Posted on 04/01/2019 4:16:04 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
Archaeologists have uncovered more than 100 ancient inscriptions carved into rock at Wadi el-Hudi, where the ancient Egyptians mined amethyst.
In addition to the carved-rock inscription, the researchers also found 14 stele (inscriptions carved on a stone slab or pillar) and 45 ostraca (inscriptions written on pieces of pottery).
Analysis of the newfound inscriptions is underway. So far, archaeologists can tell that many of the inscriptions date back around 3,900 years, to a time that modern day archaeologists call the "Middle Kingdom." Many of the ostraca date back around 2,000 years, to around the time that Rome took over Egypt.
Amethyst became widely popular in Egypt during the Middle Kingdom, a time when the pharaohs of Egypt learned that Wadi el-Hudi is a good source for the material. "Once the [pharaohs] found it, they kind of went bonkers to go get it," Kate Liszka, the director of the Wadi el-Hudi expedition, told Live Science. During the Middle Kingdom, "they were bringing it back and making it into jewelry and doling it out to their elite and their princesses."
Though Wadi el-Hudi was surveyed in the past by other scholars, little excavation has been done and the surveys missed many inscriptions. "The site is just so full of inscriptions behind every boulder and around every wall that they missed a lot of them" Liszka said.
The team is using 3D modeling, reflectance transformation imaging (RTI) and photogrammetry, among other techniques, to help find new inscriptions, map archaeological remains and reanalyze inscriptions discovered by scholars who surveyed Wadi el-Hudi in the past. This work has taken on a greater urgency as modern-day gold mines have opened in the area, causing damage to archaeological remains.
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
The Douglas Petrovich keyword:
"I can't get used to the churches here -- they've got seven commandments and three do-the-best-you-cans." -- George Wallace.
“I can barely make out Kilroy was here on the stone face.”
I saw ‘Big Bubba Hotep’s Used Chariots’.
Kind of small.
Man... A two for one. Ancient inscriptions AND Buried treasure! Thanks!
But it’s rock hard.
LOL... Especially as old as it is...
Big Bubba Hoteps Used Chariots.
It has a good color. Most of what I have found has a slight reddish tint.
I wonder how many fluffers the sculptor went through.
THIS IS AN ACCIDENT FREE WORKPLACE.
ONLY 2 DAYS SINCE THE LAST ROCK FALL.
ACCIDENTS WILL GET SAFETY STICKERS REMOVED FROM HELMETS.
LOL.
Then something happened which smashed that guard post to pieces, and left only an out of place remnant of the original wall...
“Eat at Irv’s Deli!”
Hmmm. “...unassociated with any useful endeavors...”
You sure about that?
Well, it is believed to have been erected
mainly to send a message to future detractors.
They were “this” close to inventing Etch-a-Sketch.
Pretty rocks are pretty nice. And it's always a pleasure to listen to Phil Harding (on Time Team reruns) get all fluttery about some pile of rocks, or a really nice stone age tool.
My pleasure.
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