Three newly discovered stelae at Wadi el-Hudi (Aswan)

Antiquities Minister, Dr. Mambouh Eldamaty declared today the discovery of three archaeological stelae at Wadi El-Hudi that hold inscriptions of historic importance. The discovery was made during the fieldwork conducted by an American Mission sponsored by Princeton University in collaboration with the Ministry of Antiquities and the Aswan Inspectorate. The mission is overseen by Aswan Inspector Moataz Sayed Ibrahim, and directed by Kate Liszka, Cotsen Fellow in the Society of Fellows at Princeton University and Bryan Kraemer of the University of Chicago. Wadi el-Hudi lies 35 kilometers southeast of Aswan in the Eastern Desert.

Eldamaty added that the area includes several amethyst mines each connected with their own fortified settlements.
He elaborated that many of the discovered hieroglyphic inscriptions are faded therefore they still await extensive study and the team will use Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI) photographic technology to delineate further detail.

From his side, Head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Sector, Dr. Mahmoud Afify said the Wadi el-Hudi is an important area because it contained a number of amethyst quarries, a beautiful purple stone used in jewelry. Ancient Egyptians periodically sent several expeditions in the Middle Kingdom (c. 2055-1650 BCE) to procure this precious stone.

Afify added that two of the carved granodiorite stones mentioned the 28th year of Senwosret I from Dynasty 12. They may also number various types of people who were part of the Egyptian expeditions into the desert, and these may relate to the founding of this site.

The famous Egyptian Archaeologist, Ahmed Fakhry was the first to publish these sites in 1952 and discussed their connection to amethyst quarries of Montuhotep IV of Dynasty 11 based on historic inscriptions connected with the hilltop settlement.

© Ministry of Antiquities, Press Office
Eman Hossni

Rosetta stone-style stele unearthed in the Mediterranean coast

By Rany Mostafa

CAIRO: A 2,200 year-old “an upright stone slab bearing a commemorative inscription” was unearthed at the Mediterranean coast, Antiquities Minister Mamdouh el-Damaty announced Thursday.

The stele, which was discovered at Taposiris Magna archaeological site on Lake Mariout, southwest of the Mediterranean city of Alexandria,  “dates to the reign of Ptolemy V Epiphanes (204B.C-180B.C) of the Ptolemaic Dynasty (332 B.C.-30 B.C) that has ruled Egypt after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C.” said Damaty in a statement on the ministry’s Facebook page.

The stele, measuring 1.05 X 0.65X0.18 meters, was discovered by an archaeology mission of the Catholic University of Santo Domingo in collaboration with Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), he added.

“It consists of two registers carved in two different scripts; the upper one features over 20 lines of hieroglyphic inscriptions bearing the cartouches [oval shapes bearing royal names only] of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes, his sister Princess Cleopatra I, his mother Queen Arsinoe III and his father King Ptolemy IV Philopator,” said Damaty adding that archaeologists are currently working on transliterating the text.

The bottom register features a 5-line demotic script that seems to be a translation of the hieroglyphic inscriptions, said Damaty.

Demotic language was used by ordinary people while hieroglyphic was used by royals, high officials, priests and the elite of the ancient Egyptian society.

The famous Rosetta stone, currently displayed in the British Museum in London, dates back to the reign of the same Greek king but was carved in hieroglyphic, demotic and Greek scripts, according to Damaty.

Chief of the Dominican Egyptian archaeology mission, Dr. Kathleen Martinez said that the mission, has been working at Taposiris Magna for six years, has made a lot of significant discoveries related to the history of Alexandria. “Some of the major discoveries are tombs of Nobles, a number of statues of goddess Isis in addition to many bronze coins belonging to Queen Cleopatra VII, the famous Cleopatra of Anthony,” said Martinez.

Source: http://www.thecairopost.com/news/137176/inside_egypt/rosetta-stone-style-stele-unearthed-in-the-mediterranean-coast

New stone inscription shows list of offerings to ancient gods

A section of a New Kingdom stele listing offerings made to ancient Egyptian gods was discovered today by chance at Matariya in northern Cairo

by Nevine El-Aref , Tuesday 4 Sep 2012

During construction work carried out by the Ministry of Endowments at the Al-Khamis market area, which is next to the archaeological site of Matariya in northern Cairo, workers stumbled upon a part of an ancient Egyptian stele.

Minister of State for Antiquities Mohamed Ibrahim explained that the newly-discovered stone artefact is the right section of a New Kingdom stele, on which is displayed a complete, illustrated list of various offerings to ancient Egyptian deities. A collection of geese, vegetables, fruits, bread, and cattle is depicted.

Lotus flowers are also shown, as well as religious worship poetry in hieroglyphic form.

Although the cartouche of the owner or the reign when it was engraved has not yet been identified on the stele, Ibrahim said that it would reveal more of the history of this mysterious area, which includes monuments from the early pharaonic to the Ptolemaic era.

Mohamed El-Beyali, head of the ancient Egyptian department at the Ministry of State for Antiquities, said that initial studies on the stele show that it can be dated to the late 18th or the beginning of the 19th dynasty.

He added that Matariya is a very important archaeological site, as it was a centre for the worship of the sun god Aten and it was the capital city of north Egypt. The site includes an obelisk of Senousert I, a collection of ancient Egyptian and Ptolemaic tombs, and the remains of one of the oldest universities ever. A collection of columns from the time of Ramses II has also been found.

All construction work has now been put on hold in order to excavate the area, to reveal more of its heritage.

Source: http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/51983/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/New-stone-inscription-shows-list-of-offerings-to-a.aspx

King Meneptah's stelae in Silsila is safe after theft attempt

Thieves were foiled late last night at King Meneptah’s chapel at Al-Silsila in Aswan after they attempted to steal a famed stelae


by Nevine El-Aref , Thursday 7 Jun 2012

Archaeologists and guards at Gabal Al-Silsila archaeological site, 20 kilometres north of Kom Ombo city in Aswan, succeeded in catching a group of thieves who in full view had tried to remove King Meneptah’s stelae from its original position on the wall of his chapel.

Minister of State for Antiquities Mohamed Ibrahim said the theft attempt was discovered late last night when permanent archaeologists at the site realised that four people were in front of King Meneptah’s stelae trying to hack it off the wall with an axe and digging tools. With the help of guards, archaeologists surrounded the criminals and caught them red handed. The Tourism and Antiquities Police came and took the criminals into custody.

Abdel Moneim Saeed, director of Kom Ombo site, said an early inspection of the stelae revealed that it had been partly damaged by the hard tools used in the theft attempt, especially its lower part which is now dotted with holes. But he assures the damage can be restored and the stelae returned to its original condition.

Abdel Hamid Maarouf, head of the ancient Egypt section at the Ministry of State for Antiquities (MSA), told Ahram Online that the Meneptah stelae is located between two chapels of kings Meneptah and his father, Ramses II. It is a rocky stelae carved in rock and engraved with hieroglyphic text and decorated with a scene depicting King Meneptah offering god Amun Re the sign of justice, Maat.

Source: http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/44123/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/King-Meneptahs-stelae-in-Silsila-is-safe-after-the.aspx