More than countless trinkets: Egyptian objects in Archaic Sicily (776-480 BCE)

Sicily has yielded roughly 300 Egyptian-looking objects, commonly referred to as

Aegyptiaca, found in Archaic (ca. 776-480 BCE) archaeological contexts. Earlier studies have focused only on the formal elements of the artifacts, and even less often have they framed the data in the context of pan-Mediterranean trends. My research sits at the intersection of trade, politics, and religion, as it focuses not only on the roles that Aegyptiaca played in the lives of the inhabitants of Sicily – as religious and élite objects – but also on how their use can help us reassess Sicily’s position in Archaic-period Mediterranean networks of trade and exchange.