In conversation with budding Egyptian bioarchaeologists

It is very encouraging to see a fast-growing interest in the study of human remains among Egyptian students. Over the years, our team at Saqqara welcomed many young trainees who gained much needed field training and went on to focus their academic interests on bioarchaeology. As we all know, Egypt’s environmental conditions paired with ancient burial practices resulted in exceptional preservation of human and other remains, the study of which gives us an opportunity to gain a unique insight into the world and lives long gone.

In May, Iwona was invited to give a guest lecture for the Bioarchaeology master’s students at the Ain Shams University in Cairo. It was a great opportunity to recap on the best practice in field bioarchaeology, discussing do’s and don’ts of the excavation, recovery, documentation and inventory of human remains. Iwona’s talk, ‘Bioarchaeology in the Field: Investigating Life and Death at the Saqqara Cemetery’, focused on her research and findings at Saqqara. The cemetery proved a perfect case study to engage the students and open the floor to discussion on many aspects relating to bioarchaeology and the study of human remains.