TexMeroe was hosted at the University of Copenhagen by the Centre for Textile Research (CTR), a world-wide leader in the field of ancient textile studies.
It was developed along two Work Packages: 1) Specificities of the Meroitic textile tradition – techniques and identities in craft, and 2) Economic landscapes of textile production: from fibres to trade. Research activities included 11 stays in museums and with excavation teams, in Europe, Sudan, and North America, where I was able to analyse and document 235 textiles and 244 tools. All data were recorded through custom-designed databases for archaeological textiles and textile tools. Samples were tested through HPLC-MS chromatography and radiocarbon dated. Together with craft experts, I also conducted several experiments to test and reproduce specific techniques. Data was completed by bibliographical study and training with textile experts and archaeologists.
The main results were:
- An in-depth understanding of specific weaving techniques: the openwork lattices and the pile weave. Each technique and their variation are now illustrated by a large number of specimens, technical drawings, and occasional experimental testing.
- The identification of the use (alone or combined) of red and blue dyes obtained from madder (Rubia) or Lady’s Bedstraw (Galium) and indigotin, most probably obtained from woad (Isatis tinctoria).
- A global study of the symbolism of the colour blue in clothing and personal ornaments, and comparison with other regions in Egypt and Sahelian Africa.
- A detailed overview of the production and use of cotton fibres and textiles in ancient Sudan, based on the combination of archaeobotanical, textile, and textual data.
- The establishment of typological criteria for spindle whorls, the creation of a detailed tool database, and statistics on their technical features and geographical distribution.
- The identification of different scales for textile production, depending on the nature and geography of the settlement: i.e. small domestic production, multi-tasks industrial areas open to the community, specialised or semi-specialised areas within domestic quarters.
- The multiplication of case-studies illustrating the importance of textiles and clothing as social-indicators and the control of (at least a part) of textile production and exchange in centres of power.
Another important aspect of the project focused on scientific and public dissemination. I engaged in 19 publication projects (8 published, 7 accepted manuscripts, and 4 planned in 2020), gave 12 talks in international conferences, seminars and workshops, and also organised two conferences at the University of Copenhagen. I built a solid social media presence addressing a more general audience, creating accounts on Twitter and Instagram, and developing the project’s blog. Finally, I produced a website hosting an online archive of documents and objects from a Nubian grave and a digital exhibit of the textile finds.
