Research Grant Award - Alison Gascgoine

CMRC member Alison Gascgoine (Archaeology) has been awarded funding of £7,470 by the Fondation Max van Berchem in Geneva for fieldwork at Tinnis, Egypt. Following the award of a grant from the Fondation Max van Berchem in Geneva, archaeologist Alison Gascoigne will be returning to the site of Tinnis, near Port Said in North East Egypt, to conduct an extensive geophysical survey. Tinnis was a rich and populous island city, surrounded by the brackish waters of Lake Manzala and occupied from late Roman times until the early thirteenth century, when it was abandoned as a result of Crusader raids. The town supported itself through industry, primarily the production of high-status textiles such as tiraz, but also metalworking; it was also an important port for trade and fisheries.
Following on from previous field seasons, the planned geophysical survey aims to uncover details of town layout, despite the difficult conditions at the site. Very few medieval settlements in Egypt remain free of modern building, so Tinnis provides an unparalleled opportunity research one of the great cities of the medieval Middle East.