Ptolemaic harbour on Red Sea included on archaeological chart

The Standing Committee for Antiquities has recently approved to add Makari Harbour at Mersa Alam at the Red Sea to the chart of archaeological sites.

The harbour goes back to the Ptolemaic age and was considered an important commercial centre for a long time and an outstanding export and import centre to and from south Asia and East Africa.

The Secretary General of the Supreme Council for Antiquities Dr Gaballah Ali Gaballah said that the committee had approved to list some sites under the country's archaeological potential.

Such are Matrah Island in Beheira governorate in addition to Sedi Belal in Ameria, which includes a rock-carved water cistern , some stone walls and a furnace.

The committee has also subjected l00 feddans in Lower Egyptian governorates to the Archaeological Protection Law since they include skeletons, pottery chard and remains of archaeological structures dating to the Roman age.