A Blocked-Out Capital from Berenike (Egyptian Red Sea Coast)

Abstract

Abstract The article examines a blocked-out capital discovered in Berenike on the Egyptian coast of the Red Sea. The artefact was reused in a Late Antique installation just outside the courtyard wall of the main city sanctuary, the Isis Temple. Its distinctive, highly simplified form is typical of Ptolemaic influence in the area. This article places the fragment in its archaeological context, accompanied by a detailed architectural description and analysis of the phenomena of blocked-out capitals. The authors demonstrate that the capital under discussion does not represent an unfinished stonework, but rather an intentional stylization. Its simplification is most likely inspired by the form of Corinthian capital that was common in Egypt between the second and third century AD. The discovery of this capital implies that there were buildings with classical architectural traits in Berenike, a theory that has previously not been supported by the excavated remains.