Pharaonic inscription found in S Arabia

Mon Nov 8, 2010

Saudi archeologists have discovered an inscription near the ancient oasis of Tayma in Tabuk Province, which might have belonged to an Egyptian pharaoh.

The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) announced that the hieroglyphic inscription was found about 400 km north of Madinah.

"The rock was bearing an inscription of King Ramses III, one of the kings who ruled ancient Egypt from 1192 BCE to 1160 BCE," SCTA Vice President for Antiquities and Museums Ali Ibrahim Al-Ghabban told reporters on Sunday.

The discovery suggests that Tayma was once on an important land route between the western coast of Arabia and the Nile Valley.

Recent findings also show that Tayma has been inhabited since the Bronze Age and the trade route has been used by caravans for centuries.

"The route connected the Nile Valley, Port Qulzum, the city of Suez, and then went by sea to Srabit near the port of Abu Zenima on the Gulf of Suez, where the archaeologists found a temple dedicated to King Ramses III, then across the Sinai Peninsula, where they also found several inscriptions similar to that found in Tayma," Al-Ghabban explained.

The route passed through Aqaba, Jordan, where similar inscriptions have been discovered, Arab News reported.

Tayma is mentioned in ancient Assyrian texts dating back to the 8th century BC, and the Hebrew Bible.

Babylonian King Nabonidus spent 10 years in Tayma, where he constructed his royal complex. The monument is currently under excavations and part of a cuneiform text bearing his name was discovered at the site last year.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/150173.html.