Reconstructing the Ancient Caravan Route of Darb Al-Arbain in Greco-Roman Egypt: Heritage Value and Tourism Potential | ||||
| Journal of Association of Arab Universities for Tourism and Hospitality | ||||
| Article 22, Volume 16, Issue 2, June 2019, Page 202-224 PDF (1.69 MB) | ||||
| Document Type: Original Article | ||||
| DOI: 10.21608/jaauth.2019.196205 | ||||
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| Authors | ||||
| Nashwa M.S. Solieman1; Marwa Farouk Hafez1; Ahmed Mohamed Khattab2 | ||||
| 1Tourism Guidance Department, Faculty of Tourism & Hotels, University of Sadat City | ||||
| 2MSc Researcher, Tourism Guidance Department, Faculty of Tourism & Hotels, University of Sadat City, Demonstrator, Cairo Higher Institute of Tourism and Hotels | ||||
| Abstract | ||||
| Kharga Oasis is the capital of the new valley governorate and the biggest of Egypt western oases. The recent studies confirm the importance of El-Kharga as a desert crossroad during ancient times, particularly in the Greco-Roman period. The most well-known route was the north-south route of Darb El-Arbain, which according to Herodotus enabled transportation and trade between Egypt and the heart of Africa. The long route started in Kobbe, moved north out of Sudan to al-Shab, then continued north to El-Kharga Oasis, where Caravans were taxed and assessed, finally reaching Assuit on the Nile Valley, with full length of about 1770 km. A lot of artifacts uncovered along the ancient route helped to identify its pathway, such as cairns, the remains of broken pots, sherds belonging to various types of vessels, surprisingly pack animal skeletons and some petroglyphs were found in the north and the east parts of the road, in addition to, the remains discovered of Ptolemaic and Roman water stations. Archaeological evidences proved that the Romans also stationed multiple military garrisons in the Western Desert and along Darb El-Arbain route to defend caravans and valued supplies. Thus, Darb El-Arbain was the most favorable route for the long-running caravans from the 2nd century BC to the 4th century AD. As an invaluable piece of cultural and natural heritage, Kharga Oasis and its vast surrounding desert area were placed among UNESCO tentative list, acknowledging the importance of preserving their heritage of human activities for future generations and preparing them to be nominated to the World Heritage List. This study focuses on an attempt to re-map the old caravan route of Darb El-Arbain, displaying its importance and its role in the north-south trade and upgrading its ranking within the UNESCO tentative list.. | ||||
| Keywords | ||||
| Kharga Oasis; Caravan Routes; Darb el-Arbain; Roman; Cairns; Petroglyphs; Pottery; Water Sources; Military garrisons; Heritage | ||||
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