Naqada: Amaratian Culture
The Amaratian culture (sometimes referred to as Naqadan culture) is a classification for people that lived in Upper Egypt during the period of time known as Early Predynastic (3800-3500 bce), or Naqada I. The culture emerged when arid conditions in the east and west forced cattle herding people into the Nile Valley. This combination and concentration of people allowed for, and made necessary farming practices. Amaratian followed Bardarian and preceded Gerzean, and these distinctions are subtle, based on the range of gravesites and the style of pottery. The evolution from Amaratian to Gerzean is characterized by kinship ties, acquisition of formalized language, and trade routes. It may have been the trade and language of the Amaratian culture that set the stage for a united Egypt. Could kinship have caused trade? Could trade have necessitated language? These questions are difficult to answer due to the age of the Amaratian sites. Not only were the sites deteriorated due to age and erosion before formal study began, but they had also been desecrated and discarded by early Egyptologists looking for more significant finds.
Flinders Petrie (Sir William Matthew), an English Egyptologist, was ahead of his time in his techniques. He excavated many previously excavated sites and very carefully cataloged everything found, including pottery shards. Petrie's careful study of pottery shards, pots, and shallow graves at Naqada led to the classification system we still use. Petrie estimated the age of gravesites based on deterioration and made a note of what objects were found in the graves and their styles. He then looked for newer graves that still had the same style, until the style was transitioned out and replaced. The Amaratian culture represents the earliest of the three periods at the Naqada Site studied by Petrie.
An Amaratian grave was a shallow pit dug into the earth characterized by two features including the dead being placed in a fetal-like position and a number of jars were placed in the grave with the occupant. The body in the grave always facing west for some reason. The jars were carved out of a hard stone and had handles. These jars are referred to as “wavy handled” or “black topped”, and are categorized by shape and color. The Amaratian jars had carvings and paint, while the previous culture's pottery had simple bands of paint. Two unusual and interesting objects have been found in Amaratian graves. A small clay figurine of a woman with upraised arms was frequently found. This painted figure is called a “dancer” figurine. Not as often, but on some occasions a small clay model house was found in Amaratian graves. The model houses were very similar to actual dwellings excavated much latter during the Old Kingdom Period.
Amaratian culture benefited from agriculture, but the people still hunted to supplement food supplies. It may have been the combination of agriculture and hunting responsible for a surplus that allowed for written language, trade, and luxury craftsmanship.
Most of what is know of Amaratian culture comes from the excavation of cemeteries. The Amaratian people began living some distance away from where they buried their dead during the Naqada I Period. The settlements associated the graveyards were systematically disassembled because the deteriorated mud-bricks used proved to be an excellent fertilizer for the local farmers.
Egyptian sites associated with Amaratian culture include; Naqada, el-Tarif, Abadiya, and al-Amirah, the site the culture is named after.
References
http://mcclungmuseum.utk/edu
Written by: Joseph Perkins, 2002