Travel and Tourism

Egypt announces discovery of ancient port used by temple builders

Egypt says archaeologists have found a 3,000-year-old port where stones were transported to be used in the building of temples and obelisks.

The Antiquities Ministry said Tuesday the port was located near the Gebel el-Silsila archaeological site in upper Egypt, near the southern city of Aswan. It says the port dates back to the 18th dynasty, which ruled from 1543 to 1292 B.C.
Abdel Moneim Said, the director of the Aswan and Nubia antiquities area, says rocks quarried at Gebel el-Silsila were used in the construction of the ancient Egyptian temples at Karnak and Kom Ombo.

Egypt

Egypt has touted a series of archaeological finds recently, hoping such discoveries will spur tourism, which suffered a major setback during the unrest that followed the 2011 uprising.
River silt and greenery were cleared from the area, revealing inscriptions and mechanisms for tying the boats.

Gebel el-Silsila is an important source of sandstone in Egypt. Abdul Mouneim Saeed, director general of Aswan and Nubia Antiquities Council, said that it has been widely used from the 18th dynasty into the modern era.

Stone used to build temples such as Al Karnak, Habu, Kom Ombo and Dendera was mostly cut in the area’s quarries, Saeed said, according to the announcement.
The port’s discovery is the latest in a series of recent archaeological announcements. Egypt is hoping to increase tourism interest in a destination that suffered following a 2011 uprising.

Source: CNN