The Society’s Archive

The Society’s archive is a rapidly expanding resource. It contains the original records from the Society’s survey and excavation projects: currently those at Gabati, in the Northern Dongola Reach, at Kawa, at Jebel Umm Rowag and between Amri and Kirbekan above the Fourth Cataract.

The archives for Soba East and the Wadi Halfa to Kerma Railway are also included.

  • Edwards archive, on the right: I.E.S. Edwards at Sesebi in the 1930s

  • Suakin

  • Semna Cataract, photo: Bill Adams

  • Semna fortress

  • A saqia wheel in operation, which were used to lift water from the Nile for irrigation

  • Baggara moving house

  • At left, relief blocks from the Lion Temple at Musawwarat-es-Sufra, at right relief block at Faras

  • At left Professor Peter Shinnie and Brian Haycock at Meroe, at right Kushite lions at Basa

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The archive also contains a large number of photographs, both prints, negatives and transparencies — in black & white and in colour — belonging to W.Y. Adams, J.A. Alexander, C.M. Daniels, Mr Moore, the RAF, I.E.S. Edwards, Laurence Kirwan, Rosalind Hawkes, Brian Haycock, Mr Gentle and Jean-Pierre Greenlaw, spanning the years from the 1930s until the 1980s. Many are an invaluable record of sites long since destroyed, particularly those of sites in the region of Lake Nubia/Nasser and at Suakin. It also holds a large number of plans and elevations of houses at Suakin by Greenlaw, papers of Laurence Kirwan and others, maps, aerial photographs and satellite images.

The Edwards and Greenlaw collections are now available digitally on the Sudan Memory website.

DOWNLOADS : details of items held in the archive

Adams | Alexander | Bayuda | Bonner | Daniels | Edwards | Gabati | Gentle | Greenlaw | Hawkes | Haycock | Hinkel | Hughes | Jebel Umm Rowag | Kirwan | miscellaneous | Moore | NDRS | RAF | Soba | WHKRS
All are xlsx spreadsheets. Those without links are yet to be prepared.
KEY to spreadsheet reference number codes
D = document, Di = digital image, M = map, N = negative, P = photograph, S = slide
Note that on Gabati and Soba spreadsheets, an additional capital letter indicates boxfile number
To order an image

Scans of images held in the archive may be ordered from the Society. Terms and conditions of reproduction and use, along with details of charges, are included in this downloadable order form (MS Word format, click the link and check your downloads folder).

Accessing the archive

The archive is housed in the Society’s office in the Department of Egypt and Sudan at the British Museum in London. Access is available to members of the Society by prior appointment with the Honorary Secretary.

Tel +44 (0)20 7323 8500
SARS@britishmuseum.org

Donations

We welcome donations to the archive. Contact the Honorary Secretary using the details above.