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The Early Civilizations Obsidian in the Larger Context of Predynastic/Archaic Egyptian Red Sea Trade by JURIS ZARINS This paper represents the third and concluding part ofa study dealing with the distribution and trade of obsidian in the Red Sea. It was initially stimulated by survey work carried ou...

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The Early Civilizations

Obsidian in the Larger Context of Predynastic/Archaic Egyptian Red Sea Trade by JURIS

ZARINS

This paper represents the third and concluding part ofa study dealing with the distribution and trade of obsidian in the Red Sea. It was initially stimulated by survey work carried out in Saudi Arabia during 1979-1985. Subsequent investigations into the larger problem brought me into contact with a variety of colleagues and the entire study crystallized dUring the summer of 1987. In conjunction with the resources placed at my disposal in Rome by the staff of the Istituto Italiano per il Media ed Estremo Oriente, the larger pattern of obsidian trade was investigated. In particular, I would like to thank Dr Vincenzo Francaviglia without whose analyses and information the work could not have been completed. The first part of the study was presented in 1987 at Venice during the Ninth International Conference of the Association of South Asian Archaeologists in Western Europe and dealt with the southern Red Sea resources and early trade in obsidian (Zarins 1990). The second part outlining the participation of prehistoric Egypt in this trade was published by the University of Chicago (Zarins 1989). This study will concentrate on some other highly desirable items the ancient Egyptians obtained in the Red Sea by long distance trade in conjunction with obsidian.

Introduction Obsidian, as a natural glass of volcanic origin, lends itself by virtue of its petrochemical properties, as an object of study to identify various archaeological trade route patterns between source and utilized artifact. It became an ideal object of research due to its homogeneous nature and the apparent ease with which different sources could be identified based on both classical petrochemical and trace element analyses. Additionally, since early obsidians were prized for their flaking ability and their extremely sharp edges, and archaeologists could recover their remains very systematically, the study of obsidian distribution became rather popular. Initial work by optical spectroscopy helped determine Neolithic and Bronze Age distribution patterns in the Aegean, Mediterranean, and Anatolia (Cann and Renfrew 1964; Renfrew et al. 1965; Hallam et al. 1976; Cann

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