A collection of ancient water reservoirs and service facilities was found on the medieval Port of Aydhab on the west coast of the Red Sea, the Egyptian Tourism and Antiquities Ministry said in a late May statement.

Aydhab, located near the site of an abandoned town in the Halayeb region on the border between Egypt and Sudan, served in antiquity as one of the most prominent Egyptian ports.

One of the main reservoirs discovered at the site measured about 15.10 meters long, 3.15 meters wide, and about 3 meters high, according to Dr. Zia Zahran, head of Egypt’s Islamic, Coptic, and Jewish Archaeological Sector.

The reservoir is made of sandstone and local coral. After construction, it was covered with limestone intended to act as a sealant, preventing leakage and keeping water inside the basin. Similar techniques were used at several other reservoirs discovered to the south of the site.

Archaeological surveys of the site also revealed the foundations of nearby residential buildings, watchtowers, and service facilities.

Zahran explained that these structures pointed to the existence of an “integrated system to manage the port and meet the needs of pilgrims and merchants who have come to it for centuries.”

Archaeologists also found pottery fragments dating to the Fatimid Caliphate (10th to 12th centuries CE) and shards of imported Chinese porcelain, hinting at the ancient port’s status as a hub of international trade.

Egyptian Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy noted that the discovery highlights how developed ancient Egyptian ports were “and what they enjoyed from an advanced infrastructure for the service of the trade movement and pilgrims.”

He added that his ministry has begun to take a larger interest in the excavations and study of border regions and more remote areas, as these sites are of a “great historical and cultural importance.”

Last week, Egyptian archaeologists unearthed several ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman-era artifacts during excavations in Ihnasya Al Madinah, on the left bank of the Nile River.

Ihnasya, also known by its Greek name Heracleopolis (“City of Heracles”) served in antiquity as the capital of Upper Egypt’s 20th nome. In Ancient Egyptian, the city was known as nn nswt, meaning “Child of the King.”

One of the discoveries included a cartouche bearing the raised inscription of both the throne and birth name of Pharaoh Senusret III, the fifth king of the 12th Dynasty of Egypt’s Middle Kingdom.

A second cartouche bearing the name of Osir-Naref, a local form of the Egyptian god of the dead, Osiris, and one of the primary deities worshiped in ancient Ihnasya.

Hisham El-Leithy, Secretary-General of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, explained that the discovery of Senusret’s cartouche is highly important, as it confirms the city’s sacred status during the Middle Kingdom.

Archaeologists also unearthed the ruins of a Roman basilica that served as a public building during the Ptolemaic period before being converted into a Church during the early Christian period.

The remains of a 6th-century Doric temple were also found at the site.

Mohamed Abdel-Badie, Head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities, explained that initial investigations of the ruins showed that several of its stones were used in the foundation and load-bearing columns of the basilica.

Three of the columns remain in their original positions.