Carina van den Hoven is Research Fellow at The Netherlands Institute for the Near East (NINO, Leiden University), and Director of the Dutch archaeological expedition to the Theban necropolis.

More information about Carina van den Hoven

Research

Van den Hoven’s expertise and research interests in Egyptology are in the topics of textual and iconographic transmission processes and uses and reuses of the past, with a specific focus on tomb reuse. Van den Hoven’s research interests also include the fields of landscape archaeology, memory studies, cultural heritage management, and digital humanities (in particular the use of digital techniques in the documentation, material analysis, and publication of ancient wall paintings).

Fieldwork

In 2017 Van den Hoven launched a research and fieldwork project in the Theban necropolis on the West Bank of Luxor, with Theban Tomb 45 as its starting point. Since 2025 the project carries out research and fieldwork in a large area of Lower Sheikh ʿAbd el-Qurna, which comprises Theban Tombs 45, 133, 136, and 137, as well as several unidentified structures which are numbered -290-, -528-, -529-, -530-, and -531-. The main aims of the research and fieldwork project are to implement an extensive preventive conservation and risk management programme, and at the same time to archaeologically study this area.

The research and fieldwork project takes a holistic and multidisciplinary approach to all aspects of the monuments of Lower Sheikh ʿAbd el-Qurna and their surrounding environment, by integrating knowledge and techniques from a wide range of fields, including Egyptology, archaeology, conservation, restoration, digital humanities, geology and hydrology, heritage and risk management, etc. Important aims of the project are to develop a proof of concept on the digital documentation and material analysis of the painted decoration of the tombs, and to contribute significantly to the development and application of non-invasive digital technologies to the documentation, publication and accessibility of ancient material culture. An additional aim of the project is to contribute to the scientific infrastructure in Egypt by providing training opportunities to young local conservators, Egyptologists, and archaeologists, as well as to contribute to raising public awareness of the archaeological heritage of Luxor through organising educational and outreach activities for the local community.

The fieldwork project is funded by the Gerda Henkel Stiftung. A proof of concept study on the digital documentation and material analysis of the painted wall decoration of TT45 is sponsored by the Netherlands Institute for the Near East (Leiden University), and the Leiden University Centre for Digital Humanities.

For more information, visit the project’s website.

Fields of interest

• Egyptology
• Landscape Archaeology
• Memory Studies
• Digital Humanities
• Ritual Studies
• Cultural Heritage Management

Publications