Hierakonpolis

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Download and read back issues of Nekhen News, the Hierakonpolis Expedition's newsletter, in PDF format - which is accessible by using Adobe Acrobat Reader (which is free to download).

The earliest of these Nekhen News editions are truly archaeological documents in their own right, and you can read how the excavations at Hierakonpolis took shape, as well as see how we developed our 'Friends' organisation.

Nekhen News Fall 1985 vol I.1 (0.3MB)
The first ever edition of our 'ground-breaking' reports of work on site.

Nekhen News, June 1986 vol 2.1 & 2.2 (0.7 MB)
The Hierakonpolis Expedition discovers Egypt's oldest temple, the lure of potsherds and mystery petroglyphs.

Nekhen News, Winter 1986 vol 3.1 (0.7 MB)
'The First Egyptians', Predynastic Lapis Lazuli and 'Excavating Old Archaeologists'.

Nekhen News, Fall 1987 vol 3.2 (1.0 MB)
The Truth about Narmer, Pathways to the Past and Plans for the Hierakonpolis Expedition Center.

Nekhen News, Winter 1987 vol 4.1 (1.0 MB)
HK-64 reveals a well-kept secret; Beads, Borers & Bifaces; Shadows of the Past - The Compound Wall completed.

Nekhen News, Summer 1988 vol 4.2 (1.0 MB)
An archaeologist reconstructs his Past; Mapping Hierakonpolis; Fish stories and Tall Tails.

Nekhen News, Fall 1988 vol 4.3 (0.9 MB)
Details of the start of the 1988-89 season; The first Egyptians; New light on ancient yeast; and updates about the excavations on site.

Nekhen News, Spring 1989 vol 5.1 (0.9 MB)
Hierakonpolis comes to Beverly Hills; Zooarchaeology at Hierakonpolis; an engineer's view of Hierakonpolis.

Nekhen News, Fall 1990 vol 6 (1.3 MB)
In Memoriam to Michael Hoffman - remembering a friend and colleague.

(There was no volume 7 of Nekhen News)

Nekhen News, Fall 1996 vol 8 (1.5 MB)
We're back! Pharaonic rock art; Dig-house update; human remains at HK43; Elephants, hippopotami and pigs; Hierakonpolis in Dublin.

Nekhen News, Fall 1997 vol 9 (1.6 MB)
Read about the first mummies, excavations at the Predynastic cemetery HK43, the plant macro remains at HK43, the conservation of the Old Kingdom and Second Intermediate period tombs, the Hierakonpolis Centenary, and more! Now in full color!

Nekhen News, Fall 1998 vol 10 (1.5 MB)
Read about 100 years of discovery at Hierakonpolis, discoveries at the Elite Cemetery (HK6), excavations at the Predynastic cemetery HK43, giraffes in ancient Egypt, archaeobotanical studies at HK43, the continuing conservation of the Old Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period tombs, Hierakonpolis at the Cairo Museum, and much more! The first edition in color!

Nekhen News, Fall 1999 vol 11 (2.6 MB)
Learn about the exciting new discoveries at the Elite Cemetery (HK6), the investigation of the Fort of Khasekhemwy, the geophysical survey of Hierakonpolis, the lower Second Intermediate Periods tombs, the artists at the tomb of Hormose, conservation at the tomb of Djehuty, the Painted Tomb at Hierakonpolis, and more!

Nekhen News, Fall 2000 vol 12 (2.8 MB)
Read about perspectives on the Elite Cemetery (HK6) finds, the analysis of the human remains from HK43 and HK6, the exciting excavations at HK11, Hierakonpolis' chipped stone animal finds, lithic analysis from Dr. Michael Hoffman's excavations at 10N5W, the plant remains from HK43, mapping the Fort of Khasekhemwy, and the ongoing work at the Old Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period tombs.

Nekhen News, Fall 2001 vol 13 (1.9 MB)
The Season of Surprises. Locality 6:amazing revelations, The home of the giant catfish, Buried in her bark pyjamas, Excavating in the Nubian cemeteries, Adornment circa 1700BC.

Nekhen News, Fall 2002 vol 14 (3.0 MB)
A memoriam issue to Barbara Adams, former co-director of excavations on site. Ma'asalama Mudira, Barbara and the boxes in Brussels, Funerary Textiles of the rich and poor, Saving the Fort, Return to the temple, Barbara Adams-a reminiscence.

Nekhen News, Fall 2003 vol 15 (4.1 MB)
Return to the Temple: Excavations at HK29A, Excavating an elephant, The case of the curious cones, A basket of delights: The 2003 Excavations at HK43.

Nekhen News, Fall 2004 vol 16 (4.4 MB)
Farewell to HK43, Searching for temple walls, Predynastic kilns at HK11C, Close encounters with HK Potters, Nobody can eat 30 eggs.

Nekhen News, Fall 2005 vol 17 (3.5 MB)
Exceeding Expectations, Excavating Egypt's earliest kings, Lifestyles of the Hierakonpolis rich and famous, Finding Lost Souls, Monuments in Mud, Fort within a Fort.

Nekhen News, Fall 2006 vol 18 (4.4 MB)
The Fort Fixers, It's the pits!, An enigmatic bird from HK25, When is a tomb not a tomb? A Scorpion for Eternity, Mapping Hierakonpolis, The Forgotten Potter of Horemkhawef, Pillow Talk, and much more besides...

Nekhen News, Fall 2007 vol 19 (5.2 MB)
A New Pillared Hall at HK6, The Falcon has landed: Falcons in "the City of the Falcons", headless at Hierakonpolis, Beer After Sheep? HK11C Squares A6-A7 in 2007, Mouse Patrol II.

Nekhen News, Fall 2008 vol 20 (3.3 MB)
A new piece of the puzzle, Grand Design in the Sacred Compound, Return to the Temple and Workshop, The Fort under Siege, Khasekhemwy's Cat...

Nekhen News, Fall 2009 vol 21 (4.4 MB)
A Tour of the Palace, Elephant hunting at Hierakonpolis, The Tale of Tomb 30, The Earliest Green Monkey in the Nile Valley, Into the Breach: Fixing the Fort in 2009.  

Nekhen News, Fall 2010 vol 22 (9.0 MB)
Further Adventures at HK6, Seeds of Destruction, Back to Magnetometry: Survey 2010, The Watercolours of Frederick William Green, Fort Finale: Phase One Finished. 

Nekhen News, Fall 2011 vol 23 (6.2 MB)
Meet the Flintstones, A Hartebeest and its handler, Dog Days: Tomb 48, Focus on Flint: Artisans of the Elite Cemetery, Up against the Walls at HK11C.  

Nekhen News, Fall 2012 vol 24 (2.5 MB)
A Harvest of potatoes, Lure of the Leopard at HK6, The Wadi of the Elephant, The Lady in Red, Sun Worship at Hierakonpolis, Death on the Nile.

Nekhen News, Fall 2013 vol 25 (3.0 MB)
New Kid on the Block, Rocking at Hierakonpolis in 2013, Rendering the Space-Time Contiuum at HK6, Through the Microscope: Messages from the Grave, The Horned Quadruped Conundrum, Farewell Old Friend.

Nekhen News, Fall 2014 vol 26 (10 MB)
A Year to Remember!, The Ivory Statuette from HK6 Tomb 72, Symbolism and Place: Investigating the Origins of Hierakonpolis Grinding Stones, Piercing Insights: Experiments in Predynastic Craftsmanship.  

Nekhen News, Fall 2015 vol 27 (3.2 MB)
Boxing Day, Hierakonpolis Hippo Round Up!, Tomb 2 at HK6: Now in 3D (No Glasses Required), Skin Deep: the Beautiful Leather of the Nubians at Hierakonpolis, Hierakonpolis in Oxford and Berlin, Farewells to Dr Ahmed Gamal-ed-din Fahmy and Fred Wendorf.

Nekhen News, Winter 2016 vol 28 (4.3 MB)
Putting the Hierakonpolis C-Ware on the Map, Let's look at lions, Another portion of potatoes:Excavation of HK11C in 2016, Twirling the Whorl, Ashmolean Object in Focus, More Nekhen Nubians: A tale of two sites, The tragic life of Hans Alexander Winkler

Nekhen News, Winter 2017 vol 29 (3.5 MB)
Buried beneath the back-dirt, The treasures of Tomb 78, Baboon business, End of the line: excavations at HK11C in 2017, Early Tourists or Pilgrims? Visitors in the Hierakonpolis Dynastic Tombs, Defeating the Wild Bull: Achievements of the King at Nekhen

Nekhen News, Winter 2018 vol 30 (3.4 MB)
Find of a Lifetime, Celebrating The Nekhen News: Volume 30 and counting, One to Remember: Tomb 111 at HK6, Let's fly a Kite: Getting a Bird's Eye view of Hierakonpolis, Preserving the Painted Tomb, Groovy Nubians: Dental evidence from HK27C, Infrared Insights: Thanks for all the Tattoos!
Nekhen News, Winter 2019 vol 31
Hierakonpolis in 2019: A wider view, A Splice in the Tale: Textile Technology at Hierakonpolis, Scenes of Hunting: The art of Three Hump Hill, The Settlement of Elkab, Tracking Serpopards from Hierakonpolis Onward, Boats and Horses: A Painted Ptolomaic Tomb at Elkab.

Nekhen News, Winter 2020 vol 32

A Little Bit of Everywhere: Hierakonpolis in 2020, Fort Report: View from the Southern Flank, The Potter's House at HK29: A comparitive re-assessment, HK6: Life of the Edge, Ashmolean Object in Focus: The Scorpion Mace-head. And much more! 

Nekhen News, Winter 2021 vol 33 - Animals at Hierakonpolis special

The World of Animals at Hierakonpolis, Animals in Rock Art at Hierakonpolis, 'Bowtied' Donkeys at Hierakonpolis - A Riddle Solved? Ashmolean Object in Focus: Pottery Lion, Only at Hierakonpolis: Animal Iconography at the Very Beginning of State Formation, Richard L. Jaeschke: In Memoriam. And much more! 

Nekhen News, Winter 2022 vol 34 - A New Look at Old Things

Hierakonpolis in 2022: The Fort, Modern Laser Scanning Technology: Updating the Fort, 'Roulette Decorated' Pottery: An Overview, The Life History of Beads: The case of HK6 Tomb 11,  Ashmolean Object in Focus: Limestone Striding Statue, New Views on Hierakonpolis at the Egyptian Museum Cairo. And much more! 

To unlock all the information in Nekhen News, click here for an index to all the volumes up to and including volume 24, which you can search by keyword, locality and more. 

There have been many books, papers and articles written about the site of Hierakonpolis, its excavations, and objects found on the site.

You can download a simple searchable database for Excel 2007 or later here.

Note that this file uses Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), so you must enable that content when you first open the file.

This database has been tested with Excel 2007 and 2010 running under Windows. It has not been tested with earlier versions of Excel or on computers running operating systems other than Windows.

Excavations in the Locality 6 Cemetery at Hierakonpolis 1979-1985 by Barbara Adams

The death of Michael Allen Hoffman in 1990 not only robbed Egyptian archaeology of a foremost field director and fine scholar but also left the results of his excavations at Hierakonpolis for the most part unpublished, except for his interim report, The Predynastic of Hierakonpolis, 1982, and various popular articles.

This volume is the first comprehensive report on Hoffman’s excavations in the elite cemetery at Locality 6 in 1979, 1980, 1982 and 1985. Reconstructed from the field notes of Hoffman and his co-workers, it contains a description of the ten excavated tombs, which date to early Naqada II and Naqada III and include some of the faunal graves, which are a special feature of this cemetery, as well as a large catalogue raisonée of all the excavated objects. There is a report on the fragmentary human bone by Theya Molleson and the botanical remains are described by Ahmed Gamal el-Din Fahmy. The volume is fully illustrated with copious photographs and line drawings.

over 200 pp; 45 B&W and Color; 30 figures.
Egyptian Studies Association Publication Number 4
BAR International, December 2000

Special Friends of Nekhen hard back edition at the special price of £40 or $65.00 including postage and handling.

Make cheques payable to 'Egyptian Studies Association' and send to: Egyptian Studies Association, c/o Petrie Museum, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT. UK.

Ancient Nekhen. Garstang in the City of Hierakonpolis
by Barbara Adams
Egyptians Studies Association Publication No. 3
1995 ISBN 1 872561-03-9

Ancient Nekhen finalises the report of John Garstang's work in 1905-6 at the pivotal early site of Hierakonpolis. A summary of excavations at the site from the earlier British work of 1897-9 to the field work of the current Hierakonpolis Expedition prefaces the work. This is followed by an historical essay on the rise of the city in the predynastic periods and its subsequent decline down to the Roman Period, presenting current interpretations and new explanations of the older work by previous excavators. Still available contact the Egyptian Studies Association

Protodynastic Egypt
by Barbara Adams and Krzysztof Cialowicz
Shire Egyptology 25.
1997. ISBN 0 7478 0357 9

Fascination with ancient Egypt has often been cyclic in nature like the seasons of the Nile. Whilst the great temples and tombs of the pharaohs are a perpetual lure, interest in the beginning of the country's civilisation has been revitalised by excavations since the 1970s, not only in the Predynastic desert cemeteries of traditional exploration in Upper Egypt, but also in their associated settlements and in hitherto unexplored part of the alluvial Nile Delta. Work on the ancient borders with Egypt is also producing evidence of trade and colonisation and lending an international flavour to research in the late fourth and early third millennium. This book is a synthesis of interpretations of the ceremonial treasures relating to the Protodynastic/Early Dynastic transition and the information derived from new and old filed work set in a chronological framework. The authors blend their complementary interests into a reappraisal of this exciting, remote and unresolved period of Egypt's unification and the activities of the early kings of the First Dynasty.

Written by two of the leading experts in the field of early Ancient Egyptian history and prehistory, including our own Barbara Adams, this book surveys the current theories surrounding the state formation process. It details the major sites that have been excavated and are under investigation, as well as the theorised contact with the inhabitants of the Western Desert and the Near East. It is a typical well written excellent little Shire book, with much compact information and many illustrations. All in all, it is an excellent source of information about Protodynastic Egypt for scholars and interested laypeople (Francesca Jourdan)

Egypt Uncovered (US) Egypt (UK)
by Vivian Davies and Renee Friedman
1998 Stewart, Tabori & Chang/ British Museum Press
ISBN 1-55670-818-1
Now available in paper back in UK!

Published to coincide with a five-part series on the Discovery Channel, this beautifully illustrated book offers a fine overview of ancient Egyptian history and of current and recent archaeological discoveries that have affected our view of the ancient past. The authors examine five principal issues, each of them touched with controversy: the origins of Egyptian civilization, the impetus to build the pyramids, the use of gold in Egyptian empire-building, the role of religion in everyday Egyptian life, and the nature of ritual mummification. In each of these areas the authors draw on the most current literature. Written for general readers, this makes a fine addition any Egyptology buff's library. --Gregory McNamee

Synopsis
This important book is the story of Ancient Egypt rewritten in light of the latest findings and research. Peppered throughout with fresh perceptions, lucid explanations and original research, "Egypt Uncovered" provides the general reading public with an insider's take on thought-provoking new ideas and concepts concerning this great civilization. 200 color illustrations .


The Prehistory of Egypt : From the First Egyptians to the First Pharaohs
by Beatrix Midant-Reynes. Translated by Ian Shaw
Paperback - 320 pages (December 1999) Blackwell Pub;
ISBN: 0631217878

This book covers the history of the Nile Valley from Nubia to the Mediterranean during the period from the earliest hominid settlement, around 700,000 BC to the beginnings of dynastic Egypt at the end of the fourth millennium BC. The book focuses primarily on the fifteen millennia from 18,000 to 3,000 BC, when different cultures can be identified, and the earliest forms of agriculture traced with some detail. Textile and ceramic production began at the end of the seventh millennia and were deployed with great skill and considerable sophistication by the beginning of the Predynastic Period at around 4,500 BC. By the time of the First Dynasty much that is considered characteristic of Ancient Egypt was already established tradition. This account of prehistoric Egypt is welcomed as an outstanding narrative, combining both scholarship and accessibility. Updated and translated from the French, it is highly recommended as the successor to Mike Hoffman's Egypt before the Pharaohs (now out of print).