The sacral topography of a monastic landscape and its development on the hill of Dra Abu el-Naga / Upper Egypt: Deir el-Bakhît and the Theban monastery of Saint Paulos

• Applicant: Dr.-Ing. Ralph Bodenstein, since 10/2022
• Subject Area: Egyptology and Ancient Near Eastern Studies
• Term: since 2017
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 324347917

The Monastery of Paulos (Deir el-Bakhît) situated on the Dra’ Abu el-Naga hill in Western Thebes/Upper Egypt encompasses a wide range of different monastic installations within a complex and extensive sacral landscape: living spaces of individual anchorites in Units XXVI and XXVII, which were inhabited from the 5th century onwards as well as an expansive monastery complex erected on the hill’s summit at some point from the late 6th/early 7th century AD, which housed a coenobitic community until its abandonment at the beginning of the 10th century.In view of the exceptional state of the on-site features, questions related to the hierarchies and social structures of the monastic community, the functional, social and religious-cultic interrelations between the monastic installations on the hill, and the catalysts for the transformation of the monastic structures from anchorite dwellings (XXVI and XXVII) to a coenobite community encompassing the entire hill (main monastery, XXVI, XXVII).In the years 2017 to 2020, a second church was identified in Unit XXVI and the former location of a church was observed in the main monastery. They probably had different functions: the veneration of the founding father (St. Paulos?) in Unit XXVI and the use of the church by the monks of the coenobitic community in the main monastery.Changes in the main monastery are tangible from the mid 8th century onwards, when the accommodation buildings were enlarged. It was possible to identify an educational elite from whom the later monastery superiors emerged. The list of these superiors could be supplemented further. Most spectacular, however, is the probable discovery of fragments of a magical leather manuscript, which are possibly parts of the famous "Cookbook" from the British Museum, London. The overlying aim of the project is a comprehensive reconstruction of the religious influence of the monastery as well as its economical and social significance, and of the interconnection with the other monasteries and settlements located on the Theban West Bank, and, at the same time, to clarify the correlation of regional and transregional events and trends that, in turn, influenced the development of the monastery.In order to answer these questions, the monastery will be studied comprehensively: archaeological excavations, studies on the architectural and structural history, analyses of the finds material and evaluation of textual sources are complemented by the inspection of museum holdings and published texts. In this way, a research approach is pursued, which focuses on the cultural-historical development of the monastery in its regional and transregional context.By correlating the archaeological features with the texts and finds material, an unparalleled picture of a monastery and its development over the centuries emerges, and constitutes a highly relevant desideratum especially for the otherwise poorly documented period of Late Antiquity and Early Middle Ages.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Austria
• Partner Organisation: Fonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung (FWF)
• Cooperation Partner: Dr. Ina Eichner
• Ehemaliger Antragsteller: Dr. Daniel Polz, until 9/2022