EGYPTIAN ARCHAEOLOGISTS DISCOVER 10,000-YEAR-OLD ROCK ART IN SOUTH SINAI DESERT

Sun 15 February 2026:

Egypt‘s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said Thursday that archaeologists have uncovered a major archaeological site in South Sinai dating back about 10,000 years, shedding new light on the region’s prehistoric past.

The ministry said an Egyptian archaeological mission working in South Sinai identified what it described as one of the most significant and exceptional historical sites in the area, known as the Umm Irak Plateau. The site reveals a continuous record of rock art spanning millennia, effectively forming “an open-air museum of rare carvings and drawings.”

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

Hisham El-Leithy, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the Umm Irak Plateau ranks among the most important rock art sites recently discovered, noting that the wide chronological and technical range of the engravings makes it a “natural open museum.”

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Mohamed Abdel-Badie, head of Egypt’s Antiquities Sector, said the plateau lies in a distinctive sandy area that was likely used across eras as a lookout point, gathering place and rest stop. The mission documented a rock shelter stretching more than 100 meters (32 feet) along the eastern side of the plateau, he added.

The shelter contains red and gray pigment drawings depicting animals and symbols. The oldest images date from roughly 10,000 to 5,500 B.C. and portray early lifestyles, including hunting ibex with bows and the use of hunting dogs, said Abdel-Badie. Later carvings show horses, camels and figures carrying weapons, as well as Arabic inscriptions indicating the site continued to be used into the early Islamic period.

Egypt regularly announces major archaeological finds, reflecting the country’s vast ancient heritage. The discovery comes as Cairo recently inaugurated the Grand Egyptian Museum, west of the capital, billed as the world’s largest museum dedicated to a single civilization — ancient Egypt.

-Source: AA

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