Gold was among the first metals to be mined because it commonly occurs in its native form, that is,

not combined with other

elements, because it is beautiful and imperishable, and because exquisite objects can be made from it. Artisans of ancient
civilizations used gold lavishly in decorating tombs and temples, and gold objects made more than 5,000 years ago have
been found in Egypt. The legendary wealth in gold of ancient Egypt seems to correspond with an unexpected high number
of gold production sites in the Eastern Desert of Egypt and Nubia. This presentation discusses the geology of the different
varieties of the primary gold occurrences (always related to auriferous quartz mineralization in veins or shear zones) as
well as the variable physico-chemical genesis of the gold concentrations. The main issue in the ancient gold mineralization is
the development of mining tools rather than geological challenge, owing to the gold abundance in the non-excavated sites in
the eastern desert in the ancient times. The development of gold mining over time, from Predynastic (ca. 3000 BC) until the
end of Arab gold production times (about 1350 AD), including the spectacular Pharaonic periods is outlined, with examples
of its remaining artifacts, settlements and mining sites in remote regions of the Eastern Desert of Egypt. Briefly, this
presentation outlines the main geologic conditions that form the gold ore concentrations in the eastern desert region, the
history of gold exploitation in this region & Nubia , the advance in gold mineralization tools, & an inventory for the mining
sites in the eastern desert , discussing in sum the major mining sites there. Finally, some estimates on the scale of gold
production are presented.
Research group;
- Esraa Sabry Ahmed (110501)
- Shady Shokri Mohammed (110612)
- Mohammed Magdy Mohammed (110726)
- Mahmood Mohammed Ramadan (110752)

title

Page no.

introduction

Modes of occurrence of gold ore

concentrations

Index of ancient peroids of mining

activity in the eastern desert

Gold mining in the earliest hunter

peroid

Gold production in pre & early

dynastic times

10

Gold production in old & middle

kingdom age

14

Gold production in new kingdom

age

19

Gold production in ptolemaic

(greek) age

28

Gold production in kushitic times

in nubia

32

Gold production in roman &

byzantine times

34

Gold production in arab times

37

Estimation of gold amount

produced in the pharaonic egypt

39

Appendix of mining sites in the

eastern desert

40

refernces

49

parts of this Eastern

L argeDesert
belong geologically

to the Precambrian basement

of the Arabian Nubian shield
and host around 250 gold
production sites, which were
mined during different periods
of ancient Egyptian history.
Most of these sites were visited
by the authors during field
campaigns between 1960s and
1999; at the locations of all
economically significant gold
anomalies they discovered
traces of extant mining such as
stone mills, remains of
settlements and mine-shafts,
indicating a long history of
ancient extraction.

Gold mineralization associated with

mafic to ultramafic units of ophiolitic
affinity, such as basalts andesites
(amphibolites) & serpentinites with
remains of pyroxenites &/or with
their clastic erosion products such as
greywackes and conglomerates.

1
Two main general geological environments of gold
mineralization exploited by the ancient miners in the
Egyptian eastern desert

Two main general geological environments of gold

mineralization exploited by the ancient miners in the
Egyptian eastern desert

2
Towards the southern part of the
Egyptian Eastern Desert, mainly
in NE Sudan, the gold
environment changes to more
rhyoliticandesitic volcanic rocks
with less common intercalations
of clastic sedimentary rocks and
marbles.
This environment was penetrated
By late granitoids producing the
perfect tectonic setting to allow for gold-quartz vein-mineralization.
The only present-day gold producer in NE Sudan
is the Sudanese-French joint venture operation of
Ariab*. At this locality high quality gold ore is
mined in extreme intensively leached SEDEX*

(sedimentary-exhalative) deposits, occurring in a

sequence of highly folded acid volcanics of
mainly rhyolitic character. Due to superficial
leaching, only a sponge type whitish silica residue
remains from the former SEDEX-deposit,
enriched up to 50 ppm in Au.

Geographic
position:
184152N,352334E
Ariab (Arabic:
) is a region of Sudan, located in
the Nubian Desert. It is inhabited by the Beja
people, and is home to the countrys only
commercial gold mine, run by French giant Areva.
Gold mining has historically been crucially
important for the desert region since Pharaonic
times.

Sedimentary exhalative deposits (SedEx deposits)

are ore deposits which are interpreted to have
been formed by release of ore-bearing
hydrothermal fluids into a water reservoir (usually
the ocean), resulting in the precipitation of
stratiform ore. SedEx deposits are the most
important source of lead, zinc and barite, a major
contributor of silver, copper, gold, bismuth and
tungsten.

According to drill core results, this leached zone changes gradually into a pyrite dominated
massive sulphide ore body, which is stratabound and folded, with only an average of 0.5 ppm Au.
It appears quite likely that sulphidic SEDEX occurrences or their oxidized remains might have
been the primary gold source of this second type, hydrothermally leached and redeposited,
forming the gold-bearing quartz mineralization investigated during our studies.

Index of ancient periods of mining

activity in the eastern desert
1. Earliest Hunters Period
(fourth mill. BC).
2. Pre-and Early Dynastic Period
(two-hand hammer period)
(~30002700 BC).
3. Old and Middle Kingdom
(~27001800 BC).
4. New Kingdom to the
third Intermediate Period
(~15501070 BC).
5. Ptolemaic Period
(~30030 BC).
6. Kingdoms of Kush
& Mero in Nubia
(~700 BC100 AD).
7. Roman-Byzantine
Period (~30 BC641 AD).
8. Early Arab Period
(ninth to eleventh
century AD).

In the Eastern Desert of Egypt, remains of gold

production sites were dated to the time of Earliest
Hunters* of Winkler (1938), who classified this
nomadic population as part of the Amratiens*, in the
middle of the fourth millennium BC. During this time,
obviously only small nuggets were picked from the
wadi grounds.
Yet, as accumulation of gold
nuggets in the recent wades
free of continually flowing
river
systems
is
not
pertinent, the occurrence of
visible nuggets must have
been restricted to the few
remaining wadi grounds
from Pleistocene times.
Such a system is preserved in the area around Umm
Eleiga* in the southern part of the central Eastern
Desert of Egypt, where stone fields bearing decorations
of the Earliest Hunters could be detected.

Winkler(1938) ascribes this Predynastic group to the

so-called Earliest Hunters of the Amratian culture
& dates it to the middle of the fourth millennium BC.
They specifically depict wild animals, such as
ostriches & elephants in loosely arranged
compositions. The high density of the rock art
representations seems on any account to suggest a
long period of occupation as well as to some extent
an area quite wealthy in gold.
Amratiens:
Prehistoric period between ca. 4500 and 3500 BC.
Named after the site at Amra in Upper Egypt.

Umm
Eleiga;
Geographic
position:
Large building complex: 243706 N, 345916 E
Mine area: 243644 N, 350319 E

The large Early Arab Period building complex at

Umm Eleiga. Relatively small room units are
crossed by a central road.

In the beginning, the earliest discoveries of

gold nugget s in the Eastern Desert of Egypt
had probably been relatively sporadic and
fortuitous. Such gold placers from the wadi
beds are rare relics (secondary deposits) from
the Pleistocene that had formed in the
drainage system around auriferous quartz
veins (primary deposits). Nuggets are typically
much richer in gold than the gold from primary
deposits. This is explained by the forging
action provoked by mechanical transport of
wadi rubble in flowing water, which also
engenders the exsolution of their natural silver
contents that are present in all Egyptian gold
deposits.Published analyses carried out on
Egyptian gold artifacts have so far had
relatively discouraging results as to the golds
origin in either primary or secondary deposits.

Established gold-silver proportions seem to

vary unsystematically within samples from
various periods. Natural gold occurrences
were probably not methodically sought for as
opposed to later periods. It may rather have
found its way into the Nile Valley as placer
gold sporadically bartered by desert nomads.
Winkler (1938 ) ascribes this Predynastic group
to the so-called Earliest Hunters of the
Amratian culture and dates it to the middle of
the fourth millennium BC. They specifically
depict wild animals, such as ostriches and
elephants in loosely arranged compositions.
The high density of the rock art
representations seems on any account to
suggest a long period of occupation as well as
to some extent an area quite wealthy in gold.

Discoveries of gold artifacts, dating back as far

as the Predynastic time (about 3500 BC)
demonstrate that gold production must have
taken place in Ancient Egypt as well.

Furthermore, discoveries of the oldest mining

tools are connected to mining sites associated
with superficially altered quartz vein systems,
which originally contained a variable coppersulphide mineralization, that is almost
completely leached out and which has been
re-deposited as typical green malachite (and
some other green secondary copper minerals)
within the host rocks joint system.

Statistical analysis of the geological

environments around Pre- and Early dynastic
mining sites indicate unambiguously that the
earliest prospectors concentrated their mining
activities on well-selected geological targets of
gold enriched quartz veins, mainly in
granodioritic rims of Neoproterozoic granitic
intrusions, belonging to the so called older and Obviously this green staining guided early
younger granites of the Eastern Desert.
prospectors to the auriferous quartz veins.
Apart from gold, those malachite enriched
sites also were mined for copper.

Gold mining sensu strictu in Ancient Egypt started in

Predynastic time with open pits and moderate
underground activities (Fig.1).

(Fig.1)
Trench of an Early Dynastic gold mining site at Abu Mureiwat, Eastern Desert, Egypt. Both sides
of the formerly protruding quartz vein are filled up by waste, including broken stone hammers
and ceramic fragments.

During this early period, the gold-bearing quartz

veins were crushed in situ to a fine powder fraction
by huge calabash-shaped stone hammers of 610 kg
weight, which must have been held with both hands
(Fig.2)

(Fig.2)
Abandoned fine-grained granodioritic two-handed stone hammers from Pre- to Early Dynastic
Higalig gold mine, southern Eastern Desert, Egypt. Modern hammer: 30 cm.

In this way the gold slivers within the quartz were

liberated for later processing. This mining method
formed conspicuous smooth surfaces, both at the
walls and the stopes of the underground operations.
However, until now no convincing field evidence for
a gold concentration procedure could be discovered.

Apart from the large two handed stone hammers,

different types of discus-shaped hammers have also
been found within Predynastic sites. This hammer
type obviously was used only to gain lumpy quartz
ore from the brittle vein systems, which was
powdered later by the large hammers.

Heavy duty two-hand hammers used for crushing quartz ores during extraction. Higalig mine,
Egypt

Fist hammers (on the right) with originally pointed impact surfaces for chipping off ore
fragments. Old Kingdom, Abu Mureiwat, Egypt

Lumpy quartz

During the Old (27002160 BC) and Middle

Kingdom (21191794 BC) the previously
described prospecting method of searching for
malachite staining in the host rocks continued
in general, but in addition hematite enriched
quartz veins (in places with barite) became
important for exploration and, in case of gold
discovery, for subsequent mining targets.

vein systems, but two new basic types of stone

hammer were developed: an oval stone axe of
25 kg weight with a chiseled notch for a
forked wooden stick and a more or less
cylindrical one-handed stone hammer with a
chiseled, ergonomically formed handle (Fig.3).

(Fig.3)
Ergonomically formed one-handed andesitic stone hammers used in Old and Middle
Kingdom times. Abu Mureiwat gold mining site, Eastern Desert, Egypt.

Mortar from red granite and pounder used for crushing quartz ores. Middle
Kingdom, Daghbag, Egypt

Old Kingdom gold mining techniques ontinued

with in situ crushing of the gold-bearing quartz

With the advantage of these new mining

implements a more effective exploitation of
the auriferous quartz veins could be
established.

During the Middle Kingdom this tool inventory in

general continued, but additional stone mortars
were introduced, allowing for the lumpy quartz ore
to be crushed first to about pea-sized grains and
then for grinding it to a powder fraction. Again, no
archaeological evidence for further gold recovery
treatments during this period could be discovered,
but the remark of the nomarch* (provincial ruler)
Ameni, who is quoted in his Beni Hassan* tomb as
having said I forced their (Nubian) chiefs to wash
the gold gives a clear hint that hydro-metallurgical
concentration processes were well established
during these periods. The majority of miners in
these times were most probably members of desert
tribes and not Egyptians of the Nile valley. This is
suggested by the ergonomically formed handle of
the one-hand stone hammers, fitting best in a hand
of 1820 cm in size, rather than one of 11 13 cm,
which was the average for the Nile valley population
at that time. Furthermore, this could be verified by
sporadic finds of typical Nubian pottery. On the
other hand, it has to be emphasized that typical
Egyptian pottery of that time, such as red polished
Medium bowls were also frequently discovered in
the surveyed surface remains, which can be seen as
a hint for stronger Egyptian control of the mining
operations, in contrast to the previous Egyptian
restriction on gold trading.

Beni Hasan;
Coordinates: 2756N 3053E / 27.933N 30.883E
(Arabic: ) is an Ancient Egyptian cemetery
site. It is located approximately 20 kilometers to the
south of modern-day Minya in the region known as
Middle Egypt, the area between Asyut and
Memphis. While there are some Old Kingdom
burials at the site, it was primarily used during the
Middle Kingdom, spanning the 21st to 17th
centuries BCE (Middle Bronze Age).
Nomarches (Ancient Egyptian: heri-tep a'a) were the
semi-feudal rulers of Ancient Egyptian provinces.
Serving as provincial governors, they each held
authority over one of the 42 nomes (Egyptian:
sepat) into which the country was divided. Nome is
derived from the Greek nomos, meaning a province
or district, and nomarch is derived from the Greek
title nomarches (), the ruler of a nomos.[1]
The nomarches exercised considerable power. The
division of the kingdom into nomes can be
documented as far back as the Old Kingdom (in the
3rd millennium BCE) and continued even up until
the Roman period.

In Fig. 4, only a few gold mining sites for both Preand Early dynastic times and Old and Middle
Kingdom periods are shown.

(Fig.4)
Distribution of the Pre- and Early dynastic, Old and Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom gold
production sites in the Eastern Desert of Egypt. Note the wide activities all over the Desert
regions even into the very southernmost parts.

This corresponds with the low number of known gold artifacts from those
early periods, compared to the later periods. However, quite a few of the early
mining sites might have been so intensively overprinted by later operations
that today no older surface remains are still visible. The first military campaign
in the 18th year of Sesostris I* (19561911 BC), at the beginning of the Middle
Kingdom, was most probably organized to gain access to the Nubian gold. It is
recorded by the Sesotoris I nomarch Ameni, in his tomb at Beni Hassan, that
he undertook expeditions to Nubia from where he returned with gold and gold
ore for his king. However, almost all ancient gold mines of these early times
are more or less collapsed, and any estimation of the maximum depth without
archaeological excavations is debatable; nevertheless, depths in open trenches
of up to about 25 m seem realistic.

Senusret I (also Sesostris I and Senwosret I) was the

second pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. He
ruled from 1971 BC to 1926 BC, and was one of the
most powerful kings of this Dynasty. He was the son
of Amenemhat I and his wife Nefertitanen. His wife
and sister was Neferu. She was also the mother of
the successor Amenemhat II.

(Fig.5)
Distribution of the New Kingdom and Early Arab gold production sites in NE Sudan. Note the concentration of the sites along the
river Nile, but also the widely scattered localities all over the vast distances of the Nubian Desert. Note further that the Arab gold
production sites never passed westwards the line situated at approximately Wadi Halfa Abu Hamed.

From the New Kingdom (1550

1070 BC) period onwards, gold
mining operations concentrated
more in the central Eastern
Desert, predominantly south of
the Qena-Safaga road, and were
also spread over the eastern
portion of the Red Sea hills. Due
to the conquest of Nubia,
exploitation of the Wadi Allaqi
area and deep into the NE Sudan
(Figs. 4 & 5) also became
possible. Moreover, the gold
prospecting
targets
were
significantly enlarged: in the
vicinity of the older mining sites
quartz vein systems free of
hematite and green copper
aureoles were also successfully
prospected.
More
detailed
studies of the quartz vein
systems exploited during New
Kingdom periods indicate the
profound knowledge of the

ancient
prospectors.
They
obviously were aware of the
general structural control of
gold-bearing
veins,
which
despite showing different strikepatterns in different parts of the
Eastern Desert, have a general
tendency of northsouth or
eastwest strike directions. The
prospectors followed only veins
of these known productive
orientations and ignored the
many others running divergently
within the same prospecting
area.

Characteristic blue-green malachite linings in the cleft

structures of the wall rock had probably been the most
important indicators for copper and gold ores in the
period of Old/Middle Kingdom. Umm Soleimat

In addition, unexplored new areas with an

enlarged geological framework were
prospected during New Kingdom times.
Particular emphasis was placed on geological
environments characterized by basaltic
(amphibolitic) and serpentinitic lithologies
with or without black shales, in the vicinity of
granitoid batholiths. Furthermore, due to the
systematic exploration of remote desert
regions during New Kingdom times, granitic
granodioritic areas in the southern and
eastern parts of the Eastern Desert became
new and important prospecting and mining
targets. These were extended to the Wadi
Allaqi and even to the North-Eastern Sudan.
As an important innovation, intensive gold
prospecting and processing were extended to
include wadi-working operations, where
gold-bearing
quartz
samples
were
systematically picked from the coarse
grained fractions of the wadi sediments. At
these sites, the simultaneous employment of
hundreds of workers was possible, in
contrast to the severely limited number of

miners
in
underground
workings.
Archaeologically these wadi works are
preserved in extended settlements along the
exploited wadis. Normally house ruins
remain only at the wadi boundaries, parallel
to the hillsides as the remainder of the
settlements was mostly washed away by
sporadic floods, but in a few cases ruins still
cover entire wadi sites. Consequently these
sites led to an enormous increase in gold
production, documented by an increase of
known gold artefacts from those times.

Cubic New Kingdom pounding stone with six impact hollows, Wadi Allaqi Region

In addition to the greatly expanded mining

activities, a radically new milling technique
had a strong impact on gold production at
the onset of the New Kingdom: mill stones
up to 80 cm long and 3050 cm wide, with a
flat and oval-shaped grinding plane, and
differently sized sets of mill stones used with
one or both hands (Fig. 6) were introduced.

milling techniques into the gold ore

processing industry can be regarded as an
indication that only from New Kingdom times
onwards were the majority of miners
Egyptians from the Nile valley.

Flat grinding mill and fi st grinder from the New Kingdom for producing quartz
powder. Marahig, Wadi Allaqi

(Fig.6)
New Kingdom oval shaped andesitic stone mill with a selection of grinding
stones from Hairiri gold mining site, Wadi Allaqi, southern Eastern Desert, Egypt
(scale is 10 cm).

These stone mills are similar to the flour mills

commonly used in the Nile valley since very
early times. The introduction of these flour

This assumption is also confirmed by the

predominant occurrence of typical New
Kingdom pottery remains within mining sites
in the Egyptian Eastern Desert, but partly
also in Nubia.

Before milling, the initial lumpy ore was

crushed down to about bean-sized particles
with a double-sided stone anvil of about
30*30 cm and a rounded stone pestle of 0.5
2 kg weight. Demonstrably, the separation of
barren and gold-bearing quartz fragments
exclusively by eye was perfected by the
workers, as small and uncommon remaining
mine dump heaps in the wadi grounds today
contain only milky white and translucent
barren quartz gravels (Fig. 7).
Anvil slab and pestle for reducing ore chunks. Neguib, Wadi Allaqi

Separation of gold from the fine-milled

quartz powder fraction was managed by
washing as attested by preserved tailing
dumps. At first view these tailings appear as
mostly pink to reddish heaps of quartz sand,
analogous to normal desert sand.

(Fig.7)
Remaining New Kingdom waste dam heaps from wadi workings at Umm
Garaiyat, Wadi Allaqi, southern Eastern Desert, Egypt. Note that parts of the
wadi ground became flooded later, destroying most of the ancient situation.
Tailing consisting of processed sand residues. El-Sid mining district, Egypt

Investigation with a simple hand lens, however,

reveals both sharp edged quartz grains which are
artificial products as well as remaining gold
concentrations of about 35 g/t. This rather high
residual gold content unfortunately caused the
destruction of many ancient gold production sites at
the beginning of the 20th century, when modern gold
production started with cyanide leaching* of the old
tailings, thus destroying most of the preserved and
untouched original archaeological sites. At quite a few
of the New Kingdom gold production sites, inclined
gold washing tables constructed of stone fragments,
consolidated by primitive clay/sand mortar and with a
surface covered by a layer of the same material, can
be observed. The lengths of these washing tables vary
between 2.2 and 4 m, and they are 4060 cm wide and
80100 cm high, corresponding with an inclination
angle of 1520 (Fig.8).

Ball-and-stick model of the aurocyanide

dicyanoaurate(I) complex anion, [Au(CN)2]

or

Gold cyanidation; (also known as the cyanide

process or the MacArthur-Forrest process) is a
metallurgical technique for extracting gold from
low-grade ore by converting the gold to a water
soluble coordination complex. It is the most
commonly used process for gold extraction.

(Fig.7)
Inclined Arab period washing table. This type of washing table could be archaeologically assigned
in use from New Kingdom times on, but might have been in use already since earlier periods. Due
to the intensive obliteration of these very old usages, they can no longer be recognized.

At the end of this slope the

washing water was recovered in
a box about 60 cm deep and
wide, walled by stone slabs and
sealed again with the described
mortar. Here also the detritus of
the
quartz
tailings
was
deposited, from where it was
dumped close by, at the tailing
heaps, still partly preserved in
many cases today.

New Kingdom tailing heap and remains of an inclined washing

table within the Heimur mining area

A mortar-sealed and stone slab

protected gutter conducted the
water back to a large, 80-60 cm
basin, from where the water was
recycled for further gold washing
processes, most probably with
primitive shadoufs (a scooping
bucket conveyor, still in use in
Egypt and Nubia today).

The question remains, however,

as to how the planar surface of
the inclined table was prepared,
to separate the fine-grained gold
particles liberated by the grinding
process from the quartz ore. No
direct archaeological evidence
exists for this important step in
ancient gold recovery. Due to the
lack of any archaeological relicts
in this respect it might be
assumed that the covers of these
inclined tables were of organic
materials. Here in general two
possibilities are likely, either a
wooden
grid
or
simply
sheepskins, as both were
commonly used in the more
recent past for separation of gold
slivers and quartz sand fractions.
The sheepskin hypothesis is
supported by the supposition that
sheep were available at the
mining sites as food, & further,
both the lanolin grease & the

washed fibers of the sheepskins

would have trapped the sharpedged gold particles whereas the
barren quartz particles were
carried off with the water
suspension. The legend of the
Golden Fleece*, therefore, may
have been of Egyptian origin & of
far greater antiquity than the
voyage of the Argonauts. Finally,
burning the pelts containing the
gold particles yields a raw gold
product, but obviously no witness
to this last possible step of the
gold recovery procedure would
remain. In the early New Kingdom
times, approximately between
the reigns of Thutmosis I* (1504
1492 BC) & Amenophis IV* (1351
1334 BC), Nubia was conquered &
incorporated into the Egyptian NK
empire. Most probably the name
Nubia is alliterated from nub,
the ancient Egyptian word for
gold.

In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece (Greek:

chrysmallon dras) is the
fleece of the gold-hair winged ram, which was held
in Colchis. The fleece is a symbol of authority and
kingship. It figures in the tale of the hero Jason and
his band of Argonauts, who set out on a quest for
the fleece by order of King Pelias, in order to place
Jason rightfully on the throne of Iolcus in Thessaly.
Through the help of Medea, they acquire the Golden
Fleece.
Thutmose I (sometimes read as Thothmes,
Thutmosis or Tuthmosis I, meaning Thoth-Born) was
the third Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Egypt. He
was given the throne after the death of the previous
king Amenhotep I. During his reign, he campaigned
deep into the Levant and Nubia, pushing the
borders of Egypt further than ever before. He also
built many temples in Egypt and built a tomb for
himself in the Valley of the Kings; he is the first king
confirmed to have done this (though Amenhotep I
may have preceded him).

Akhenaten (/kntn/; also spelled Echnaton,

Akhenaton, Ikhnaton, and Khuenaten; meaning
Effective for Aten") known before the fifth year of
his reign as Amenhotep IV (sometimes given its
Greek form, Amenophis IV, and meaning Amun is
Satisfied), was a pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty
of Egypt who ruled for 17 years and died perhaps in
1336 BC or 1334 BC. He is especially noted for
abandoning traditional Egyptian polytheism and
introducing worship centered on the Aten, which is
sometimes described as monotheistic or
henotheistic. An early inscription likens the Aten to
the sun as compared to stars, and later official
language avoids calling the Aten a god, giving the
solar deity a status above mere gods.

As already mentioned above, the

NK-nomarch Ameni forced the
chiefs of the Nubians to perform
gold washing. As alluvial river
gold is still panned today in parts
of Nubia, especially in the area
around Shamkhiya*, some 30 km
west of Abu Hamed, this or a
similar technique may already
have
been
known
during
Pharaonic times. Inscriptions on
dedication lists at NK Egyptian
temples like Medinet Habu*,
where gold of the water is
registered,
support
gold
extraction from alluvial (wadi and
river sediments) sources (Fig. 9).
Nevertheless, no convincing
archaeological evidence exists for
panning or equivalent techniques
having been applied during
Pharaonic periods. The unique,
probable gold washing plant
reported by Vercoutter (1959)

from the vicinity of Faras* (now

under the water of Lake Sudan), is
doubtful, as the author himself
was puzzled whether this could
not possibly have been an
installation for wine production.
The well-organized housing areas
of the various gold working sites
of New Kingdom times are
constructed mainly of 34
roomed houses, with dry stone
walls about 30 cm wide and up to
1.5 m high &, in many cases, with
a front terrace (Fig.10).
The lack of any protective
enclosing walls indicates that
during this period the Eastern
Desert of Egypt was peaceful and
under the direct control of
Pharaonic Egypt.

Geographic position: 192757 N, 325939 E

(Fig.9)
Nubians (upper part) bringing gold in pochettes and ring
ingots. Copy of wall painting remains in the tomb of Huy,
viceroy of Kush (Nubia) under Tutankhamun, end of 18th
dynasty, New Kingdom.

(Fig.10)
Remains of a five roomed stone house from the New
Kingdom settlement of Tilat Gadalla, Eastern Desert,
Egypt.

Coordinates: 254310.92N 32362.52E /

25.7197000N 32.6007000E
Medinet Habu is the name commonly given to the
Mortuary Temple of Ramesses III, an important New
Kingdom period structure in the location of the
same name on the West Bank of Luxor in Egypt.
Aside from its intrinsic size and architectural and
artistic importance, the temple is probably best
known as the source of inscribed reliefs depicting
the advent and defeat of the Sea Peoples during the
reign of Ramesses III.

Faras (formerly Ancient Greek: , Pakhras;

Latin: Pachoras) was a major city in Lower Nubia.
The site of the city, on the border between modern
Egypt and Sudan at Wadi Halfa Salient, was flooded
by Lake Nasser in the 1960s and is now permanently
underwater. Before this flooding, extensive
archeological work was conducted by a Polish
archeological team.

Mining
technique
improved
significantly in NK times, mainly
of the introduction of bronze
chisels, which allowed a much
more selective separation of the
gold-bearing quartz generations
of a multiphase quartz vein from
the barren parts of the host rocks.

The miners followed selectively

the most promising ore shoots,
which resulted locally in a
somewhat chaotic pattern of the
underground
operations.
Fortunately, in most mines
supporting pillars at sufficiently

safe spacings ensured the safety

of the ancient miners as well as
our recent samplers. During NK
time no sophisticated ventilation
of the underground operations
was developed, limiting the
maximum depth of operation to
about 30 m, the maximum depth
for maintaining a sufficient
oxygen level by normal circulation
for men and burning oil lamps. In
Figs. 5 & 6 the distribution of the
many NK gold production sites in
Egypt and NE Sudan provides an
impression of the very extensive
gold
production
operations
carried out during New Kingdom
times. However, it should be
emphasized that in Nubia these
activities were restricted only to
the rather limited period between
about the reign of Thutmosis III*
and Amenophis III*. From the
weak Egyptian government of

Amenophis
IV
onwards,
throughout
the
Ramesside*
(about 13001100 BC) period, no
archaeological
evidence
for
Pharaonic gold mining within the
Nubian Desert, south of Wadi
Allaqi could be detected. In the
Egyptian Eastern Desert, primary
NK gold production started
already early in the 18th dynasty
and collapsed completely by the
end of the Ramesside period, and
seems to have been suspended
throughout the entire Late
Period, until early Ptolemaic
times.

Thutmose III (sometimes read as Thutmosis or

Tuthmosis III, Thothmes in older history works, and
meaning "Thoth is born) was the sixth Pharaoh of
the Eighteenth Dynasty. During the first twenty-two
years of Thutmoses reign he was co-regent with his
stepmother and aunt, Hatshepsut, who was named
the pharaoh. After her death and his later rise to
pharaoh of the kingdom, he created the largest
empire Egypt had ever seen; no fewer than
seventeen campaigns were conducted, and he
conquered from Niya in North Syria to the Fourth
Cataract of the Nile in Nubia.

Amenhotep III (Hellenized as Amenophis III;

Egyptian Amna-tpa; meaning Amun is Satisfied)
also known as Amenhotep the Magnificent was the
ninth pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty. According
to different authors, he ruled Egypt from June 1386
to 1349 BC or June 1388 BC to December 1351
BC/1350 BC[4] after his father Thutmose IV died.
Amenhotep III was the son of Thutmose by a minor
wife Mutemwiya.

The Ramesside period; is so-called after the eleven

kings with the name Ramesses, who ruled in the
Nineteenth to the Twentieth Dynasties. Ramesses II
(about 1279-1213 BC) faced the armies of the Hittite
empire at the Battle of Kadesh and as a result
became a role model for his successors. Partly in
response to the threat of foreign incursions, he
founded a capital in the Nile Delta, known as
Piramesse.

It is very likely that in Ptolemaic & also in Roman times

essentially no new prospecting strategies were developed &
that only the ancient NK Pharaonic mining sites were
reorganized & mined out. The mining was again limited by
underground shaft termination at a final ventilation depth,
approximately 30 m below surface (below which oil lamps
are no longer able to function). Only those mines which were
located close to the desert roads were further exploited or
re-established in Ptolemaic & Roman times (Fig. 11). Klemm
et al investigations within the Wadi Allaqi area, in contrast to
Castiglioni & Vercoutter (1995) did not confirm any
Ptolemaic mining site & it is most doubtful whether during
that period any gold mining activity was feasible in this area,
due to the aggressive desert tribes dominating the entire
southern Eastern Desert & reaching deep into what is now
NE Sudan. Most probably the common placing of
Agatharchides* border of Ethiopia by Egyptologists at the
Wadi Allaqi is misleading & the relevant locality must be
sought much further towards the north. In fact, the known
Ptolemaic gold mining sites cluster mainly within the central
Eastern Desert around the more or less west-east running
Qena-Safaga, Quft-Qoseir, Edfu-Berenice & Laqeita-Berenice
(Fig.11) roads, where fortifications guaranteed at least some safety
(see Fig. 11).
Remains of a five roomed stone house from the New Kingdom settlement of Tilat
Gadalla, Eastern Desert, Egypt.

Agatharchides or Agatharchus (Greek:

or , Agatharchos) of Cnidus was a Greek
historian and geographer (flourished 2nd century
BC). and the work of Artemidorus.

A dramatic improvement in
milling
technique
&
ore
processing was introduced by the
Ptolemees. They used concave
shaped mill stones of 7080 cm
length & 30 40 cm width, with
parallel incised, 2 mm deep
grooves on the milling plane.
Semi-circular two-lugged mill
stones of 510 kg weight were
moved by hand over the grinding
plane, milling the pea-sized
crushed quartz into a powder
fraction & setting free the fine
gold slivers (Fig. 12).With this
swinging milling method the
whole process was about five
times more effective than earlier
methods.
Based on Agatharchides, reported
by Diodor III*, 12 gold mining sites
took place in the southern part of
Egypt, close to the border of
Ethiopia. In spite of justified

doubts about the authenticity of

Agatharchides description it is
generally accepted that gold
mining took place in the Wadi
Allaqi district during Ptolemaic
times, although the exact area is
not mentioned literally.

Greek invention but derived from

the Minoan island of Crete,
where we have discovered this
mill type within the ruins of the
Minoan cities of Gournia and
Festos.

(Fig.12)
Concave shaped Ptolemaic gold mill with a two handled mill
stone, with a two handled grinding stone, together
producing a swinging milling technique and thereby
increasing the fineness of the quartz ore powder fraction.
Gidami gold mining site, Eastern Desert, Egypt.

For crushing, the old anvil and

pestle system remained, but with
an enlarged size of the crusher
stone. Most probably this new
design of a concave shaped
milling stone is not an original

Concave Ptolemaic grinding mill with apron shaped runner

stone. Hangaliya, Egypt

Concave cereal mill from the Minoan city of Gournia, Crete

Diodorus Siculus (/dadrsskjls/; Greek: Diodoros Sikeliotes) or Diodorus

of Sicily was a Greek historian. He is known for
writing the monumental universal history
Bibliotheca historica, much of which survives,
between 60 and 30 BC. It is arranged in three parts.
The first covers mythic history up to the destruction
of Troy, arranged geographically, describing regions
around the world from Egypt, India and Arabia to
Greece and Europe. The second covers the Trojan
War to the death of Alexander the Great. The third
covers the period to about 60BC. The title
Bibliotheca, meaning 'library', acknowledges that he
was drawing on the work of many other authors.

Obviously, based on the Greek

mining experience, Ptolemaic
underground mining in Egyptian
gold mines became significantly
improved. Thus, in gently dipping
gold quartz vein workings, dome
shaped mine ceilings allowed for
the reduction of supporting
pillars, to separation distances of
46 m, which increased the
minable
output.
Another
important improvement was the
adaptation
of
circular
concentration washing plants
from the Laurion mining district
in Attica.

Circular installation for gravity separation of heavy minerals

in Laurion/Attica, ~400 BC

Due to this development it

became possible to process also
primary gold-bearing sulphidic
ores with pyrite, chalcopyrite,
galena, sphalerite & arsenopyrite,
hitherto not extractable. Remains
of such concentration plants (Fig.
13) are well preserved at
Daghbag, Bokari &, in spite of
recent destruction, also at
Barramiya. The reasons for the
reduced Ptolemaic gold mining
activities in the Central Eastern
Desert of Egypt are not reported
in historical documents, but we
know from Roman sources that
large parts of the Eastern Desert
& Nubia were not to be subdued
due to the aggressive attitudes of
the local nomadic tribes, which
the Romans called Blemmyes*.
The Bisharin tribes* inhabiting
this region today are regarded as
their descendants, & still

habitually
daggers.

carry

swords

&
The Blemmyes (Latin Blemmyae) were a nomadic
Nubian tribal kingdom that existed from at least 600
BC to the 8th century AD. They were described in
Roman histories of the later empire. From the late
3rd century on, along with another tribe, the
Nobadae, they repeatedly fought the Romans. They
were said to live in Africa, in Nubia, Kush, or Sudan.
They also became fictionalized as a legendary race
of acephalous (headless) monsters who had eyes
and mouths on their chest.
The Bisharin are an ethnic group inhabiting
Northeast Africa. They are one of the major
divisions of the Beja nomadic population. The
Bisharin speak the Beja language, which belongs to
the Afro-Asiatic family.

(Fig.13)
Remains of a circular heavy mineral concentrator from
Daghbag gold mine, Eastern Desert, Egypt, introduced
during Ptolemaic times into Egyptian gold ore processing,
but originally designed in the Laurion district, Attica, Greece.

In Nubia quite a few NK gold mining sites

became reworked later, reusing the older
tools, especially the stone mills. At these
sites one can observe that the typical,
rather flat NK oval, trough-shaped stone
mills bear a distinct deeper secondary
concavity, indicating a different and later
type of handling of the milling technique.
The most probable age for renewed
mining of these sites was during the
strong Kushitic Kingdom (about 800400
BC). Unfortunately, at these sites only
local Nubian ceramics, hard to assign to a
distinct period, have been found and
more detailed excavations are needed to
yield a better chronology. The relatively
few sites where this reworked mill stone
variety, dating to the Kushitic period, was
identified might not have been the only
gold source of this time, because
according to Amenis report, washing of
gold took place in Nubia at least since
Middle Kingdom times.

New Kingdom ore mill, displaying considerable use wear, probably from secondary
utilisation later in the Kushite Period. Wadi Amur

Originally evenly worn New Kingdom stone mill from Nubt, probably reclaimed and
worn down in the Kushite Period

During Roman & Byzantine

times,
gold
production
decreased dramatically due to
continuous attacks by the desert
tribes of the Blemmyes. The
Roman presence in the Eastern
Desert was restricted exclusively
to well protected desert roads,
with fortifications spaced at
about a days walk. It became
economically
ineffective
to
protect the many gold mining
sites scattered all over the
desert. Only a few highly
productive sites close to the
protected
roads
remained
operable during Roman times.

quern technology, originally a

Celtic invention. This type of a
round mill, of 3045 cm in
diameter, consists of a basal
stone with a disc-shaped hollow
in which a round convex upper
turning stone was fitted that had
a central axial hole and a lateral
one for the handle stick (Fig. 14).

(Fig.14)
Cylindrical granitic rotation stone mill (quern) with
wellpreserved upper rotation stones for central &
peripheral handle sticks, introduced by the Romans but
predominantly used in Arab times. Gabatilo Arab mining
camp, Nubian Desert, NE Sudan.

The quern produced an even

finer powder fraction with an
improved gold recovery in about
a third of the time required by
the earlier method. The crushing
stones are of characteristic small
size (about 15*15 cm) and were
used as both hammers and
anvils. The same tools remained
in use until Arab times and
querns are still used today within
rural areas as flour mills.
Spatial distribution of the Roman-Byzantine gold mining
sites in the Egyptian Eastern Desert. The extremely low
number may result from instability caused by attacks
from belligerent Blemmyes-tribes.

In spite of the highly evolved

Roman prospecting experience,
the gold mining activities in the
Eastern Desert dropped nearly to
zero in contrast to other regions
of the Roman empire. The final
improvement
in
the
effectiveness of gold processing
was the import of the Roman

Round mill Also referred to as rotation mill or quern. It

consists of a lower stone base with a round grinding
surface & an upper rotating disc referred to as rotor
stone. It was used to grind crushed quartz pebbles down
to a powder fraction from which gold flitters were
separated.

Elongated Roman/Byzantine settlement, being the largest

and best preserved in the Bir Umm el-Fawakhir district
(pos. 3).

Detail of the environment around Bir Umm el-Fawakhir

(modified Google-Earth image).

For Byzantine times, only very

poor archaeological evidence for
gold mining exists. Even for the
settlement at Bir Umm el
Fawakhir which was inhabited
during Byzantine times, and
despite the assumption of Meyer
and
Heidorn
(1998),
no
unequivocal proof for gold ore
dressing could be found by us
during an extended survey. The
Bedouin tribes, dominating the
entire Eastern Desert of Egypt
and
the
Nubian
Desert,
traditionally were not interested
in mining and so they still are
today refusing any digging in the
ground, including even simple
agriculture
in
sufficiently
watered wadi grounds

Well-preserved ruins of dry walled houses near the Roman

granite quarries (pos. 2) where un fi nished ashlars still
scatter in the plain (arrow).

Spatial distribution of the Early Arab Period gold mining

sites in the Nubian Eastern Desert. Their limitation to
eastern regions with an evident distance to the Nile may
possibly be linked to an opposition by the Christian
Kingdoms of Nobatia and Makuria until the middle of the
fourteenth century.

For the early Arab times no field

evidence
for
primary
underground gold prospection
could be detected & only existing
ancient mining sites became
reactivated all over the entire
Eastern Desert. In contrast, in NE
Sudan away from areas close to
the River Nile, extensive wadi
working operations in secondary
gold deposits were started in the
Eastern Desert regions at many

new sites. In general, it seems

that the mining activities during
this period became more
concentrated in the southern
parts of the Egyptian Eastern
Desert including the Wadi Allaqi
& especially in the NE Sudan.
Within
these
areas
gold
mineralization
is
found
predominantly
in
metasedimentary & acid volcanogenic
host rocks intruded by granitoids.
The abundant wadi works in
secondary gold deposits formed
part of huge fortified settlements,
& inclined washing tables
surrounded by tailings are found.
The peak of the early Arab mining
activities took place from the
10th to 11th centuries AD,
beginning under A. Ibn Tulun*
(about 990 AD) until the Fatimitic*
time in Egypt & until about 1350
AD in NE Sudan (Fig. 11).

Ahmad ibn ln (September 835 March 884) was

the founder of the Tulunid dynasty that ruled Egypt
between 868 and 905 AD. Originally sent by the
Abbasid caliph as governor to Egypt, ibn ln
established himself as an independent ruler.

Washing table for gold processing in the Early Arab Period

settlement at Umm Balad

The

Fatimid Caliphate (Arabic: al-Fimyn;

was a Shia Islamic caliphate, which

spanned a large area of North Africa, from the Red

Sea in the east to the Atlantic Ocean in the west.
The dynasty ruled across the Mediterranean coast
of Africa and ultimately made Egypt the centre of
the caliphate. At its height, the caliphate included in
addition to Egypt varying areas of the Maghreb,
Sudan, Sicily, the Levant, and Hijaz

Well-preserved Early Arab period washing table and

tailing heap in Wadi el-Urf

The wealth of gold in Pharaonic

Egypt is legendary, as illustrated
when in about 1340 BC a
Mesopotamian Mitanni* ruler
asked Pharaoh Amenhotep III, in
an urgent letter, for a larger gold
consignment, arguing that gold
occurs in Egypt like sand on the
roads. After our inspections of
nearly all of the many known
Pharaonic gold production sites
in Egypt & NE Sudan all these
imaginative expectations must
be rejected. During the entire
Egyptian history of roughly 6000
years
tradition
in
gold
production, less than the
monthly gold output of present
South Africa was achieved. The
total tonnage of the entire
ancient mined trenches &
underground operations is of the
order of 400 000600 000 t of
quartz ore. Assuming a recovery
of 10 g/t, which is about two
thirds
of
the
maximum
concentration
mined,
a
maximum of 6000 kg Au would
have been produced. The
production of the wadi works is
far
more
problematic
to
estimate, but might have been of
the same order, or maximally
Mitanni (/mtni/); also called
Hanigalbat, in Assyrian or
Naharin in Egyptian texts was a
Hurrian-speaking
state
in
northern Syria and southeast
Anatolia from ca. 1500 BC1300
BC. Founded by an Indo-Aryan
ruling class governing a
predominantly
Hurrian
population, Mitanni came to be
a regional power after the
Hittite destruction of Amorite
Babylon and a series of
ineffectual
Assyrian
kings
created a power vacuum in
Mesopotamia.

double. This results in a

maximum total gold production
of 18 t. roughly 40% of this gold
was gained during Pharaonic
times, yielding around 7 t Au.
The rest is equally distributed
between both Ptolemaic & Arab
times, neglecting the very low
production rates of Predynastic &
RomanByzantine times. This
estimation, of course, does not
correspond
with
the
expectations of archaeologists
when projecting the gold
inventory of untouched tombs,
like the one of Tutankhamun*,
and
inferred
from
royal
dedication lists in temples from
the entire Pharaonic history. The
only solution to this discrepancy
might be seen in intensive
recycling of gold more or less
constantly
throughout
the
Pharaonic history, but with an
increasing tendency from about
the 12th century BC on. The
famous tomb robbery papyrus*
gives an impression of the
destitution of justice & of implicit
governmental agreement to
these robberies, presumably also
necessary for the supply of the
public gold demand.
Tutankhamun (/tutnkmun/) was an
Egyptian pharaoh of the 18th dynasty (ruled
ca. 13321323 BC in the conventional
chronology), during the period of Egyptian
history known as the New Kingdom. He is
popularly referred to as King Tut. His
original name, Tutankhaten, means Living
Image of Aten", while Tutankhamun means
Living Image of Amun". The 1922 discovery
of Tutankhamuns nearly intact tomb
received worldwide press coverage. It
sparked a renewed public interest in
ancient Egypt, for which Tutankhamuns
burial mask, now in Cairo Museum, remains
the popular symbol. Exhibits of artifacts
from his tomb have toured the world.

The Abbott Papyrus serves as an

important political document
concerning the tomb robberies of
the twentieth dynasty of the New
Kingdom in Ancient Egypt. It also
gives insight into the scandal
between the two rivals Pewero
and Paser of Thebes. The Abbott
Papyrus dates back to the 20th

dynasty around 1100BC under the

reign of Ramesses IX in his 16th
year. According to Peet, the
papyrus content takes place in a
four-day period from the 18th to
the 21st of the third month of the
inundation season, Akhet. The
Abbott Papyrus is 218 cm in width
and 42.5 cm in height. It is written
in hieratic. The main document
consists of seven pages on the
recto side, and on the verso side
there are two lists of thieves,
which have been called the
Abbott dockets.

mine

Wadi Dara

Wadi Dara

Geographic position:

Main
settlement:

2754' 53' N,
3251' 02 E

Subordinate
settlement:

2755' 11' N,
3251' 05 E

Smelting
furnaces :

2755' 38 N,
3251' 27 E

age

Early
Dynastic and Old
Kingdom

2754' 49 N, 3252' 24 E

Early Arab Period

Umm Balad

2751' 08 N, 3247' 09 E

the Early Arab Period

Wadi el-Urf

South of Gebel
Mongul

Northern
Central Group
Wadi Qena:

2709' 44 N, 3249' 27 E

Wadi Hammad
West:

2709' 10 N, 3254' 47 E

Wadi Hammad:

2706' 43 N, 3257' 20 E

Wadi el-Atrash:

2710' 41 N, 3308' 48 E

Ghozza

2652' 08 N, 3306' 29 E

Ptolemaic Period.

Fatira (Abu
Zawal)

2640' 32 N, 3314 `33' E

earliest occupation to
the New Kingdom.

Abu Shehat

2635' 09 N, 3311' 55 E

Ptolemaic Period.

Wadi Abiyad

2633' 16 N, 3354' 29 E

Abu Mureiwat

26 31' 02 N, 3338' 41 E

Pre- and Early

Dynastic Periods

Wadi Gasus

Early Arab
settlement
with tailingsite:

Early Arab
Period

Bir Semna

2630' 15 N,
3351' 05 E

2628' 13 N, 3335' 46 E

from the New

Kingdom and the
Ptolemaic Period

mine
Wadi
MarghWest

Wadi
Bahlog

Kab Amiri

Geographic position:

2626' 00 N, 3331' 28 E
Early Arab
settlement:

2624' 09 N,
3330' 12 E

Mine:

2624' 05 N,
3330' 06 E

Tailing site:

2623' 58 N,
3330' 13 E

Early Arab
Period

2623' 13 N,
3326' 59 E

2623' 30 N,
Ptolemaic settlement:
3327' 08 E
North mine:

Abu
Gaharish

New
Kingdom

2623' 53 N, 3330' 29 E
Modern tailing:

Gidami

age

New Kingdom
Ptolemaic
Period

2623' 07 N,
3327' 15 E

2622' 27 N, 3338' 48 E
(northern settlement)
2622' 10 N, 3338' 43 E
(southern settlement)

New Kingdom

Abu Gerida 2621' 38 N, 3321' 15 E

Early Arab
Period,

Hamama I

2621' 59 N, 3320' 32 E

Deep New
Kingdom
Ptolemaic
Period

AradiyaEast

2620' 36 N, 3330' 03 E

Early
Arab Period.

Wadi Sagia

2620' 59 N, 3334' 27 E

the Old
Kingdom and
even earlier

Abu Had

2616' 30 N, 3330' 58 E

Wadi Atalla
2612' 46 N, 3331' 22 E
el-Mur

Early Arab
Period.

Umm Esh
el-Zarqa I

Old/Middle
Kingdom.

2610' 04 N, 3334' 38 E

mine

Geographic position:

age

Umm Esh
el-Zarqa II

2609' 38 N, 3334' 38 E

New Kingdom

Wadi
Sodmein

New Kingdom-main
settlement:

2610' 39 N,
3354' 38 E

New Kingdom

Ptolemaic complex:

2610' 55 N,
3454' 02 E

Fawakhir mine:

2600' 48 N,
3336' 10 E

Umm elFawakhir
and El-Sid

Umm
Soleimat
(also
known
as
Hamuda)

Old
Kingdom

Centre of the Roman/ 2600' 36 N,

Byzantine settlement: 3336' 27E
El-Sid mine,
administrative
building:

2559' 15 N,
3336' 23 E

New Kingdom
settlement in
Wadi el-Sid:

2558' 47 N,
3337' 04 E

2554' 54 N, 3344' 46 E

Old/Middle
Kingdom

Wadi Karim Ptolemaic settlement

remains and modern
plant:

2555' 55 N,
3403' 23 E

Ptolemaic

Kab elAbiad

(New Kingdom
settlement):

2555' 26 N,
3401' 00 E

New Kingdom

Wadi
Zeidun I

2542' 41 N, 3344' 42 E

El-Nur

2552' 09 N, 3341' 57 E

Early Arab
Period.

Sigdit and
Wadi
Miyah

Sigdit, settlement:

2527' 25 N,
3404' 47 E

Roman Period

Bir Sigdit:

2527' 35 N,
3404' 45 E

Wadi Miyah (fort):

2524' 42 N,
3405' 06 E

mine

Daghbag

Geographic position:
Daghbag I
Fort:

2523' 52 N, 3349' 07 E

Daghbag II,
mine:

2524' 29 N, 3351' 17 E

Daghbag II
(house ruins):

2524' 07 N, 3351' 34 E

Daghbag III,
mine:

2524' 27 N, 3351' 45 E

Daghbag IV,
mine:

2522' 39 N, 3348' 30 E

age

Ptolemaic
Period
New
Kingdom

Wadi
Raheiya

2526' 24 N, 3341' 34 E

New
Kingdom

Umm
Rus

Modern and ancient

main
mine:

2527' 50 N, 3434' 54 E

New
Kingdom

2523' 19 N, 3343' 32 E

Gadalla

Middle position
in Wadi
Gadalla:

New
Kingdom

Gadalla southern
2522' 26 N, 3343' 32 E
settlement:
Abu
2518' 36 N, 3342' 08 E
Muawad

(New
Kingdom

mine
Abu
Muaw
ad

Geographic position:

ElSE settlement:
Hisinat

Mine area:
Abu
Dabab
Umm
Samra

(New
Kingdom

2518' 36 N, 3342' 08 E

N settlement:

age

2517' 42 N,
3348' 28 E

2516' 52 N,
3348' 59 E

New
Kingdom

2516' 53 N,
3349' 17 E

2519' 04 N, 3433' 33 E
Mine:

2517' 38 N,
3407' 07 E

New Kingdom settlement:

2517' 08 N,
3407' 23 E

New Kingdom settlement

in Wadi Bokari:

2515' 44 N,
3345' 07 E

Ptolemaic processing site:

2515' 08 N,
3345' 22 E

New Kingdom settlement

in Wadi Miyah:

2515' 07 N,
3346' 10 E

Geographic position
(Bokari II)

2513' 15 N,
3343' 57 E

Bokari

New
Kingdom

Early
Dynastic
Period to
the Early
Arab Period,
New
Kingdom

mine
Abu
Qareiya

Gadalla

ElHisinat

Abu
Dabab
Umm
Samra

Bokari

Abu
Qareiya

Geographic position:

Age

2513' N, 34 02' E (Koshin and

Bassyuni 1968 )
Middle position for
the mines:

2523' 16 N, 3342'
37 E

Middle position in
Wadi
Gadalla:

2523' 19 N, 3343'
32 E

Gadalla southern
settlement:

2522' 26 N, 3343'
32 E

N settlement:

2517' 42 N, 3348'
28 E

SE settlement:

2516' 52 N, 3348'
59 E

Mine area:

2516' 53 N, 3349'
17 E

New
Kingdom

New
Kingdom

2519' 04 N, 3433' 33 E
Mine:

2517' 38 N, 3407'
07 E

New Kingdom
settlement:

2517' 08 N, 3407'
23 E

New Kingdom
settlement
in Wadi Bokari:

2515' 44 N, 3345'
07 E

Ptolemaic processing
site:

2515' 08 N, 3345'
22 E

New Kingdom
settlement
in Wadi Miyah:

2515' 07 N, 3346'
10 E

Geographic position
(Bokari II)

2513' 15 N, 3343'
57 E

2513' N, 34 02' E (Koshin and

Bassyuni 1968 )

New
Kingdom

Early
Dynastic
Period to
the Early
Arab
Period,
New
Kingdom

mine

Abu
Muawad

Geographic position:

age

2518' 36 N, 3342' 08 E

(New Kingdom

Geographic position: 2337' 53 N,

3503' 39 E

the Early Arab

Heimur

Geographic position: 2238' 04 N,

3318' 14 E

date to the
New Kingdom.

Wadi
Murra

Geographic position: 2231' 03 N,

3354' 13 E

date to the
Early Arab
Period.

Atud

Geographic positions (mine):

2 501'1 8 N, 3425'0 3 E
(Ptolemaic settlement): 2501' 18 N,
3424' 13 E Atud-East 1 (large New
Kingdom settlement): 2501' 31 N,
3424' 49 E Arab settlement: 2 501'1
3 N, 3425' 02 E Atud-East 2 (New
Kingdom settlement + mine): 2500'
37 N, 3425' 56 E Atud-West 1 (New
Kingdom settlement): 2500' 57 N,
3423' 02 E Atud-West 2 (New
Kingdom settlements): 2502' 11 N,
3421' 36 E Head of Wadi Atud 2458'
49 N, 3428' 56 E

ancient
extraction
phases can
each be
attributed to
the New
Kingdom, the
Ptolemaic, and
Early Arab
Period.

Umm
Tundub

Geographic position (mine):

2454' 55 N, 3445' 58 E

Early Arab

Marwat
(Abu
Mureiwa)

Geographic position: 2459' 22 N,

3356' 34 E Mureiwa 2: 2459' 03 N,
3357' 00 E

Early Arab
Period

HangaliyaWest

Geographic position: 2450' 23 N,

3433' 05 E

in the Early
Arab Period

Geographic position: 2440' 55 N,

3405' 41 E

It presumably
dates to the
Ptolemaic
Period

Bitan

Hamash

mine

Geographic position:

age

Wadi elHudi

Geographic position: 2358' 54 N,

3308' 34 E

richly painted
Nubian pottery
dating to a period
between the ninth
and thirteenth
centuries AD the
Early Dynastic
Period

Abu Fas

Geographic position: 2208' 79 N,

3352' 50 E

the Early Arab

Period

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