This 1.5-day workshop brings together international researchers from a variety of disciplines to discuss and exchange ideas on the concept of cross-craft interaction (or -fertilisation) at an urban level.

Although the research project within which this workshop takes place is focused on the Late Bronze Age Egyptian site of Amarna, the thematic, geographic, and chronological scope of the workshop has deliberately been defined broadly. This has been done both to facilitate a more multifaceted exchange among participants and to refine and align the research approach within the project itself.

The topics to be addressed include high-temperature industries (vitreous materials, pigments, metals), approaches from the fields of archaeometry and urban archaeology, linguistics, as well as theoretical perspectives on craft production in the Ancient World. We are particularly interested in how craftspeople organised themselves across different crafts within an urban setting, how they communicated with one another, and how decisions were made, especially regarding the use and exchange of raw materials and finished products.

By creating a dialogue across disciplines and case studies, this workshop seeks to advance our understanding of the mechanisms of cross-craft interaction and their significance for the study of ancient urban societies.

Programme and abstracts: see "Downloads", below.

Organisers: DFG/AHRC project: Craft Interactions in a New Kingdom Industrial Landscape (Egypt, 1550–1069 BCE)

Dr. Anna K. Hodgkinson and Dr. Stephanie L. Boonstra (Freie Universität Berlin)

Dr. Frederik W. Rademakers and Dr. Juliet V. Spedding (British Museum, London)

Funders: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), Freie Universität Berlin (Mittel zur Internationalisierung), Arts and Humanities Research Foundation (AHRC)

Registration required by 10 April 2026: email a.hodgkinson@fu-berlin.de or stephanie.boonstra@fu-berlin.de