MŪṬ AL-ḪARĀB (MŌTHIS)
Place names
| Egyptian | Pȝ-Mw.t |
| Greek | Μωθιτῶν πόλις | Μωθις |
| Arabic | موط الخراب |
| English | Mut el-Kharab | Mut | Mothis | Motis |
| French | Môthis | Mût |
Site map
Site information
| DEChriM ID | 77 |
| Trismegistos GeoID | 3154 |
| Pleiades ID | 776202 | PAThs ID | - |
| Ancient name | Mōthis |
| Modern name | Mūṭ al-Ḫarāb |
| Latitude | 25.486900 |
| Longitude | 28.972637 |
| Date from | -2200 |
| Date to | 1500 |
| Typology | City |
| Dating criteria | - |
| Description | The site of Mūṭ al-Ḫarāb, DOP site number 31/405-G10-1, was known as Mōthis in antiquity and was the capital of Dakhla Oasis since at least the Old Kingdom. Today, the remains of the site are situated almost completely below Mūṭ, the modern-day capital of Dakhla. Only a single area has remained free of additional construction projects. This zone, comprising the remains of a temple and several cemeteries, is also the town’s rubbish dump. The major cult shrine was the Temple of Seth (Hope 2001a: 35-36). Undoubtedly the largest in the Western Desert, this temple complex was in use from the Early Dynastic period until Ptolemaic and early Roman times, after which point at least a church appears to have been constructed within the temenos of the temple (Bowen 2017: 241). The indications of this church consist solely of disarticulated stone architectural elements, some of which feature explicit Christian indicators, such Greek inscriptions invoking God (Mills 1981: 188; Wagner 1976: 288; id 1987: 365; Hope 2001a: 36; Bowen 2017: 242, figs. 1, 2 and 3). The original location of the church is unknown, though majority of the architectural elements derive from the central area of the site, where excavations have been concentrated and where the remains of the temple are situated (Bowen 2017: 242-243). Due to the state of the archaeological remains, only very limited information is available about the ancient capital, including its Christian communities. Nothing is known about the episcopal sees in the Mothite nome, but, given that Mūṭ was the nome capital and that this is the only instance in Dakhla of limestone being used in a church, it has been suggested that this was the seat of the bishopric (Bowen 2017: 243). |
| Archaeological research | The site was surveyed in 1980 as part of the Dakhla Oasis Project (Mills 1981: 188). The first excavations at the site were initiated in 2000 by Monash University, under the direction of Colin Hope. Though the Monash website lists these excavations as ‘ongoing’, the last field report dates from 2013. Much of the work has been financed by an Australian Research Council Discovery Grant awarded to C.A. Hope, G.E. Bowen (Monash University) and I. Gardner (University of Sydney). |
Bibliography
• Bowen, G. 2017. "Christianity at Mut al-Kharab (ancient Mothis), Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt." In The Cultural Manifestations of Religious Experience: Studies in Honour of Boyo G. Ockinga, edited by C. Di Biase-Dyson and L. Donovan, 241-246. Münster: Ugarit Verlag.
• Gill, J. C. R. 2012a "Ptolemaic ‘Black Ware’ from Mut el-Kharab." In Egyptology in Australia and New Zealand 2009: Proceedings of the Conference held in Melbourne, September 4th-6th, edited by C. M. Knoblauch and J. C. Gill, 15-25. Oxford: Archaeopress.
• Gill, J. C. R. 2012b. "Ptolemaic Period Pottery from Mut al-Kharab, Dakhleh Oasis." In The Oasis Papers 6: Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference of the Dakhleh Oasis Project, edited by R. S. Bagnall, P. Davoli and C. A. Hope, 231-241. Oxford: Oxbow Books.
• Gill, J. C. R. 2016a. "A Corpus of Late Period and Ptolemaic Bes-Vessels from Mut el-Kharab, Western Desert of Egypt." In Vienna 2 - Ancient Egyptian Ceramics in the 21st Century: Proceedings of the International Conference held at the University of Vienna 14th-18th of May, 2012, edited by B. Bader, C. M. Knoblauch and E. C. Köhler, 211-228. Leuven: Peeters.
• Hope, C. 2001a. "Egypt and Libya: The Excavations at Mut el-Kharab in Egypt’s Dakhleh Oasis." The Artefact 24: 29-46.
• Hope, C. 2001b. "The Excavations at Ismant el-Kharab and Mut el-Kharab in 2001." Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 12: 35–63.
• Hope, C. 2002. "Excavations at Mut al-Kharab el-Kharab and Ismant el-Kharab in 2001–2." Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 13: 85–107.
• Hope, C. 2003. "The 2001-2002 Excavations at Mut eI-Kharab in the Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt." The Artefact 26: 51-75.
• Hope, C. 2004a. "A Note on Some Ceramics from Mut, Dakhleh Oasis." Cahiers de la céramique égyptienne 7: 99–121.
• Hope, C. 2004b. "The Excavations at Ismant el-Kharab and Mut el-Kharab in 2004." Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 15: 19–49.
• Hope, C. 2005. "Report on the Excavations at Ismant el-Kharab and Mut el-Kharab in 2005." Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 16: 35–83.
• Hope, C. 2016. "Reconstructing the Image of Seth, Lord of the Oasis, in his Temple at Mut el-Kharab in Dakhleh Oasis." In Rich and Great: Studies in Honour of Anthony J. Spalinger on the Occasion of his 70th Feast of Thoth, edited by R. Landgráfová and J. Mynářová, 123-145. Prague: Charles University in Prague.
• Hope, C., G. Bowen, J. Cox , W. Dolling, J. Milner and A. Pettman. 2009. "Report on the 2009 Season of Excavations at Mut El-Kharab, Dakhleh Oasis." Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 20: 47-86.
• Hope, C., G. Bowen, W. Dolling, E. Healey, J. Milner and O. Kaper. 2008. "The Excavations at Mut El-Kharab, Dakhleh Oasis in 2008." Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 19: 49-71.
• Hope, C., G. Bowen, W. Dolling, C. Hubschmann, P. Kucera, R. Long and A. Stevens. 2006. "Report on the Excavations at Ismant el-Kharab and Mut el-Kharab in 2006." Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 17: 23–67.
• Hope, C. and O. Kaper. 2010. "A Governor of Dakhleh Oasis in the Early Middle Kingdom." In Egyptian Culture and Society: Studies in Honour of Naguib Kanawati Vol 1, edited by A. Woods, A. McFarlane and S. Binder, 219-245. Cairo: Publications du conseil suprême des antiquités de l’égypte.
• Hope, C. and O. Kaper. 2011. "Egyptian Interest in the Oases in the New Kingdom and a New Stela for Seth from Mut el-Kharab." In Ramesside Studies in Honour of K. A. Kitchen, edited by M. Collier and S. Snape, 219-236. Bolton: Rutherford Press Limited.
• Hope, C. and A. Pettman. 2012. "Egyptian Connections with Dakhleh Oasis in the Early Dynastic Period to Dynasty IV: New Data from Mut al-Kharab." In The Oasis Papers 6: Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference of the Dakhleh Oasis Project, edited by R. S. Bagnall, P. Davoli and C. A. Hope, 1147-166. Oxford: Oxbow Books.
• Hope, C., A. Pettman and A. Warfe. 2018. "The Egyptian Annexation of Dakhleh Oasis. New Evidence from Mut al-Kharab." In The Perfection that Endures: Studies on Old Kingdom Art and Archeology, edited by K. O. Kuraszkiewicz, E. Kopp and D. Takacs, 191-208. Warsaw: University of Warsaw.
• Hope, C. and A. Warfe. 2017. "The Proscription of Seth Revisited." In The Cultural Manifestations of Religious Experience: Studies in Honour of Boyo G. Ockinga, edited by C. Di Biase-Dyson and L. Donovan, 273-284. Münster: Ugarit Verlag.
• Kaper, O. 2001. "Two Decorated Blocks from the Temple of Seth in Mut el-Kharab." The Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 12: 71–78.
• Long, R. 2008. "Ceramics at Mut al-Kharab, Dakhleh Oasis: Evidence of a New Kingdom Temple." Bulletin of the Australian Centre for Egyptology 19: 95–110.
• Long, R. 2015. "New Evidence from the Third Intermediate Period Temple at Mut al-Kharab, Dakhleh Oasis." In Ancient Cultures at Monash University, edited by J. Cox, C. R. Hamilton, K. R. L. McLardy, A. J. Pettman and D. Stewart, 97-111. Oxford: BAR International Series.
• Ricketts, S. M. 2015 "Approaches to Lithic Analysis: The Assemblage from Mut al-Kharab." In Ancient Cultures at Monash University, edited by J. Cox, C. R. Hamilton, K. R. L. McLardy, A. J. Pettman and D. Stewart, 57-67. Oxford: BAR International Series.
• Ricketts, S. M. 2017. "Sheikh Muftah and Old Kingdom Connections at Mut al-Kharab: A Lithic Study." Unpublished MA thesis, Monash University.
• Vittmann, G. 2012. "Demotische und kursivhieratische Ostraka aus Mut al-Kharab (Dakhleh)." In The Oasis Papers 6: Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference of the Dakhleh Oasis Project, edited by R. S. Bagnall, P. Davoli and C. A. Hope, 19-31. Oxford: Oxbow Books.
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