The Archaeology of an Oasis City: Twenty Years of Excavations at Amheida in Egypt’s Western Desert

A community at the edge of the Roman Empire, Amheida/Trimithis in Egypt's Western Desert has been the site of archaeological excavations for twenty years. This lecture will present some of the most remarkable discoveries and shed light on the complex and fascinating history of Amheida/Trimithis.

Amheida is the site of ancient Trimithis, an extensive settlement located in Dakhla Oasis of Egypt’s Western Desert. Trimithis, whose currently visible remains are largely Late Roman in date, is a remarkable site, both for its setting and the wealth, as well as state of preservation, of its archaeological remains. 

Particular emphasis will be on the evidence for the flourishing of Christianity at this Late Roman city, including a fourth-century church with a well-preserved underground funerary crypt (whose excavation was completed in January 2023). The discovery of this church attests to the existence of a Christian community at the site in Late Antiquity, previously acknowledged only on account of documentary evidence. It also sheds light on several issues key to our understanding of early Christianity, including the cultural and socio-economic context in which it flourished, the dissemination of distinctive features of Christian art and architecture, and early Christian burial customs.

After the talk join us at Sounds Café.

Nicola Aravecchia is Assistant Professor of Classics and of Art History and Archaeology at Washington University in St. Louis. He holds a BA in Classical Studies from the University of Bologna, an MA in Ancient and Medieval Art & Archaeology and a Ph.D. in Art History both from the University of Minnesota. He is the Archaeological Field Director of the excavations at ʿAin el-Gedida, a fourth-century hamlet in Dakhla Oasis (Egypt’s Western Desert), and, since 2022, the Archaeological Field Director at Amheida/Trimithis, a Graeco-Roman city in Dakhla Oasis. Nicola is also a Research Affiliate of the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University.

Nicola’s research interests encompass the art and archaeology of Graeco-Roman and late antique Egypt. In particular, they focus on the origins and development of early Christian architecture in Egypt’s Western Desert. Nicola is the main author of ʿAin el-Gedida: 2006–2008 Excavations at a Late Roman Site in Dakhla Oasis, Egypt (New York: ISAW/NYU Press 2018) and a co-author of An Oasis City (New York: ISAW/NYU Press 2015).

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Images supplied by speaker.