Archaeological map of Saqqara necropolis with Italian help
Egypt, History, 12/27/2001

With Italian assistance, an accurate map of Saqqara archaeological potential is to be charted with the aim of protecting monuments from natural and human hazards.

The envisaged map covers the whole of the archaeological area of Saqqara which stretches to an area of 12 square kilometers.

Including more than 600 monuments, Saqqara used to be the necropolis of the old capital of Memphis which remained in use for four millennia since the dawn of history up until the Coptic Age.

Saqqara embraces the first pyramid in history named Djoser's step pyramid. Yet 90 % of its monuments suffer the effects of environmental pollution since Saqqara is only a few kilometers from Giza.

In the first stage of the project all information and photos published about Saqqara will be collected to determine sites of the tombs on the map. The second stage is an extension of the first one while the third involves details and paintings in 13 tombs.

The team of experts engaged on the project have resorted to the Remote Sensing Authority to obtain a satellite picture of the area to make an analogy with the existing map of the area.

Under the same project equipment for measuring temperature, humidity and pollution rates will be installed within three monuments: the pyramid of Onas and the tombs of Ti and Bitah Hoteb within a general plan that considers decreasing the number of visitors in tombs in order to preserve inscriptions and coloured murals.

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