Thonis-Heracleion in Context

摘要

The Egyptian port city of Thonis (called Heracleion by the Greeks) was located at the mouth of the Canopic branch in the northwest Delta. It served as an important strategic, commercial and religious centre from the seventh to mid-second centuries bc, but appears to have dwindled in significance after this date. This was in large part the consequence of a natural disaster taking place around the mid-second century bc, which resulted in soil liquefaction and the submergence of parts of Thonis-Heracleion. The rediscovered site, located at the western end of modern Aboukir Bay, has in the last few decades been subject to collaborative maritime surveys and excavations under the auspices of the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology, the Oxford Centre for Maritime Archaeology, and the Egyptian Ministry of State for Antiquities. Work is still ongoing, but the fruits of the research undertaken so far are brought together in this 16-chapter volume (plus an introduction and appendix).