Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Oldest Harbor and Papyri Ever Found in Egypt!

Oldest Harbor and Papyri Ever Found in Egypt!


In Egypt, they have discovered one of the oldest harbors to ever exist in history. A group of archeologists traveling in Suez, Egypt believe it to date back 4500 years. Along with the oldest harbor, they have also found remains of the oldest papyri ever found in the country. The 4500 year old harbor structures and papyrus texts were discovered while on a mission at the site of Wadi el-Jarf which is located along the Red Sea coast. The ancient site and structures are located 112 miles south of Suez, Egypt.

The harbor is considered one of the most important commercial ports of ancient Egypt, where trips to export copper and other minerals from the Sinai Peninsula were launched. The 40 papyri texts found provide information regarding the daily lives of people living and working in Egypt during the time that Khufu reigned over Egypt from 2575 to 2465 BCE. The papyri also documents the activities of an official who was involved in building the Great Pyramid. Pierre Tallet, an Egyptologist at Paris-Sorbonne University, quoted that the harbor "predates by more than 1,000 years any other port structure known in the world."

The structures at the site were first noted by J.G. Wilkinson in 1832. Then, in the 1950s, a small team of scientists studied the site but were expelled when the 1956 Suez Crisis told Egyptian troops to occupy the site which halted the search for decades. But now, they have focused on the structures described by Wilkinson and have identified 30 galleries at the site.

Huffingtonpost.com - Wadi El Jarf Site Reveals Oldest Harbor, Papyri Ever Found in Egypt

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