Collections The Finds: Archaeological Material Stored at the Institute

The Finds: Archaeological Material Stored at the Institute

The archaeological collection includes findings arrived in Florence after a partage, from the excavation campaigns run in Egypt by the Institute between 1964 and 1966. The exhibition is organized in two sections: the first is dedicated to the excavation seasons carried out in Arsinoe, capital of the nomos Arinoites (Fayûm), where the oldest findings of the collection come from. We point out in particular many little ceramic statues of the Hellenistic age, unguentariums, kitchen vessels and some big amphorae destined to store cereals.

The second section, instead, is devoted to Antinoopolis, and includes a wide range of common use objects, among which there are kitchen and table ceramic, lamps, little statues, amphorae, wooden, glass and bronze objects, and a consistent amount of fabrics, as well as many garments and shoes. Such a huge variety of findings, that provide a clear outline of the ordinary life of Antinoopolis in V-VII centuries, allowed us to create a sort of museum, not big in size, but coherent and complete, which represents an extremely useful element for the in-depth search and the knowledge of the Coptic art and of the various aspects of the society in that period.