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An Egyptian team has completed a two-year project to excavate a 3,000 year-old gold-processing centre found on the site of the modern Sukari gold mine, near Marsa Alam on the Red Sea coast. The complex consisted of grinding and pulverising stations, filtration and sedimentation basins, and ancient clay furnaces used for smelting gold extracted from quartz veins. Having completed excavation, documentation, and restoration work, the team has moved the architectural remains to a safe area 3km from the current mine operations. The ancient mine was operational during the Third Intermediate Period, around the time of the Late Bronze Age collapse. The team uncovered the remains of a residential district for the gold workers, too, that dates to the Ptolemaic Period, and included workshops, temples, administrative buildings, and bathhouses. Also discovered were 628 ostraca, Ptolemaic coins, terracotta figurines, and statues of deities. Roman and Islamic finds suggest the mine continued to be active for at least 1,000 years.
In a separate discovery, two sets of complete shackles were found at the ancient Ghozza Mine in the Eastern Desert, highlighting the harsh conditions faced by gold miners.
Text: Sarah Griffiths / All images: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
