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JoannaThen-Obłuska
bells,aswellasstone,clay,wooden,boneand
ivoryobjects,leathersandals,stringsandcords,
bags,quivers,saddles,andshroudcovers,bas-
ketry,textiles,andglassvessels.Potteryandbead
ndsdenitelydominatedthegraveassemblages.
Beadadornmentswerefoundwithchild,female
andmaleindividuals,regardlessofageandsex.
Thebeadsweremostlyfoundloose,scatteredor
inheaps,butincertaincasestheywerefound
partlystrung.Necklacesandbraceletsarethe
mainbeadworktypes(Säve-Söderbergh1981:41,
47-48).Inonetomb,315beadsandtwolumpsof
glasswerefoundinacompactmassofleatherthat
mayhavebeenabag(Säve-Söderbergh1981:38,
Object19/1:15).Thebeadsfoundingraveswere
madeofavarietyofmaterials,includingorganics
likeRedSeamolluskshells,ostricheggshell,and
stones(e.g.,carnelian,quartz,agate),andinor-
ganicmaterialslikefaienceorglazedcomposites,
glassandmetal-in-glass(Säve-Söderbergh1981:
39-48;Then-Obłuska2018d).
3.3SNM
TheSudanNationalMuseum(SNM)collection
ofbeadsusedinthisstudyconsistsofmaterial
excavatedbyseveralmissionsworkinginSudan:
SectionFrançaisedelaDirectiondesAntiquités
duSoudan(SFDAS)atSedeinga(SNM01-SNM25)
andSai(SNM26-SNM34),theNationalCorpora-
tionofAntiquitiesandMuseums(NCAM)atBer-
ber(SNM35-SNM54),theHarvardUniversityand
MuseumofFineArtsinBostonatMeroë(SNM
55-SNM57),theOrientalInstituteMuseum,Uni-
versityofChicagoatDorginarti(SNM58-SNM59),
andthePolishCentreofMediterraneanArchaeol-
ogyUniversityofWarsaw(PCMAUW)andNCAM
atel-Zuma(SNM60-SNM74).Therefore,thecol-
lectionencompassesarchaeologicalsitescovering
almostthewholerangeoftheNubianNileValley,
startingwiththeMeroiticgravesatDorginarti,
betweentheFirstandSecondCataracts,continu-
ingthroughMeroiticSaiandSedeingabetween
theSecondandThirdCataracts,thenLatepost-
Meroiticel-ZumabetweentheThirdandFourth
Cataracts,andnally,theMeroitic-periodBer-
berandMeroëuptheNilebetweentheFifthand
SixthCataracts.Thesitesmentionedaboveare
presentedbelowinageographicalsequencefol-
lowingfromnorthtosouth.
Dorginartiisanislandfortressatthefootof
theSecondCataractoftheNile.Itwasexcavated
fromJanuarythroughJuneof1964,afterwhich
therisingwatersbehindthenewHighDamat
Aswanmadefurtherworkimpossible.Excavations
atDorginartiwereconductedbytheOrientalIn-
stituteNubianExpeditionunderthedirectionof
JamesKnudstadandRichardH.Pierce(e.g.,Knud-
stad1966).Theremainsoftheearlyfortweredat-
edbyLisaA.Heidorn(1992;2013;forthcoming)
totheThirdIntermediatePeriod,whilethelatest
occupationdatestotheSaite,orNapatan,period.
Thefortresswassituatedclosetothesteepnorth-
ernbanksoftheisland(Heidorn2013).Thebeads
werefoundin10intrusiveMeroiticgravescon-
tainingtwelveindividuals.Whilethemajorityof
beadsfromtheOINEexcavationsisstoredinthe
OrientalInstituteMuseum,somespecimenswere
leftintheSNM.AgroupofbeadsfromMeroitic
childburialNo.3weredividedbetweenthetwo
museums.Twooftheglassbeadsfromthisburial
aresamplesinthisstudy(SNM58-SNM59).
SaiIslandislocatedbetweentheSecondand
theThirdCataracts,southofthebarren,rocky
areaknownastheBatnal-Hagar.Itisamong
thelargestNileislands,measuring12kmnorth
tosouthand5.5kmeasttowest.From1993until
2005,theexcavationsoftheUniversitédeLille3
andtheSFDASoperatedatcemeteries8-B-5.A,
8-B-32and8-B-52.BunderthedirectionofFran-
cisGeus(1995;1998;2002;2006).Atalaterdate,
itwasunderthedirectionofDidierDevauchelle
(e.g.,DoyenandDevauchelle2012),andatpresent
itisunderthesupervisionofVincentFrancigny
(e.g.,2009;2010;2014).Between1996and2010,
morethan3400beadswereuncoveredatsites8-B-
5.A,8-B-32and8-B-52.B.Theyhavebeenpub-
lishedinaseparatepaper(Then-Obłuska2016c).
Thebeadsampleusedinthisstudycomes
fromcemetery8-B-5.A,season2011.Thiswas
acemeteryoftheeliteatSai,andwasestablished
aroundthe1stcenturyAD,tobeusedthroughan
estimatedbeginningofthe4thcenturyAD.Dates
forMeroiticSaihavealreadybeenveriedthrough
ceramicstudies(David2010).Tombsincemetery
8-B-5.A,asinotherMeroiticNubianelitecem-
eteries,havesmallbrickpyramidstoppedwith
lotus-shapedcapstones.Smallchapelsontheir
easternsideswereequippedwithstonesteles,of-
feringtables,andba-birdstatues.Funeraryste-
lasindicateconnectionswiththeinhabitantsof
KaranoginLowerNubia,theseatofthepeshto-
viceroy(Rilly2008).TheimportanceofSaiinthe
northernMeroiticstateisfurtherdemonstrated
bytheMeroitictempletherewithitscolumn
capitalsbearingthenamesofMeroiticroyalty,
thatis,Amanitore,Natakamani,andoneoftheir
sons,anditscolumndrumsdecoratedwithmotifs
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PAMMonographSeries10