On the trail of the Holy Family in Egypt

An historic account of cities and places the Virgin Mary, Joseph and newly born Jesus found safety and shelter in Egypt.

"Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the King, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.''  (Matthew 2:1-2)

FLIGHT OF THE HOLY FAMILY

The Hebrew Bible says that the city of Bethlehem was built up as a fortified city by Rehoboam, identifies it as the city David came from and where he was crowned as the king of Israel.

MEALAKAA CHURCH (old Cairo)

The New Testament identifies Bethlehem as the birthplace of Jesus. Bethlehem was destroyed by the Emperor Hadrian during the second-century Bar Kokhba revolt; its rebuilding was promoted by Empress Helena, mother of Constantine the Great, who commissioned the building of its great Church of the Nativity in 327 CE.

Historians and authors around the world have, long recorded the story of the holy family’s journey from Palestine to Egypt, with dedication. Many look upon the journey as a mark in the history of Egypt, not merely a religious event. Egyptians look with fondness and pride on the passage of the holy mother and her child through the land of Egypt, and the fact that they found solace here.

“Out of Egypt have I called my son” (Hosea 11:1)

“Blessed be Egypt. My People” (Isaiah 19:25)

The flight to Egypt

The Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus in Bethlehem of Judea in Palestine. Upon his birth, wise men preached to the people of the city, declaring that Jesus was the chosen one, and that, "according to prophecies" they had seen in the stars, he would become the next king of the Jews.

Upon hearing the news, King Herod was overcome by terror at the possibility of losing his throne. He decided that killing Jesus was the only way to protect his royal status.

MONASTERY IN UPPER EGYPT

In a dream, Joseph, the carpenter, was ordered by God to escort Jesus and his mother to Egypt, where they would find refuge. Both Western and Eastern traditions agree that the method of transport most likely used by the holy family on their journey to Egypt would have been a donkey ride. In this situation, the Virgin Mary would have been seated on the donkey, holding the child Jesus in her arms and Joseph would have walked by their side, leading the way.

The distance from Jerusalem to Cairo by land is around 500km, with villages and stops requiring some 50 Km between rests, the route itself was well known since the Pharaohs, and frequented by the Syrian traders.

ROUTE USED BY THE HOLY FAMILY IN EGYPT

Werner Keller writes in his book, The Bible as History (1955): “A day's journey from Gaza brought the holy family to the ancient township of Jenysos, which is mentioned by Herodotus, the Greek historian.” Today, this village, which is part of the Gaza Strip, is known as Khan Younis  (Caravansary of Jonah). “The next town on the holy family's route would have been Raphia (Rafah). Rafah has a history stretching back thousands of years. It was first recorded in an inscription of Egyptian Pharaoh Seti I, from 1303 BCE as Rph, and as the first stop on Pharaoh Shoshenq I's campaign to the Levant in 925 BC. In 720 BCE it was the site of the Assyrian king Sargon II's victory over the Egyptians, and in 217 BC the Battle of Raphia was fought between the victorious Ptolemy IV and Antiochus III. (It is said to be one of the largest battles ever fought in the Levant, with over a hundred thousand soldiers and hundreds of elephants, the frontier town between the Gaza Strip and the province of Egypt."

SAKHA

Continuing for another 44 kilometers, beyond Raphia, and after almost two days of traveling, Joseph, the mother and child reach Wadi Al-Arish, a point at which they are safe enough to obtain food and shelter. The holy family passes by other towns in Sinai such as Al-Muhammadia and Al-Farma, located 35 kilometres east of El-Qantara City in Arabic al qantara means "the bridge". Churches from the 5th and 6th century have recently been discovered in Al-Farma.

Route to the Nile Delta

The holy family continued on its trip to the Nile Delta, stopping at the city of Musturod, only 10 kilometres from Cairo. "The Virgin Lady", a 12th century church, was found in the city of Bilbeis (Egyptian Arabic: بلبيس‎‎ , Coptic: Phelbs) an ancient fortress city on the eastern edge of the southern Nile delta in Egypt, the site of the Ancient city and former bishopric of Phelbes and a Latin Catholic titular see...

The Holy Family travel west through what is now known as the valley of Natroun (Wady Natroun - a valley containing Natron salt - famous by Natroun Macarius).

BISHOY MONASTRY IN NATROUN DESERT

“Natroun Macarius was born about the year 300 in Alexandria. He became a merchant until the age of 40 when he was baptized. He then left Alexandria and went to live in the desert. After several years of ascetic life he was ordained a presbyter and appointed prior of a monastery known as the “Kellii,” or “cells” in the Egyptian desert, between the Nitra mountains as a skete in which monastic hermits lived in silence, each in his own cell.  He retired to live alone as a recluse in el-Natroun desert at about the year 345. Many miracles were ascribed to him.”


Later the Holy family crossed the western branch of the Nile (the Rasheed branch) to “Miniet Samanoud” According to local belief the large granite trough in the city was used by the Virgin Mary for kneading dough.

A temple dedicated to the local god Onuris, or Onuris-Shu, and his lioness goddess mate Mehit, once existed at this location but are now reduced to ruins. A fragment to where kings would have made offerings to Onuris and his wife is on display at the Walters Art Museum (Baltimore MD). The site is part of the route of the Holy Family during their time in Egypt.

TREE OF THE VIRGIN MARY

The movie Journey of the Holy Family portrays the settlement of the blessed family in Al-Mataraya district near Ein Shams (Old Heliopolis) a district, which had a notable history during Egypt's Pharaonic period as a part of ancient Heliopolis. The district has archaeological sites of the period, some only recently discovered, beneath its current structures. 
In ancient Roman times, Heliopolis belonged to the Augustamnica province. Legend tells of the Christian Holy Family sheltering under a tree in Heliopolis, presently known as 'the tree of the Virgin Mary' or Mariam’s Tree," now with the Chapel which has evolved into an engrossing attraction for religious tourists. The holy "Mayron oil," or the "Chrism," is nowadays prepared from the oil of the tree.

A church named "The Virgin Mary" was built in the area and is visited frequently by worshipers to this day. A statue of Jesus and his blessed mother guarded by Joseph the Carpenter and Paintings can be found inside the church, a maps of the holy family’s journey (as above), is also on display.

In his book The Geography of Coptic Egypt (1989), French historian Amelenio narrates some of the stories passed down by generations about the miracles of "Mariam’s Tree."

COPTIC ICON OF VIRGIN MARY

One such story tells how “the French army soldiers sat by the tree, drank from its well and wrote their names on its stems.” It is believed that its oil healed some of the wounded soldiers. Amelenio adds: “Al-Matarya district became the most popular Christian shrine in Egypt; a place where people flooded to for blessings and spiritual remedies.”

The second district visited by the holy family in Cairo was Al-Zeitun, where a church by the name "The Virgin Mary" was constructed in Toman Bey Street. It is said that appearances of the blessed lady were witnessed around the domes of the church up until recent years.

Another spot visited by the holy family was Bab Zowela, Been El-Soreen Street in El-Gamaleya district. An ancient church is found there with the same name, "The Virgin Mary". It is considered one of the largest churches in Egypt and is distinguished by its basaltic style.

SAINT SARGUS CHURCH

The holy family moved on to "Old Cairo" (Al-Fustaat) where they dwelled for a short time in a cave later known as Abi Serja’s Church, within the walls of the Roman Babylon fortress. “The cave is about 20 feet tall, 15 feet wide and does not have any windows,” as described by Amelenio, who believes the holy family's stay in the cave did not exceed a week. After leaving Al-Fustaat, they moved to Maadi and settled at the location where the Virgin Mary Monastery and church were later built by the Nile.

“Al-Ma'adi” literally means "the ferries". There was a story that the name comes from a ferry crossing in the area where ferries carried people from the east side of the Nile to the west district today's Maadi stands on the site of a town that has turned out to be a significant predynastic, Ancient Egyptian archaeological site, founded in 3500 B.C. Modern building activity in the area has destroyed some archaeologically sensitive places.

OLD PICTURE OF MAADI MONASTERY

Amelenio explains that during Ottoman rule in Egypt, the church had a marina for boats allocated for the transport of people and soldiers traveling to and from Egypt. The holy family sailed to some villages in Upper Egypt such as Maghagha located on the west bank of the Nile. It is the most northern city in the Minya Governorate. (deir Garnous), then  to “Bahnassa” west of bani Mazar near Minya. Crossing the Nile to the Western bank to Malawy and “Meira” and the mount Qussqm that has the famous Monastry of Al-Muharrak built in tribute to the passage of the Holy Family.

The Deir Al-Muharrak complex is located on the Nile just south of Cusae, in Asyut Governorate in Upper Egypt. It is 375 km south of Greater Cairo. The monastery is unusual because it is one of the very few Coptic ones in Egypt not located into the desert.

 AL-MOHARRAK MONASTERY ASYOUT

The Church of Al-Adhra (Church of the Virgin) at the monastery was built over an ancient cave. It is claimed that Mary and Jesus spent six months and ten days here on their flight into Egypt from King Herod. The altar stone in the church is dated 747 CE.

PROCESSION FOR THE VIRGIN MARY
IN DRONKA MONASTRY (ASSIUT)

In the book “History of the Coptic Nation”, author Samy Saleh records that once Herod has died, an angel tells Joseph to return to Bethlehem, but to avoid Herod's son, Joseph takes his wife and the child to Nazareth in Galilee and settles there taking the same route on their journey back to Palestine.

They first go to Maadi, passing through Old Egypt, then follow the road to Ein Shams "Eye of the Sun" in Arabic, referring to the fact that Ain Shams is built on top of the ancient city of Heliopolis, once the spiritual centre of ancient Egyptian sun-worship. The trip takes the holy family back to the city of Mustorod, and finally to El-Arish, then to Gaza. The known history of Gaza spans 4,000 years. Gaza was ruled, destroyed and repopulated by various dynasties, empires, and peoples. Originally a Canaanite settlement, it came under the control of the ancient Egyptians for roughly 350 years before being conquered and becoming one of the Philistines' principal cities.

ABU SERGA CHURCH (OLD CAIRO)

This city served as Egypt’s administrative capital in Canaan, and was the residence of the Egyptian governor of the region. A caravan point of strategic importance from the earliest times, it was constantly involved in the wars between Egypt and Syria and the Mesopotamian powers.

At present, many Egyptian historians and archeologists are calling for a project to track each town or city visited by the holy family, so as to make it easier for tourists to visit the blessed spots, thus reviving the symbolism of the holy journey and its message of peace and goodwill to all men.

Egyptians are not Arabs

DNA analysis proves that Egyptians are not Arabs

After over 10 years of analyzing DNA samples from hundreds of people, the National Geographic Genographic Project (NGGP) surprisingly uncovered the fact that Egyptians are not Arabs as most of them believed.

Egyptian Girls

The study presented graphs that show the global genetic makeup of nationals in each country. These help answer people's questions about ethnicity, race, and the overall origins of the human population.

As the graph below shows, only 17 percent of Egyptians are Arabs " )Arab invasion by "Amr Ebn El-As" 642AD), while 68 percent of the indigenous population is from North Africa, four percent are from Jewish (Philistine) ancestry, three percent are of East African origins, another three percent from Asia Minor and three percent are South European (Greek & Roman occupation).

 

The Egyptian population presented by genetic origin

Egyptian Nomad in desert 68% north African

"This reference population is based on native Egyptians. As ancient populations migrated from Africa, they passed first through northeast Africa, then to southwest Asia. The Northern Africa and Arabian components in Egypt are representative of that ancient migratory route, as well as later migrations from the Fertile Crescent (Palestine/ Syria) back into Africa; with the spread of agriculture over the past 10,000 years, and migrations in the seventh century, with the spread of Islam from the Arabian Peninsula," the NGGP study said.

The East African component in the Egyptian genes reflects the localized movement up the navigable Nile River, according to the NGGP; while the Southern Europe and Asia Minor components reflect the geographic and historical role of Egypt as a key player in the economic and cultural growth of the Mediterranean region.

The DNA samples proved that Kuwaitis are mostly Arabs, as their genetic makeup is as follows: 84 percent of Kuwaitis are Arabs, seven percent are from Asia Minor, four percent are North African and three percent from East Africa.

Typical Egyptian Men

The NGGP said that as ancient migrants passed through the Middle East when moving from Africa to Asia, some of them decided to stay, developing their genetic patterns that were passed down to other generations. While there is small percentage from North and East Africa, maybe due to the Arab slave trade which was common from the 8th to the19th century.

Meanwhile the Lebanese society is the most diverse among Arab countries, as 44 percent are of Arab origins, 14 percent are Jewish, 11 percent are from North African descent, 10 percent are from Asia Minor, five percent are South European and only two percent are East African.

The Tunisian population had the lowest percentage from Arab descent, as only 4 percent are Arabs, while 88 percent are North African, five percent are from Western Europe, and two percent from West and Central Africa.  

 Original article by: Hend El-Behary

Boutros Boutros-Ghali

The first African to become secretary-general of the 
United Nations is a native of Egypt .

From the article below you’ll find out information about the life and deeds of this remarkable person.

He headed the secretariat, which is one of the 6 main institutions of the union. The significance of his activities is difficult to deny. In many respects, he differs from his followers and predecessors.

Family, youth, and scientific activity

MARK MY WORDS

He was born on November 14, 1922, came from a fairly influential, well-known Christian Coptic family that occupied important positions in Egypt. His mother Safeya Mikhail Sharobim was the daughter of a prominent public servant and historian Mikhail Bey Sharobim. During the monarchy, representatives of this Christian familles were ambassadors, chamberlains and ministers. 

The paternal grandfather of the future United Nations secretary general whose name was Boutros Pasha Ghali, was the prime minister of Egypt at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1910, he was shot to death at the hands of nationalist. The uncle of Boutros Ghali - Wassif was the Egyptian minister of Foreign Affairs in 1924. His nephew Youssef Boutros Ghali, was the Minister of finance for a long time during the era of Mubarak and was Chair of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (2008). His little cousin Mounir Abdelnour was minister of Tourism and then minister of Industry under President Sissi. 

Boutros Boutros-Ghali's wife, Leia Maria Boutros-Ghali, née Leia Nadler, (Daughter of Nadler, owner of a sweets factories in Alexandria) was raised in an Egyptian Jewish family later converting to Roman Catholicism as a young woman. They had no children.

The young Boutros followed the route of his famous ancestors and built a career for himself in the political industry and in law and economics. Boutros received his education at the University of Cairo. Three years later he became a doctor of philosophy after studying international law at the University of Paris.

This man was fluent in Arabic, French and English, which further gave him an edge in the struggle for the post of UN Secretary General. He was also invested in political science, public law, and economics.

For each of these sciences, he had prestigious diplomas. Between 1949-1977 he was engaged in international relations and law as a professor. He also worked at Columbia University in the 1950s. He headed the research department at the Hague academy and acted as a freelance professor in Paris. Many Egyptian diplomats were  the students of Boutros at Cairo University. 

From 1960 to about 1975 , Boutros-Ghali founded,edited and wrote for the Egyptian news paper Al-Ahram (El-Ektesady) , where his beat was regional and international law, diplomacy and political science. 

Political career

DOCTOR BOUTROS BOUTROS-GHALI

He headed the Egyptian Foreign Ministry as foreign political adviser (Minister) to two presidents - Anwar Sadat and Hosni Mubarak from 1977 to 1991. During is tenure, Egypt made a fateful peace with Israel, for which Sadat received the Nobel Peace Prize, and then paid with his life at the hands of the Islamists.

Boutros became the first UN secretary general among representatives of Arab states and Africa and held this post from 1992 to 1996. Boutros-Ghali largely foresaw changes in global politics, having issued a document in 1992 titled "An Agenda for Peace" where he outlined the views of the diplomat on the political development of the world community. This document is very relevant to this day. 

The period of his work is described in his memoirs. "As SG, I defended the independence of the UN," he said. Guided by this goal, he took several steps that affected the interests of the US (and Israel), which ultimately deprived him of chances of re-election as UN head for a second term. Despite his great diplomatic efforts, he was unable to prevent the genocide in Rwanda in 1994, where more than 1 million people died. 

VISITING THE PEACE KEEPER

The politician said that he contacted the leaders of various states, asking them to send troops to prevent the monstrous crisis. "Unfortunately, let me say that I failed. This is a scandal " Boutros-Ghali said when the Rwandan Hutus began to routinely destroy the Tutsi. Critics argued that his active intervention only spurred the violence. Two years later, in 1996, despite the pressure from the US, he authorized the publication of a report on the tragedy in the Lebanese village of Qana in spring of the same year. As a result of the shelling of UN peacekeeping force post in Lebanon by Israeli artillery, about 100 refugees (including 52 children) were killed and 116 people were injured. The UN experts conducted an investigation and came to the understanding that the bombardment was intentional. The US then persistently advised the SG not to publish the report on the investigation in Qana, but to only declare it verbally. However, Boutros Ghali felt that people had the right to know everything. 

Ultimately, the United States vetoed his re-election as secretary general, and he was the only SG in this post who served 1 term. In his last years, he lived between Cairo and Paris, a city that he loved very much. 

Critic of the USA

Ghali was critical about the role of the United States in the UN, saying in an interview after his resignation that the organization had turned into an "instrument of American foreign policy." He is remembered for his irreconcilable resistance to American actions in the Balkans. 

ANOTHER DOCTORATE

The diplomat also spoke out against the bombing of Bosnia, which the US planned to carry out. In 1999, in his autobiographical book "Unvanquished: A US-UN Saga" Boutros-Ghali criticized many representatives of the US administration during the tenure of Bill Clinton and, in particular, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, calling her "an insignificant political adviser" and a bad diplomat. The book caused a negative reaction from the White House. He was not an American "protégé". 

He was the secretary general with his own opinion which were very extraordinary and that's why the Americans forced him to resign. The job of this Egyptian diplomat was particularly difficult since it was a morbid time for many countries. New world political system emerged at the time. This was primarily due to the consequences of the collapse of the Soviet Union, one of the founders of the UN. The Soviet Union disintegrated, the world became unipolar, and in this world, he had to conduct peacekeeping operations. 

Father of peacemaking his "An Agenda for Peace" is especially important for modern peacekeeping within the UN. Ghali defined this quite easily: "Practically feasible mandate; good cooperation in the fulfillment of mandate; continued support from the SC; the readiness of members to send the necessary military, police and civilian personnel, including specialists; due command of the UN; adequate logistical, financial support ". All modern international peacekeeping operations are organized precisely on the basis of these principles. 

THE MAN BEHIND THE SMILE

After leaving the post of UN head in 1996, Ghali continued his work at Hague Academy of International Law. Then he became a Director for Human Rights in Egyptian National Council. The name of this charismatic and charming diplomat is well known to many people interested in world politics. But even those who know a little about the work of the UN remember this man at least for his unusual double name. It has often been mentioned in skits with an international theme. Ghali himself valued good humour and even gave an interview to the famous British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, who acted under the pseudonym Ali G. - Boutros-Ghali gave him good advice on how to achieve peace throughout the world. "Lower the cannon and listen to Bob Marley," advised the experienced diplomat.

The formal creation of the Agence intergouvernementale de la Francophonie in 1997 entrusted the former Secretary-General of the United Nations Boutros Boutros-Ghali to be the first secretary-general of "La Francophonie". At the end of his mandate in 2002 Boutros was leaving a trail of innovations and had raised the influence of the organization world wide.

  

From 2003 to 2006, Boutros-Ghali served as the chairman of the board of the South Centre an intergovernmental research organization overseeing research for developing countries. 

At last Boutros-Ghali played a "significant role" in creating Egypt's National Council for Human Rights, and served as its active president until 2012.

The former United Nation Secretary General died on the 16th February 2016 in Cairo  at the age of 94. He was Buried after a state military funeral in the “Boutrosiya” (St-Peter) church build in 1912 for the Boutros family and were his grand father “Boutros Ghali” was laid to rest, this same church was bombed in December 2016 by Islamist terrorists. Boutros Boutros-Ghali left behind a long list of good deeds very worthy of respect.

Video tribute to Boutros Boutros-Ghali - Bibliotheca Alexandrina

CLICK ON ARROW IN THE CENTER OF PICTURE TO VIEW VIDEO

  

Some books from the legacy of Boutros Boutros-Ghali     

·       Egypt's Road to Jerusalem:: A Diplomat's Story of the Struggle for Peace in the Middle East 

·       Agenda for Peace 1995 

·       60 ans de conflit israélo-arabe: Témoignages pour l'histoire 

·       Mes années a la maison de verre 

·       En attendant la prochaine lune -- 

·       The United Nations and Rwanda 1993-1996 VX 

      Egypt's road to Jerusalem (1997), about the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty.

·       Unvanquished: A U.S.-U.N. Saga (1999), about his time as Secretary-General at the UN.

FAYOUM

Fayoum (Arabic: الفيوم‎‎ El Fayyūm, Coptic:  ̀Ⲫⲓⲟⲙ Phiom) is a city in Middle Egypt. Located 100 kilometres  southwest of Cairo, in the Faiyum Oasis, it is the capital of the modern Faiyum Governorate. Originally called Shedet in Ancient Egypt, the Greeks called it Crocodilopolis or Krocodilopolis, the Romans Arsinoë. It is one of Egypt's oldest cities due to its strategic location.

OLD PICTURE OF FAYOUM CITY

The modern name of the city comes from Coptic ̀Ⲫⲓⲟⲙ /Ⲡⲉⲓⲟⲙ epʰiom / peiom (whence the proper name Ⲡⲁⲓⲟⲙ payom), meaning the Sea or the Lake, which in turn comes from late Egyptian pꜣ-ymꜥ of the same meaning, a reference to the nearby Lake Moeris; the extinct elephant ancestor Phiomia was named after it.

Archaeological evidence has found occupations around the Fayoum dating back to at least the Epipalaeolithic period. The middle Holocene occupations of the area are most widely studied on the North shore of Lake Qarun, where archeologists did a number of excavations of Epipalaeolithic and Neolithic sites, as well as a general survey of the area. Recently a team from the UCLA/RUG/UOA known as the “Fayoum Project” has further investigated the area.

BIRDS ON LAKE QARUN

In the Pharaonic era, the city was called Shedet. The 10th-century Bible exegete, Saadia Gaon, thought el Fayoum to have actually been the biblical city of Pithom, mentioned in Exodus 1:11. It was the most significant centre of the cult of Sobek, the crocodile-god. In consequence, the Greeks named it Crocodilopolis, "Crocodile City", from the particular reverence paid by its inhabitants to crocodiles. The city worshipped a tamed sacred crocodile, named Petsuchos that was adorned with gold and gem pendants. The crocodile lived in a special temple pond and was fed by the priests with food provided by visitors. When the Petsuchos died, another replaced it.

Under the Ptolemies, the city was for a while called Ptolemais Euergetis. Ptolemy II Philadelphus (309–246 BC) rechristened the city as Arsinoë after the name of his sister and wife Arsinoë (316–270).

RAISING PIGONS IN FAYOUM

Under the Roman Empire, Arsinoë became part of the province of Arcadia Aegypti. To distinguish it from other cities of the same name, it was called Arsinoë in Arcadia. With the arrival of Christianity, Arsinoë became the seat of a bishopric, a suffragan of the Oxyrhynchus, the capital of the province and the metropolitan see. Lequien gives the names of several bishops of Arsinoë, nearly all of them associated with one heresy or another.

Fayoum has several large bazaars, mosques, baths and a much-frequented weekly market. The canal called Bahr Yussef runs through the city, its banks lined with houses. There are two bridges over the river: one of three arches, which carries the main street and bazaar, and one of two arches, over which is built the Qaitbay mosque, that was a gift from his wife to honour the Mamluk Sultan in Fayoum.

LAKE KAROUN

Lake Karoun / Qarun

Lake Moeris (Ancient Greek: Μοῖρις, genitive Μοίριδος) is an ancient lake in the northwest of the Fayoum Oasis, 80 km (50 mi) southwest of Cairo, Egypt. In prehistory, it was a freshwater lake, with an area estimated to vary between 1,270 km² (490 mi²) and 1,700 km² (656 mi²).

It persists today as a smaller saltwater lake called Birket Qarun. The lake's surface is 43 m (140 ft) below sea level, and covers about 202 square kilometers (78 sq mi).

It is a source for tilapia and other fish from the local area. The lake is a magnet to migrating fowl from Europe thus a heaven for hunters.

WATER WEEL

When the Mediterranean Sea was a hot dry hollow near the end of the Messinian Salinity Crisis in the late Miocene, Faiyum was a dry hollow, and the Nile flowed past it at the bottom of a canyon (2,400 m deep or more where Cairo is now). After the Mediterranean refolded at the end of the Miocene, the Nile canyon became an arm of the sea reaching inland further than Aswan. Over geological time that sea arm gradually filled with silt and became the Nile valley.

Eventually, the Nile valley bed silted up high enough to let the Nile in flood overflow into the Fayoum hollow and make a lake in it. The lake is first recorded from about 3000 BC, around the time of Menes (Narmer). However, for the most part it would only be filled with high floodwaters. The lake was bordered by Neolithic settlements, and the town of Shedet grew up on the south where the higher ground created a ridge.

FISHERMEN ON LAKE KARUN / QARUN

In 2300 BC, the waterway from the Nile to the natural lake was widened and deepened to make a canal, which is now known as the Bahr Yussef, a project started by Amenemhat III, or perhaps by his father Senusret III. This canal fed into the lake and meant to serve three purposes: control the flooding of the Nile, regulate the water level of the Nile during dry seasons, and serve the surrounding area with irrigation. There is evidence of ancient Egyptian pharaohs of the twelfth dynasty using the natural lake of Faiyum as a reservoir to store surpluses of water for use during the dry periods.

The immense waterworks undertaken by the ancient Egyptian pharaohs of the twelfth dynasty to transform the lake into a huge water reservoir gave the impression that the lake was an artificial excavation, as reported by classic geographers and travelers. The lake was eventually abandoned due to the nearest branch of the Nile shrinking from 230 BC.

SKELETON OF A WALE

Wadi El Hitan in Fayoum Oasis

Wadi El Hitan (Arabic: وادي الحيتان‎‎, "Whale Valley") is a paleontological site in the Faiyum Governorate of Egypt, some 150 km southwest of Cairo. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2005 for its hundreds of fossils of some of the earliest forms of whale, the archaeoceti (a now extinct sub-order of whales). The site reveals evidence for the explanation of one of the greatest mysteries of the evolution of whales: the emergence of the whale as an ocean-going mammal from a previous life as a land-based animal. No other place in the world yields the number, concentration and quality of such fossils, as is their accessibility and setting in an attractive and protected landscape. This is why the UNESCO added it to the list of protected World Heritage sites .

The fossils found at the site may not be the oldest but their great concentration in the area and the degree of their preservation is to the extent that even some stomach contents are intact. The presence of fossils of other early animals such as sharks, crocodiles, sawfish, turtles and rays found at Wadi El-Hitan makes it possible to reconstruct the surrounding environmental and ecological conditions of the time, adding to its justification to be cited as a Heritage site.

FOSSILS IN THE DESERT

The first fossil skeletons of whales were discovered in the winter of 1902-3. For the next 80 years they attracted relatively little interest, largely due to the difficulty of reaching the area. In the 1980s interest in the site resumed as four wheels drive vehicles became more readily available. Continuing interest coincided with the site being visited by fossil collectors, and many bones were removed, prompting calls for the site to be conserved. The remains display the typical streamlined body form of modern whales, yet retaining some of the primitive aspects of skull and tooth structure. The largest skeleton found reached up to 21 m in length, with well-developed five-fingered flippers on the forelimbs and the unexpected presence of hind legs, feet, and toes, not known previously in any archaeoceti. Their form was serpentine and they were carnivorous. A few of these skeletal remains are exposed but most are shallowly buried in sediments, slowly uncovered by erosion. Wadi El-Hitan provides evidences of millions of years of coastal marine life.

Watch the amazing "Wales In the Desert" Documentary below

NOTE:  In my previous post the reference to the documentary was somehow 

difficult to notice and therefore was missed by most readers