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White Desert Monuments

The Western Desert Oases

For the Ancient Egyptians civilization began and ended with the Nile Valleyand the Delta, known as the "Black Land" for the colour of its rich alluvialdeposits. Beyond lay the "Red Land" or desert, whose significance was eitherpractical or mystical. East of the Nile it held mineral wealth and routes to the Red Sea coast; west of the river lay the Kingdom of Osiris, Lord of the Dead - the deceased were said to "go west" to meet him. But once it was realized that human settlements existed out there, Egypt's rulers had to reckon with the Western Desert Oases as sources of exotic commodities and potential staging posts for invaders. Though linked to the civilization of the Nile Valley since antiquity, they have always been different - and remain so.
Siwa Oasis, far out near the Libyan border, is the most striking example: its people speak another language and have customs unknown in the rest of Egypt. Its ruined citadels, lush palm groves, limpid pools and golden sand dunes epitomize the allure of the oases. The four "inner" oases of Bahariya, Farafra, Dakhla and Kharga lie on the "Great Desert Circuit" that begins in Cairo or Assyut - a Long March through the New Valley Governorate, where modernization has affected each oasis to a greater or lesser extent. While Bahariya and Farafra remain basically desert villages, living off their traditional crops of dates and olives, Dakhla and Kharga have become full-blown modern towns. The appeal of the awesome barrenness, most of it
gravel pans rather than pure "sand desert".
Much nearer to Cairo (and suitable for day excursions) are two quasi-oases: the Fayoum and Wadi Natrun. The Fayoum is more akin to the NileValley than the Western Desert, with many ancient ruins to prove its importance since the Middle Kingdom. Though a popular holiday spot for Cairenes, it doesn't attract many foreign tourists except for hunters and ornithologists. Wadi Natrun is significant mainly for its Coptic monasteries, which draw hordes of Egyptian pilgrims but, again, comparatively few foreigners.

The desert

Much of the fascination if this region lies in the desert itself. It's no accident that Islam, Judaism and Christianity were forged in deserts whose vast scarps and depressions displayed the hand of God writ large, with life-giving springs and oases landscape was once savanna, it was reduced to its current state millennia ago by geological process and overgrazing by
Stone Age pastoralists.
The Western Desert, which covers 681,000 square kilometers (over two-thirds of Egypt's total area), is merely one part of the Sahara belt across northern Africa. Its anomalous name was bestowed by British cartographers who viewed it from the perspective of the Nile - and, to complicate matters further, designated its southern reaches and parts of northwestern Sudan as the "Libyan Desert". Aside from the oases, its most striking features are the Qattara Depression, the lowest point in Africa,
and the Great Sand Sea along the Libyan border, an awesome ocean of dunes that once swallowed up a whole army. Further south, the Gilf Kebir and Jebel Uwaynat feature some of the most magnificent prehistoric rock art in Egypt, and were the setting for the events in the book and film The English Patient.
All the practicalities of visiting the oases (including the best times to go) are detailed under the respective entries in this chapter. The most comprehensive source of historical, ethnographic and geographical information is Cassandra Vivian's The Western Desert of Egypt: An Explorer's Handbook (last updated in 2000; a new edition is due in 2007), which includes many useful maps and GPS waypoints, and is available from good bookshops in Cairo.

Visiting the desert: safaris

Organized desert safaris are the easiest and often the only way to reach some of the finest sites in and beyond the oases. There are local operators in all the oases, whose contact details appear in the text. As more are based in Bahariya than anywhere else, this is the best place to arrange safaris at short notice, particularly to the White Desert. Longer trips (4-19 days) to remoter sites such as the Great Sand Sea, the Gilf Kebir or Jebel Uwaynat must be booked weeks or months ahead. Safaris to the Gilf and Uwaynat are restricted to spring and autumn and may sell out six months beforehand. Sadly, some safari outfits fail to respect the environment, leaving rubbish behind or encouraging tourists to remove flint arrowheads or spay water on rock paintings so that they look clearer in photos.

 
The Pyramid of Cheops

The largest pyramid ever built in Egypt was known as the horizon of Cheops. This is building, astonishing in the precision of its execution

The Pyramid of Chephren

king Chephren had his pyramid built in Giza at a diagonal angle to the building erected by Cheops.

The Pyramid of Mycerinus

The modest height of the pyramid of Mycerinus, which formerly reached 216 ft (66 m), may have been a country...
 
The Great Sphinx

The figure of the great Sphinx was worked from a rocky out crop. The colossal sculpture (240 x 65 ft; 73.5 x 20 m)
 
The Solar Barque of Cheops

In 1954, yet another sensational find was in the necropolis area of Giza, already far from lacking in major discoveries. While work was in progress directly in front of the south side of the pyramid of Cheops.
 
Egyptian Museum

The first Egyptian Museum of Pharaonic antiquities was established in 1863 by the famous French archeologist, Auguste Mariette. Afterwards, because of the many Pharaonic treasurers discovered in Egypt .
 
Memphis

The present situation of the ancient capital of Egypt could hardly be put more cogently, for very little of the former glory of the metropolis remains. A few colossal royal statues, the great alabaster sphinx.

Saqqara

Beside the cemetery area of the western Thebes, Saqqara is the most extensive mortuary town in Egypt, and it is known to have been used from the early Dynastic period (First / Second Dynasties)

The Pyramid Complex of Djoser

The great burial district of King Djoser forms the lonely peak in the development of the royal burial sites of the early 3rd millennium B.C. which combine elements of the upper Egypt and lower Egyptian traditions.
 
Dahshur

Only a few miles south of Saqqara stretches the important and extensive pyramid field of Dahshur (opened to the public 1996). Immediately on the edge of the fertile land lie the brick buildings of tree rules of the Twelfth Dynasty.
 
The Coptic Museum

The  Coptic museum, founded in 1908 by Marcus Simaika Pasha, contains the largest collection of Coptic monuments in the world.

The el-Moallaqa Church

The church of the Virgin Mary was constructed above the two 59-ft (18-m) towers of the southern gateway of the fortress of Babylon

Jewish Monuments

The Moses Ben Maimon synagogue is an important historical and religious monument in Egypt, and its restoration will return a piece of Jewish heritage to Egypt.
 
Al-Azhar Mosque

No other mosque in Cairo surpasses Al-Azhar , "The Flowering," in tradition and importance. Soon after its foundation in 970 A.D. it became the site of university studies, which continued there to the present.
 
Ibn Tulun Mosque

Cairo owns one of its oldest and most beautiful mosques to Ahmed Ibn Tulun, founder of the short lived Tulunid dynasty.
 
Mosque of Sultan Hasan

The mosque built below the citadel by Sultan Hasan 91347-1361) is among the outstanding achievements of Islamic architecture.
 
Muhammad Ali Mosque ( The Citadel of Cairo)

The citadel of Cairo was built under Ayyubid dynasty between 1176 and 1207, and later extended to Mamluk and Ottoman pashas, Sultan Al-Nasir Muhammad (1294 - 1340) had a mosque as well as his principal palace built there.

Bab el-Futuh

In the lat 11th century Vizier Badr Al Jamali had a massive fortress laid out around the residence of Cairo

Mosque of Qait Bey

This complex is among the finest buildings in Cairo, It consists of a portal area with well, a minaret.
 
   
Discover White Desert

The richness and variety of Egyptian landscape is endless. At least if you ever decide to visit the White Desert, that's the message you'll get.
White Desert Attractions 

White Desert attractions and sightseeing attractions in White Desert. Book White Desert attraction tours with Select Egypt.
White Desert Holidays

special discount holiday packages offers for White Desert travel. We give you tailor made holiday deals for White Desert travel.
WhiteDesert Tours & Excursions

special discount holiday packages offers for White Desert excursions. We give you tailor made holiday deals for White Desert travel.
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White Desert Hotels

Choose from White Desert hotels with huge savings. Whatever your budget, compare prices and read reviews for all our White Desert hotels.
White Desert Map

Shallow water levels allow for modest vegetation and wildlife. One example is the Cairo University Oasis which comprises only one palm and a few green trees,
White Desert Monuments

The best monuments of White Desert. Information about White Desert monuments, landmarks, historic buildings and museums in White Desert.
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