{
    "type": "FeatureCollection",
    "name": "site",
    "crs": {
        "type": "name",
        "properties": {
            "name": "EPSG:4326"
        }
    },
    "features": [
        {
            "type": "Feature",
            "geometry": {
                "type": "Point",
                "coordinates": [
                    30.514021,
                    25.390498
                ]
            },
            "properties": {
                "id": 42,
                "site_uri": "https:\/\/4care-skos.mf.no\/site\/42",
                "modern_name": "\u02bfAyn \u1e24usayn",
                "ancient_name": "",
                "typology": "village",
                "date_from": 300,
                "date_to": 400,
                "dating_criteria": "Radiocarbon analysis has not been conducted, and the SCA excavators did not study the ceramic. However, the examination of the surface ceramic carried out by the SKOS and DEChriM teams indicates that the latest occupation of the site dates to the fourth century.",
                "place_names": [
                    {
                        "language": "Arabic",
                        "pl_name": "\u0639\u064a\u0646 \u062d\u0633\u064a\u0646"
                    },
                    {
                        "language": "English",
                        "pl_name": "Ayn Husein"
                    }
                ],
                "trismegistos_uri": "https:\/\/www.trismegistos.org\/place\/61700",
                "pleiades_uri": "",
                "paths_uri": "",
                "description": "\u02bfAyn \u1e24usayn comprises the remains of a large settlement at the eastern end of the Darb al-\u0120ubb\u0101r\u012b caravan road, on the western edge of the Kharga Oasis (Ghica et al. 2025: 64). The settlement covers approximately 51,000 m\u00b2 and preserves extensive and relatively well-preserved built structures, most of them buried beneath 2\u20135 m of deposits (Ghica et al. 2025: 64-65). Its substantial size suggests that \u02bfAyn \u1e24usayn was probably the Kharga terminus of the Darb al-\u0120ubb\u0101r\u012b, a 138 km caravan route connecting Kharga and Dakhla (Ghica et al. 2025: 64).\r\nThe settlement lies west of the agricultural area developed around \u02bfAyn al-Sir\u0101\u01e7. An ancient well, locally known as \u02bfAyn r\u016bm\u0101n\u012b, is situated to the south of the settlement. Several elevations covered with large quantities of ceramic material conceal further habitation areas. One of the largest mounds was partly destroyed by bulldozers in the early 2000s; the resulting cut exposed a large, multi-storeyed rectangular building, probably a frourion, with several walls showing pronounced traces of burning.\r\nTo the west of the settlement is a funerary area, together with a small church. The funerary area and church are separated by the modern road. The 2011 excavation by the local inspectorate of the Supreme Council of Antiquities identified approximately 130 graves, of which 13 were excavated. The graves are simple pits dug into the sand and appear to belong to the cemetery associated with the settlement. The excavation also cleared the small church. The church measures approximately 8.4 \u00d7 4.2 m and consists of two principal spaces separated by a doorway flanked by two engaged columns. In the floor of the eastern space is a rectangular opening leading to a shaft approximately 5 m deep. According to the excavator, the shaft leads to two mortuary chambers, one to the east and one to the west. The orientation of the shaft does not correspond exactly to that of the church, raising the possibility that the underground tomb predates the church. Its proximity to the cemetery suggests that the building may have functioned as a funerary church or chapel, although this interpretation remains uncertain (Ghica et al. 2025: 67-68).\r\nSeveral qanaw\u0101t have also been identified between the settlement and the funerary area, one of which is particularly visible as a result of recent illicit excavation. The site has consequently preserved evidence not only for habitation and burial but also for water management.\r\nCeramic material collected at the site was briefly studied by Sylvie Marchand in 2010, then by Mara Elefante in 2025 and 2026. The assemblage includes Oasis Red Slip Ware, including open forms, and led to the conclusion that the site was occupied during the fourth century CE. The evidence therefore supports a fourth-century date for the Christian occupation, while the full chronological history of the settlement remains to be established through systematic excavation.",
                "archaeological_research": "\u02bfAyn \u1e24usayn was prospected by Victor Ghica as part of the archaeological survey of the Darb al-\u0120ubb\u0101r\u012b (Ghica et al. 2025). A team of the South Kharga Oasis Survey surveyed the site briefly in January 2010. The local inspectorate of the Supreme Council of Antiquities carried out a one-month excavation season on the site in 2011, clearing 130 graves, some of which were subsequently destroyed by the asphalt road built after the end of the digs. DEChriM teams surveyed the site several times between 2020 and 2026. Together with this group of burials, visible now to the west of the road, the adjacent church and a large well (\u02bfayn r\u016bm\u0101n\u012b) situated north of the church were also cleared.",
                "bibliography": "\u2022 Ghica, V. \u201cChr\u00e9tiens d\u2019\u00c9gypte dans le d\u00e9sert Occidental : implantations, d\u00e9veloppements, rapports avec les autres communaut\u00e9s (Ve-IXe si\u00e8cle)\u201d, in L. Pantalacci, S. Denoix (eds.), \u201cTravaux de l\u2019Institut fran\u00e7ais d\u2019arch\u00e9ologie orientale 2008-2009\u201d, Bulletin de l'Institut fran\u00e7ais d'arch\u00e9ologie orientale 109 (2009), pp. 647-651.\u2022 Ghica, V., David, R., Polkowski, P.L., \u201cA Preliminary Archaeological Survey Along the Darb al-\u0120ubb\u0101r\u012b Caravan Road\u201d, Analecta Papyrologica 40 (2025), pp. 61-136, 249-251.\u2022 Rossi, C., Ibrahim Ahmed, M. \u201cFilling the gaps: towards a comprehensive list of archaeological sites in the Kharga Oasis, Egypt\u2019s Western Desert\u201d, in S. di Lernia, Marina Gallinaro (eds), Papers from the 1st Workshop Archaeology in Africa: Potentials and perspectives on laboratory & fieldwork research, Arid Zone Archaeology Monographs 8, Sesto Fiorentino, 2019, p. 97, col. A.",
                "external_links": [
                    {
                        "text": "South Kharga Oasis Survey",
                        "url": "http:\/\/4care-skos.mf.no\/skos\/214\/"
                    }
                ],
                "authors": [
                    {
                        "author": "Victor Ghica",
                        "year": "2026"
                    },
                    {
                        "author": "Rhiannon Williams",
                        "year": "2021"
                    }
                ]
            }
        }
    ]
}