Introduction Wādī al-Naṭrūn, the ancient desert of Sketis, next to the Mount of Nitria and Kellia is well-known as a cradle of Egyptian monasticism in Lower Egypt, It is one of the depressions formed in the Western Desert of Egypt, lying between Alexandria and Cairo, almost at an equal distance from both cities (Map 3). The title of this article pays respect to the significance of these two cities during different time periods and to the symbolic position of Wādī al-Naṭrūn between them and between the two worlds that they represent: the ancient Graeco-Roman/Byzantine world, with its capital in Alexandria, and the medieval Arab world, with its capital in Fustāt. In light of this, it is interesting to investigate how the transition from the first world to the second is manifested in the region.

Pottery unearthed during excavations at a site situated north of the present monastery of the Virgin Mary of Baramus, known as Dayr Abū Mūsā al-’Aswad (the monastery of Saint Moses the Black) serves as the main object of this brief inquiry. The archaeological fieldwork has brought to light a twin monastic compound (Fig. 9.1) and there is reason to believe that the site in question can be identified with the old monastery of Baramūs. According to the hagiographical tradition, this is the earliest settlement in the desert of Sketis, founded in the late fourth century (c. 384-385) by Abba Macarius the Egyptian. It is related to the “two young strangers” who arrived in Sketis to visit Abba Macarius and become his followers. The information drawn from the study of the ceramic assemblage discovered in the old Baramus monastery (hereafter “Old Baramūs”) is cross-examined with pottery finds collected during a survey carried out in the surrounds of the monastery of Saint Macarius and some interesting amphora types kept in a glass display case in the same monastery.

9.2 The Pottery

9.2.1 General Considerations It is worth citing here some information about the classes and types to be discussed. A general classification of the wares is often based on their function; thus, they are divided into table wares, cooking wares, other utilitarian wares, transport amphorae and miscellaneous vessels (including lamps, censers, lids and re-used objects).