancient Egypt and Beyond. Africa Praehistorica 27 (Köln: Heinrich-Barth-Institut), 2013, pp. 339–379, 2013

The Abu Ballas Trail in the Libyan Desert (SW Egypt) consists of about thirty archaeological sites along an ancient donkey caravan route, and runs almost straight from Dakhla Oasis towards the Gilf Kebir Plateau, covering about 400 km. Large storage jars for water are the main finds at these sites, and the jars occur in varying numbers and different states of preservation. Through study of the pottery, several chronological phases of trail use have been recognized. The earliest use dates to the late Old Kingdom or early First Intermediate Period (around 2200/2100 BC). It is the best documented period because pottery from that time has been found at nearly all of the sites, although the amount of vessels and the composition of the types varies. No doubt the variability in vessel amounts and types is due to functional differences between the individual sites. The donkeys must have been watered at the main stations, including the eponymous Abu Ballas or ‘Pottery Hill’ site, because of the large amount of storage jars found there (up to more than a hundred). The distances between the main supply depots are roughly equal and most probably relate to the donkey’s ability to go without water for two or three days. Vats and different types of cups and bowls illustrate the organisation of the people accompanying the caravans and/or the men stationed at the individual sites to keep watch over the provisions. The intermittent sites contain far less pottery and can be considered temporary camp sites or places where vessels accidently broken during transport were left behind. The fabrics and vessel shapes of the late Old Kingdom / early First Intermediate Period are strikingly similar to those from the residence of the Egyptian governors at Balat/Ayn Asil in the eastern part of Dakhla, where the Abu Ballas Trail apparently had its departure point. There are, as yet, no vessels of the Middle Kingdom and only very few that can be attributed to the Second Intermediate Period, but two different phases of the New Kingdom are well represented: the later 18th dynasty and the Ramesside Period. In addition to a general presentation of the pottery found along the trail, this article will focus on an ancient ‘technique’ of long-distance desert travel: the use of pottery deposits as artificial water reservoirs in order to facilitate the crossing of barren desert regions. This ‘technique’ has even been reported by Herodotus (III, 6–7) and the Abu Ballas Trail is currently the best example. Keywords: pottery deposit, supply station, donkey caravan, Libyan Desert, Dakhla, Gilf Kebir, Sheikh Muftah culture, Old Kingdom, First Intermediate Period, Second Intermediate Period, New Kingdom, Roman

Förster, F. (2007), With donkeys, jars and water bags into the Libyan Desert: the Abu Ballas Trail in the late Old Kingdom/First Intermediate Period

British Museum Studies in Ancient Egypt and Sudan (BMSAES) 7, 2007, pp. 1–36

The so-called Abu Ballas Trail is a pharaonic donkey caravan route that connects the Dakhla Oasis with the Gilf Kebir Plateau, approximately 400 km to the southwest. Although one of its major archaeological sites, the eponymous Abu Ballas (‘Father of Jars’) hill with its large pottery depot, has been known since 1918, it was not until 1999/2000 that coherent evidence of ancient Egyptian advances far into the Libyan Desert came to light. The numerous newly discovered sites and supply stations along the trail, mainly consisting of concentrations of large storage jars produced in Dakhla, are currently under investigation by the ACACIA project, a Collaborative Research Centre at the University of Cologne. This paper, presenting some of the results of the project, focuses on the material evidence, practical use and possible purpose of the trail in the late Old Kingdom/First Intermediate Period.

Förster, F. (2007), The Abu Ballas Trail: a Pharaonic donkey‐caravan route in the Libyan Desert (SW‐Egypt)

In: O. Bubenzer, A. Bolten & F. Darius (eds.), Atlas of Cultural and Environmental Change in Arid Africa. Africa Praehistorica 21 (Köln: Heinrich-Barth-Institut), 2007, pp. 130–133

Almost endless rows of heavily loaded camels which, in a steady pace, strive towards their destination through the blazing desert sand -this is probably the first image that emerges when talking about traditional trans-Saharan traffic. In Pharaonic Egypt, however, it was not before the advanced first millennium BC that the one-humped camel, or dromedary, highly esteemed for its well-known ability to go for several days without water as well as for its enormous carrying capacity, had been introduced as the 'ship of the desert'. Was it at all possible to cross distances of several hundred kilometres through arid wastes in preceding epochs when one had to rely on the domesticated donkey, which requires watering at least every three days, as a pack animal? The surprising discovery of a long distance route in the Libyan Desert, in use since the end of the Old Kingdom (ca. 2,200 BC), has led to amazing insights.

Förster, F. (2013), Beyond Dakhla: The Abu Ballas Trail in the Libyan Desert (SW Egypt)

In: F. Förster & H. Riemer (eds.), Desert Road Archaeology in Ancient Egypt and Beyond. Africa Praehistorica 27 (Köln: Heinrich-Barth-Institut), 2013, pp. 297–337, 2013

The so-called Abu Ballas Trail is a Pharaonic donkey caravan route in the hyper-arid Libyan Desert that connects the Dakhla Oasis with the Gilf Kebir Plateau, a vast mountain massif approximately 400 km to the southwest. Discovered in 1999 and subsequently explored by missions of the ACACIA project, this long-distance desert route in modern Egypt’s south-western quarter, which was episodically used by donkey caravans since the late third millennium BC, not only represents the earliest evidence for trans-Saharan traffic, but also attests to hitherto unknown Pharaonic advances into African regions several hundred kilometres from the Nile Valley. In all likelihood the trail was part of a much longer route, the next leg of which presumably led to the Jebel Ouenat, another mountain massif situated some 200 km further to the southwest, as this is the nearest place with permanent water. From there it would be possible to reach more southern, sub-Saharan regions in the territory of modern Sudan or Chad. This article will present an overview of the archaeological remains found along the trail and discuss some practical aspects of long-distance desert travelling and transportation in Pharaonic times when the principal beast of burden was the donkey. Moreover, the question of the possible purpose(s) and historical significance of the trail will be addressed, also taking into account a hieroglyphic rock inscription recently discovered at Jebel Ouenat. There is reason to assume that, at least in the troubled times of the late Old Kingdom or (early) First Intermediate Period (around 2200/2100 BC), the Abu Ballas Trail served as an alternative trade route into, or from, sub-Saharan regions like the mysterious Yam country of ancient Egyptian records in order to import luxury items such as incense, ivory, ebony, valuable oils, and skins – perhaps via nomadic ‘Libyan’ tribes acting as middlemen or intermediaries. Keywords: trans-Saharan traffic, trade, donkey caravan, supply station, pottery, rock art, Gilf Kebir, Jebel Ouenat, Yam, Sudan, Chad, Old Kingdom, First Intermediate Period, Second Intermediate Period, New Kingdom