A Large Camp Where Gold Was Mined and Processed in Antiquity, Found in Southeastern Egypt
After two years of intense archaeological work, the wait is over. The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, represented by the Supreme Council of Antiquities, has successfully completed the ambitious Revival of the Ancient Gold City project, an unprecedented initiative that has led to the discovery, documentation, and conservation of a gold mining camp with over three thousand years of history.
This site, located in the Sakari Mountain area, southwest of Marsa Alam in the Red Sea province, has been rescued thanks to the collaboration between archaeological authorities and the administration of the current Sakari gold mine, thus ensuring the protection of Egypt’s invaluable historical heritage from contemporary mining activities.
The project has involved a series of extensive archaeological excavations, accompanied by documentation, restoration, and relocation of architecturally significant elements. The structures found have been relocated to a safe site, three kilometers north of the original location, moving them away from modern mining activity currently taking place in the area. This effort has required the application of rigorous administrative and legal procedures, including approval by the Permanent Committee of Egyptian Antiquities.
The Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Mr. Sherif Fathy, has expressed his enthusiasm for this remarkable discovery, emphasizing the importance of this project in preserving Egypt’s historical legacy. He highlighted that this finding not only provides crucial data on the techniques used in gold mining in antiquity, but also enriches the understanding of daily life in an industrial city in the Eastern Desert throughout different historical periods.
Meanwhile, Dr. Mohamed Ismail Khaled, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, detailed that the excavations have unearthed a perfectly structured mining camp dating back more than three thousand years. At this site, remains of a complex gold processing system have been identified, including specialized factories for extracting the precious metal from quartz veins.