Beschreibung:
<jats:p>Recent excavations at the Middle Kingdom harbor at Mersa/Wadi Gawasis, on the Red Sea, have uncovered evidence of shrines aligned along the shore as well as harbor facilities farther inland, including eight manmade caves located above an ancient lagoon that extended considerably inland from where the present- day shoreline is located. The harbor was used for the seafaring expeditions to Punt, located somewhere in the southern Red Sea region. Hieroglyphic and hieratic texts on stelae, seal impressions, and ostraca—along with associated pottery—have aided in dating the use of different features at the site to the early and later Twelfth Dynasty.</jats:p>