Egypt has unveiled a new archaeological site in South Sinai, featuring rock carvings and drawings dating back preliminarily to the period between 10,000 and 5500 BC, depicting scenes of various animals that reflect life in those early eras. Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said in a Thursday statement that the site, known as "Am Irak Plateau", is located in a desert area near Serabit el-Khadim and is one of the most important rock art discoveries in the country in years. The site includes a natural sandstone rock shelter extending over 100 meters along the eastern side of the plateau, with a depth ranging from two to three meters, while the ceiling height varies from about one and a half meters to half a meter. The engravings include drawings executed in red ink alongside carved images showing hunting scenes and various animals. The ministry said in its statement that archaeological surveys also resulted in the discovery of "a number of stone tools, in addition to many pottery sherds, some of which are dated to the Middle Kingdom period, while others date back to the Roman era, specifically the third century AD, which confirms the continuous use of the site for thousands of years." Laiti noted that work on studying and scientifically analyzing the engravings and drawings will continue in the coming period, paving the way for preparing a comprehensive plan for the protection and sustainable documentation of the site. According to the preliminary study, the rock carvings and drawings were divided into several chronological groups. The oldest group is the one executed on the shelter's ceiling using red color, which is preliminarily dated to the period between 10,000 and 5500 BC, depicting scenes of various animals reflecting life in those early eras. It also includes engravings executed in the intaglio technique showing a hunter using a bow to hunt a goat, accompanied by a number of hunting dogs, in a scene that reflects the living patterns and economic activities of early human societies.
