Posted by Hassan Ramadan, Archaeological Illustrator, SCA

A pottery jar in situ. Photo by Lamia el-Hadidy.

This week, I was asked to draw an elevation of two walls in the Kom el-Falhry site dating to the Middle Kingdom. So while I was drawing it, I noticed its contents. It was built with mud brick but inside it, there were pottery sherds. At the same time, pottery sherds formed a layer below the mud brick and they were also a part of the wall core. And in both cases the sherds are part of shaping the wall.

Sherds in the mudbrick, sherds separating brick courses and sherds in the wall core. Photo by Yasser Mahmoud.

How incredible the ancient Egyptian worker was, making the pottery from the dust, then using it during its life. He would later use its sherds mixed with clay to make both the core and courses to build the wall. He was the leader in the reusing system, even with this – the most simple stuff – the pottery sherds. He was very clever in using all his resources to serve his needs whatever they were.