“We were not expecting to find bodies,” says Betsy Bryan, professor of Egyptian art and archaeology. But this year – the 19th summer that Bryan has led Johns Hopkins students on an archaeological dig in Luxor, Egypt – bodies are exactly what Bryan and her students found. “We’ve been digging in this particular site for 6 years now, and up until this time we never found human burials. This year there was at least one burial in every square we dug.”
Such is the essence of archaeological excavation: Every 10-centimeter layer, the maximum depth of sand and soil removed at one time, reveals a new chapter in ancient history. Last year, Bryan and her team uncovered the ruins of a 1600-1400 BC industrial sector, where workers made bread and beer to feed the villagers and offer to the nearby temple. This year, in the same location, JHU archaeologists found a 1700-1600 BC burial ground most likely used for those too poor for a proper burial. So discrete and unceremonious, their graves—16 in total—served as the foundation for the next generation’s industrial operations.
The unexpected grave sites made for an exceptionally exciting year for Bryan’s program, known as Hopkins in Egypt. Conducted every year since 1993 (although shortened in 2010, during the Arab Spring), the program has brought the study of archaeology and ancient Egypt to life for Johns Hopkins undergraduate and graduate students. This year, 12 students accompanied Bryan and Arts & Sciences photographer James T. VanRensselaer. The following is a sampling of the group’s excavations
Hanna Carney ’13 and an Egyptian pick man use a stadia rod to measure the depth of their trench. 
Monika Lay ’13 measures and maps the mud brick that stood high above ground some 3,500 years ago. Monika Lay ’13 creates a technical drawing of a section of the excavated tomb. Large vessel of the early new kingdom left in place when a mud brick wall was built around it more than a hundred years later. Hopkins in Egypt program leader Betsy Bryan examines shards of pottery. Hannah Carney ’12 assists the photographer with documenting pottery specimens. Sheri Leonard ’14 and Sean Nutting ’13 take inventory of broken pottery. The black basket contains shards from just one 10cm-deep layer of a particular 5x5m dig site. This meticulously carved faience amulet, depicting a resting goose, was likely worn as jewelry. On the underside of the amulet is a small etching of a hippopotamus, a common fertility blessing. Two students and Professor Betsy Bryan (right) carefully brush the bricks surrounding an exposed vessel to clarify how the brick was laid. Members of the JHU team (l-r) Sean Nutting, Sheri Leonard, Marina Escolano-Poveda, and Monika Lay make the ancient gestures of adoration to the king and his deity on a trip to the Small Aten temple. 
A buried body (gender unknown) Bryan and her team discovered this year. Professor Betsy Bryan (above ground) views the burial site. In the trench, qufti Yasin, a local member of the team, who first discovered the remains, and Egyptology graduate student Katherine Davis, meticulously brush sand and dirt from the 3,600-year-old skeleton. Graduate student Katherine Davis examines the ancient human remains discovered during the excavation. Graduate student Katherine Davis carefully brushes sand and dirt from a 3,600-year-old skeleton. A pottery shard with elaborate painting. Krieger School archaeologists kept daily journals in which they would measure, sketch, describe, and note precisely when and where objects were found. Overview of the excavation site. Sheri Leonard is establishing the corner of the mud brick wall in front of her by triangulating measuring tapes. Self-portrait of Arts & Sciences photographer James T. VanRensselaer, who documented the excavation. (l-r) Sean Nutting ’13, Professor Betsy Bryan, and Sheri Leonard ’14 inventory some of the day’s finds. 
A panoramic view of the excavation site.
