The Leiden-Turin Archaeological Expedition to Saqqara: Preliminary Results of the 2019 Fieldwork Season

In the 2019 season, the joint Leiden-Turin Expedition to Saqqara continued work in the area north of the tomb of Maya with the aim of lowering the terrain above the new tomb discovered during the 2018 season (V82.1) and to prepare the area for further exploration in 2020. Many layers of deposit situated immediately to the north of the new tomb were removed and – although they mostly originated from previous excavations in the 1980s and 1990s – systematically investigated. Several dumps of organic material such as linen and wood as well as numerous small finds and relief fragments were identified and recorded. In addition, existing storage facilities on site were renovated and upgraded. In this process, part of the underground structures of the tombs of Horemheb and Meryneith were surveyed by the 3D Survey Group (Politecnico di Milano). Thanks to the cooperation with the same Milanese team, a new documentation method was tested during the ongoing excavation work. Within a 3D-model the different stages of excavation were recorded, allowing the digital reconstruction of the stratigraphy of the whole area and the documentation of all finds in their original contexts. A Digital Surface Model of the entire concession area was also produced, and 3D-models of some of the previously excavated monumental tombs were created. Lastly, since heavy rainfalls had damaged many of the earlier excavated monumental tombs open to the public, they were consolidated and where necessary rebuilt.