Egypt discovers ancient port and writings

Exploration team finds hieroglyphic papyri dating back 4,500 years to Great Pyramid builder King Cheops

12 April 2013, 1:07 am Edit

Image of hieroglyphic papyrus discovered at Wadi el-Jarf, Thursday, April 11, 2013 (photo credit: AP Photo/Egypt's Supreme Council Of Antiquities)

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s state minister of antiquities says a Franco-Egyptian exploration team has discovered a Red Sea port dating back about 4,500 years to Great Pyramid builder King Cheops of the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom.

Mohammed Ibrahim said Thursday the port was discovered at Wadi el-Jarf, nearly 180 kilometers (110 miles) south the coastal city of Suez.

In a statement, Ibrahim said the port was used to transfer copper from Sinai to the Nile valley.

The team working in the Suez archaeological area also discovered hieroglyphic papyri, considered the oldest found in Egypt.

Ibrahim said the papyri reveal details about port workers and their daily lives. Most date back to the 27th year of the reign of Cheops, also known as Khufu.

The documents were transferred to the Suez museum.