Jahreshefte des Österreichischen Archäologischen Institutes in Wien, Band 81/2012, pp. 277-330, 2024/10/14
n the course of a cooperation project between the Austrian Archaeological Institute and the Swiss Institute for Architectural and Archaeological Research on Egypt the ancient structures in the Upper Egyptian
settlement Nag el-Tawil (about 20 km north of Aswan) were studied in 2011 and 2012. The monumental
sand stone feature along the western Nile bank was the focus of this research and was previously described by Horst Jaritz in 1972. Today it is a tourist attraction during boat trips. Research by the Swiss Institute in 2008 indicated a Roman settlement in this location.
Based on the complete documentation of the sand stone monument along the Nile bank this structure can be interpreted as a quay and shipping peer for boats that is composed of a southern and northern pier. Earlier theories could not be verified according to which a possible corridor or entrance led to a temple located above on the plateau. The urgency of the complete documentation of this monument is illustrated
by the loss of 15 % of the walls by the robbing of stone since its initial photographic documentation
40 years ago. Excavations of the foundations of the monument provide a date in the middle imperial
period (2nd century A.D.).