The Camel-driver in Late Antique Egypt based on unpublished Coptic ostraca from Shutb Storage Museum

The Camel-driver was one of the most common titles and professions in Coptic documentary texts, especially those originating in monasteries. This profession was primarily associated with economic and social life, especially during the Ptolemaic and Roman periods. Although camels were not as common as donkeys for daily transportation, they were valuable for trade and long-distance travel, especially in desert regions, as well as for transporting people, goods and letters. They were also symbolically significant, appearing in religious contexts/ narratives, such as with Saint Mina and on Coptic icons. This research paper aims to publish three Coptic ostraca related to the camel-driver profession for the first time, which are kept in the Storage museum of Shutb in Assiut. The present ostraca are part of six artifacts from the excavation work at Deir el-Gandala by the Egyptian archaeological mission season 1985 with the same number.[1] This study suggested that these ostraca can be dated back to the 6th–8th century CE, based on the provenance, paleography, and formulae. [1] The researcher got the acceptance of publication from The Permanent Committee for Islamic and Coptic Antiquities on 05.03.2024.