Speaker: Sarah Ricketts
During the Old Kingdom, the Nile Valley Egyptians began a process of colonisation and annexation of the Dakhleh Oasis, in Egypt's Western Desert. This 'tiny island of green', later referred to by Herodotus as the 'Isle of the Blessed', was a frontier zone amongst the shifting sands. The Nile Valley Egyptians, however, were not the first people to step foot in this frontier. It had been the home for thousands of years to indigenous pastoralists now referred to as the Sheikh Muftah. Who were these people? What is their story? And more importantly, what can they teach us about resilience and adaptation to a changing world and environment?
This talk will introduce the enigmatic Sheikh Muftah Cultural Unit, their material culture, and their sites. It will synthesise the state of the research of this Western Desert culture and their incredible ability to adapt to an oscillating and often unpredictable environment.
Sarah Ricketts is a landscape archaeologist with a specialisation in ancient Egypt and the Near East, holding a master’s degree from Monash University focused on desert environments and prehistoric cultures of the Egyptian Western Desert. She presently works as an Associate Heritage Consultant, providing technical cultural heritage leadership on international Lender compliant Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) and Environmental and Social Due Diligence (ESDD) projects seeking external funding. She has worked on academic and consulting projects across the UK, Middle East, Africa, Australasia, Europe, and Central Asia.
Sarah has recently been admitted as a Fellow for the Society of Antiquaries (London) and currently holds an academic Research and Administrative Assistant role with the Amarna Project, Egypt, affiliated to the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge. Previous academic roles include prehistorian on the Dakhleh Oasis Project (Monash University), the Supervisor for the Shire Archaeological Project (Ethiopia; Institute for Field Research), and the Research Assistant on the Circulating Artefacts Project (British Museum).
The third Wednesday of the month is when the Calgary Centre hosts a free speaker series at the Calgary Central Library.