Fifth-Dynasty Administrative Complex Uncovered in Tel Edfu

News January 11, 2018

(Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities)
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Egypt Tel Edfu
(Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities)

ASWAN, EGYPT—Ahram Online reports that a royal administrative complex dating to the Fifth Dynasty (2498–2345 B.C.) has been found in the ancient city of Tel Edfu by a team of Egyptian and American scientists. Gregory Marward of the University of Chicago said 220 mudbricks bearing the stamps of King Djedkare Isesi were found in the complex. The site is thought to have been used to store goods collected by the king on his expeditions to the South Sinai, where his workers extracted copper and other raw materials from the earth. King Isesi is also known to have ordered an expedition to Punt, a kingdom on the Horn of Africa, to obtain rare goods. Nubian pottery and shells from the Red Sea were recovered at the site, along with a list of names of workers who are thought to have participated in the expeditions. For more, go to “Dawn of Egyptian Writing.”

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