Ancient Sinai site reveals 10,000 years of human life, says Egypt

Egyptian archaeologists have uncovered a major prehistoric site in South Sinai dating back around 10,000 years, revealing layers of human activity carved into rock across millennia. South Sinai is the least populated governorate of Egypt.

The discovery at the Umm Irak Plateau was announced by Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, which described the site as one of the most significant rock art locations identified in the region in recent years.

Officials said the plateau preserves a continuous record of engravings and pigment drawings spanning from prehistoric times to the early Islamic era, effectively forming what they called an open-air museum of rare carvings.

Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy said the find “provides fresh evidence of the succession of civilisations that passed through Sinai.”

Hisham El-Leithy, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the breadth of the engravings, both in chronology and artistic technique, makes the site a “natural open museum”.

A rock shelter stretching more than 100 metres along the eastern side of the plateau was documented by the archaeological mission. According to Mohamed Abdel-Badie, head of Egypt’s Antiquities Sector, the sandy plateau likely served for centuries as a lookout point, gathering place and resting stop for travellers.

The shelter contains red and grey pigment drawings of animals and symbolic figures. The oldest images, dated between roughly 10,000 and 5,500 B.C., depict scenes of daily life, including hunters using bows to pursue ibex and the presence of hunting dogs.

Later carvings show horses and camels, armed figures and Arabic inscriptions, indicating that the site remained in use into the early Islamic period.

Egypt frequently announces archaeological discoveries as part of ongoing efforts to highlight its vast historical heritage.

The latest find comes as Cairo promotes its cultural legacy following the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum near the capital, described as the world’s largest museum dedicated to a single civilisation.

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