Abstract:The analysis of contemporary and archival satellite images and archaeological documentations presents the possibility of monitoring the state of archaeological sites in the Near East (for example, Palmyra in Syria). As it will be demonstrated in the case of Upper Egyptian sites, the rapid growth of agricultural lands and settlements can pose a great threat to sites localized on the border of fields and the desert. As a case study, the Qena district was chosen, a region of significance for the history of ancient Egypt. To trace the expansion of agriculture and the development of modern settlements, a synthesis of archival maps (from the last 200 years), and archival and contemporary satellite images was created. By applying map algebra to these documents, it was possible to determine areas which may be marked as "Archaeological Hazard Zones". The analysis helped to trace the expansion of agricultural areas during the last 200 years and the influence of both-ancient Egyptians and the Nile-on the local landscape.

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This paper presents Ag, Cu, and Pb isotopes for five silver and 10 copper artefacts found in the first intact pre‐Columbian tomb of the Wari culture female elite at Castillo de Huarmey, Peru. Ag and Cu isotope data indicate that the metals were extracted from primary, hypogene ore deposits. Most of the Pb isotope data for the Castillo de Huarmey artefacts correlate with the core Wari site of Conchopata, suggesting utilization of ores from similar deposits. The observed spread in Pb isotopes can be explained by the utilization of regional ores with highly variable Pb isotopes, such as the Julcani deposit. Alternatively, the linear nature of the Pb isotope results obtained for these samples may also be a result of the mixing of ores from different deposits or the re‐smelting of metals. Some of the Pb isotope results also indicate imports from other remote regions, providing evidence for long‐distance interactions on a vast regional scale, in the northern (North Coast of Peru) and southern (Southern Peru and Potosi region in Bolivia) spheres of influence of the Wari Empire and the Tiwanaku state.

A field reconnaissance in the region of Gebelein, Khozam and el-Rizeiqat in 2013 was aimed at obtaining information on site topography and state of preservation, even as it tested mobile GIS devices and remote sensing analysis to improve usage procedures in field prospection. Archival maps and satellite imaging were used to locate archaeological features, analyze changes of landscape and modern expansion of the cultivation zone from the natural alluvial plain into the low desert area.

Fieldwork in early 2019 by the Gebelein Archaeological Project encompassed surveys of two cemeteries situated south of the ancient town of Per-Hathor/Pathyris in the area of the Eastern Mountain of Gebelein. One of these is dated to the Old Kingdom and the First Intermediate Period, the other tentatively to Fatimid times. The third survey searched for local chert sources on the Western Mountain, investigating a local tradition of lithic tool production.