An Egyptian archaeological mission working at a site west of the Mediterranean city of Alexandria has unearthed a ceramics workshop dating to the start of Roman rule there.
The team found kilns, two of them carved into the rock, said Dr Mostafa Waziri, secretary-general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities.
One of the kilns was remarkably well preserved, said Dr Waziri, with an entrance believed to have been used by workers who would enter and lay out the clay to be baked.
Ceramics workers would have sealed the door with clay and pottery sherds then fire up the kiln by inserting fuel through a slanted chamber just beneath the door.
Though the site dates to the Roman period of Egypt’s history, which began around 30 BCE and lasted for about 600 years, there is evidence that points to its use during the later Byzantine period.
Also uncovered at the site were two burials, believed to date from the later Middle Ages when the site was used as a cemetery. One of those buried was a pregnant woman, the ministry said.
There was evidence of up to 100 graves, some of which were hewn into the rock.
Further excavations by the mission will continue at the site to ensure nothing valuable is left uncovered.
"Alexandria was very significant during the Ptolemaic era because it was founded by Alexander the Great," said Dr Salima Ikram, professor of Egyptology at the American University in Cairo.
"It is wonderful to have a whole industrial section of the ancient city, as it tells us about the daily workings of Alexandria, its people and its economy."
Also discovered was a structure to the south of the two kilns, said Dr Ayman Ashmawy, head of the Egyptian antiquities sector of the Supreme Council of Antiquities. It is believed to have been a storage room for the workshop’s finished ceramics. A large group of pottery items, including ones used to cook and serve food, were found inside.
The mission also discovered a group of 13 rooms built from limestone. The rooms are believed to have been built during the Ptolemaic period (305-30 BCE).
Inside one of them, believed to have been used as a food preparation area, a large number of animal bones were found, including ones belonging to pigs, sheep, goats and fish. This room also houses several stoves.
Another of the rooms reportedly served as a separate workshop for ceramics. Inside, archaeologists found grinders, pestles, amphorae and a variety of other tools used in fashioning ceramics.
Inside another room, clay containers had animal remains inside them which led the mission to believe that this had served as a pantry for the workshop’s residents.
On the floor of the pantry, the mission also found a large number of coins. Most of the coins date to the Ptolemaic era. After minor restorations, the faces of Alexander the Great, the Greek god Zeus and Egypt’s final queen Cleopatra were found inscribed on the coins.
Another of the rooms is believed to have been used for worship, with an altar and a number of poorly-preserved terracotta statues.
Some of the statues were made in the image of the god Harpocrates, the Greek adaptation of the ancient Egyptian child god Horus, a symbol of the daily rebirth of the sun.
Harpocrates emerged as a god during the Ptolemaic period when Greek culture began to take hold in Egypt, especially in Alexandria, whose relics are deeply associated with the Greco-Roman period.
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (Turf) 1,400m. Winner: Al Ajeeb W’Rsan, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Jaci Wickham (trainer).
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,400m racing. Winner: Mujeeb, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel.
6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 90,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Onward, Connor Beasley, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
6.30pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown Prep Rated Conditions (PA) Dh 125,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Somoud, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle.
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (T) 1,600m. Winner: AF Arrab, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 90,000 (T) 1,400m. Winner: Irish Freedom, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
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- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
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- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
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Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
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Poland Statement
All people fleeing from Ukraine before the armed conflict are allowed to enter Poland. Our country shelters every person whose life is in danger - regardless of their nationality.
The dominant group of refugees in Poland are citizens of Ukraine, but among the people checked by the Border Guard are also citizens of the USA, Nigeria, India, Georgia and other countries.
All persons admitted to Poland are verified by the Border Guard. In relation to those who are in doubt, e.g. do not have documents, Border Guard officers apply appropriate checking procedures.
No person who has received refuge in Poland will be sent back to a country torn by war.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Iran's dirty tricks to dodge sanctions
There’s increased scrutiny on the tricks being used to keep commodities flowing to and from blacklisted countries. Here’s a description of how some work.
1 Going Dark
A common method to transport Iranian oil with stealth is to turn off the Automatic Identification System, an electronic device that pinpoints a ship’s location. Known as going dark, a vessel flicks the switch before berthing and typically reappears days later, masking the location of its load or discharge port.
2. Ship-to-Ship Transfers
A first vessel will take its clandestine cargo away from the country in question before transferring it to a waiting ship, all of this happening out of sight. The vessels will then sail in different directions. For about a third of Iranian exports, more than one tanker typically handles a load before it’s delivered to its final destination, analysts say.
3. Fake Destinations
Signaling the wrong destination to load or unload is another technique. Ships that intend to take cargo from Iran may indicate their loading ports in sanction-free places like Iraq. Ships can keep changing their destinations and end up not berthing at any of them.
4. Rebranded Barrels
Iranian barrels can also be rebranded as oil from a nation free from sanctions such as Iraq. The countries share fields along their border and the crude has similar characteristics. Oil from these deposits can be trucked out to another port and documents forged to hide Iran as the origin.
* Bloomberg
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Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
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- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
England ODI squad
Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Tom Curran, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.
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Director: Jake Kasdan
Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Nick Jonas
Two out of five stars
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
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Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
THREE
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Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
