## 3 Study Area  
The settlement of Hermopolis is situated near the small agricultural village of Eshmunein, approximately 40 km south of the modern city of Minya (Figure 1A). Strategically located at the confluence of Upper and Lower Egypt, Hermopolis functioned as a central meeting point where several ancient cultures and traditions converged [28; 29]. Often described as a \"melting pot\", the city featured a unique blend of both Egyptian and Greco-Roman cultures, best exemplified by the presence of sanctuaries dedicated to Egyptian, Greek, and Roman deities [28]. Originally founded in the Old Kingdom Period (c. 2686-2160 BCE), the settlement quickly rose to prominence, becoming the capital of the important 15 th Upper Egyptian name, known as the Hare home [30; 31]. For millennia, Hermopolis held an influential role in the political, economic, and especially religious spheres of Pharaonic and Greco-Roman Egypt. In fact, early on it was chosen as the principal cult center of the Egyptian Ibis-headed god, [PERSON], and as preserved in its ancient toponym--\"Hermopolis Magna\" or the \"Great City of Hermes\"--it later became the religious center of the Hellenistic deity, [PERSON] [32]. Unfortunately, much of this important site has yet to be explored; however, projects by the German Hermopolis mission (1929-1939), British Museum (1980-1990), and University of Alexandria (late 1940s and 1950s) have been able to excavate small segments of the Pharaonic, Ptolemaic, and Christian city. Today, the archaeological site is characterized by a multi-period stratified mound, which covers an area of 1.5 km\({}^{2}\) (1 by 1.5 km) (Figure 1B). As a result of the anthropogenic and environmental developments in the area, only \(\sim\)56.7% of the original tell, roughly 0.85 km\({}^{2}\) (0.85 by 1 km), is currently accessible [33]. With the archaeological remains bounded by two small agricultural villages, el-Idara to the north and el-Ashmunein to the south, as well as by agricultural fields to the east and west, rapid urban encroachment has become a prime threat to the longevity of the archaeological remains. According to a study by [PERSON] and [PERSON] (2015), the Minya Governorate (where Hermopolis is located) has one of the highest population growths in Egypt, with a staggering \(\sim\)3.1% annual increase and  
Figure 1: Simplified map of Egypt showing the location of the study site, highlighted by the black box (**A**). WorldView-3 satellite imagery displayed in true color for the archaeological area of Hermopolis. The image shows the archaeological site delimited by urban clusters and agricultural fields (**B**). still rising [34]. In addition to this urban sprawl, the subsoil water table in the Delta and lower Nile Valley areas has risen at an unprecedented rate [35]. Without the annual Nile flood, which was halted by the construction of the Aswan High Dam in the 1960s, the salts found in the soil are no longer naturally flushed out [36]. For this reason, agricultural fields now need to be perennially irrigated. This has created two key problems; the water table has risen exponentially, and the ground water now contains much higher concentrations of salt. At Hermopolis, specifically, the agricultural lands bordering the site are irrigated using canal-fed irrigation. This form of irrigation is particularly harmful, as it discharges a considerable volume of water--more than needed for normal irrigation--which further amplifies the water table level and the soil salinization problems [37]. In fact, most pre-New Kingdom (prior to c.1550 BCE) occupation levels at Hermopolis are located below the current ground water [32]. Furthermore, this combination of higher ground water and increased salinization is detrimental to the ancient structures at the site, particularly those made of stone and mudbrick. As the ground water percolates into the structures and eventually evaporates, it leaves highly concentrated levels of salt in the stone/ mudbrick, which over time lead to the weakening and decaying of the monuments [38].