Serabit el-Khadim

The Egyptians mined turquoise in western Sinai from the Old Kingdom onward, and on the plateau above the mines they built a temple to Hathor, patron of the miners, which grew over centuries into a long line of shrines, courts and standing stelae running along the ridge. Reaching it means driving into the interior and then walking up, an hour or so of climbing, and the site is left much as it was, with inscribed stelae still standing among the fallen blocks and the mine galleries cut into the hillside below. Its wider importance is linguistic: the Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions found here, scratched by Semitic-speaking workers around the middle of the second millennium BC, are among the earliest known alphabetic writing and stand behind most alphabets used today.

What to look for

• A ridge-top temple of Hathor - shrines and courts along the summit.
• Standing inscribed stelae - still upright among the fallen stone.
• Turquoise mine galleries - the workings cut into the hillside below.
• Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions - among the earliest alphabetic writing known.

When to go

October to April; the climb is serious in heat. A full day from the coast, and camping overnight nearby is common on organised trips. Early start for the ascent. Very few people visit at any time.

Good to know

The approach is a long four-wheel-drive across desert followed by an hour of uphill walking on rough ground; it needs reasonable fitness. A guide is essential and permits are sometimes required. There is no water, shade or shelter. Trips are occasionally refused depending on conditions in the interior.

Nearby

Wadi Mukattab lies on the same route; the Gulf of Suez coast is west.

Key facts