Qaṣr el-Labacha - Qaṣr el-Labacha

Qasr el-Labacha (also Qasr el-Labakha, Qasr el-Labekha, wrongly too Qasr el-Labaka, Arabic:قصر اللبخة‎, Qaṣr al-Labacha) or 'Ain el-Labacha (Arabic:عين اللبخة‎, ʿAyn al-Labacha) is an archaeological site in the north of the egyptian Sink el-Chārga, about 34 kilometers as the crow flies from the city el-Chārga away.

background

The Roman settlement Qaṣr el-Labacha is on the caravan route Darb ʿAin Amūr to Asyūṭ and extends over an area of ​​2.5 (north - south) by 1.5 kilometers. The construction of a fortress was used to control this route. In the area of ​​this settlement there were two temples and two Qanat strands (Arabic:قناة‎, Qanāt, underground aqueducts) for water supply. The area was used until the 4th century AD.

The Darb ʿAin Amūr has been used by European travelers since 1819 to travel to ed-Dāchla used, e.g. by the British Sir Archibald Edmonstone (1795–1871)^[1] and from the Italian Bernardino Drovetti (1776–1852)^[2]. They have passed this place for sure, but they have not left any reports about it.

For a long time the area was not explored at all. Only since 1990 have studies been carried out by the Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale under Françoise Dunand and by the Egyptian Antiquities Service (Egyptian Antiquities Organization) carried out under Adel Hussein. The Egyptians exposed the rock sanctuary of Piyris in 1991–1992, which contained inscriptions dated from 140–200 AD.

getting there

To get to Qaṣr el-Labacha you need an experienced guide or driver. There are two ways to get there, depending on how you want to make your route. If you are from or to ʿAin Umm ed-Dabādīb If you want to continue driving, you definitely need an all-terrain vehicle (4 × 4):

1. To the north of the reception gate el-Chārga the trunk road Asyūṭ - el-Chārga turn west to take an asphalt road to the village Muhammad Tuleib to get. From here you continue south through the desert to Qaṣr el-Labacha, about 8 kilometers away. If you drive carefully, you can possibly use a normal car or a pickup for this purpose.
2. The second way to get there is the approximately 20 kilometer long runway from or to ʿAin Umm ed-Dabādīb, actually there are two. The way to the west either leads directly past the steep slopes. However, it is only accessible on foot or with a donkey. On the other hand, you drive around the mountains in the south with an all-terrain (!) Vehicle; this should not be a major problem for an experienced driver if he knows the terrain.

mobility

The individual monuments can be reached on foot or by vehicle.

Tourist Attractions

The distinguishing feature of Qaṣr el-Labacha, which can be seen from afar, is that which is up to 11.5 meters high 25.71527830.5544441 roman fortress(25 ° 42 ′ 55 ″ N.30 ° 33 '16 "E)that was built from adobe. It is 16 × 18 meters in size and has round towers around 5 meters in diameter at the corners. The entrance was in the south.

The is located about 950 meters northwest of the fortress 25.72388930.5530562 Sanctuary of Piyris(25 ° 43 '26 "N.30 ° 33 '11 "E), "The great one", which was partly driven into the rock (Semispeos). It was laid out at the turn of the 1st and 2nd century AD and was used until the middle of the 4th century. Piyris buried here was venerated in numerous consecration and devotional inscriptions as a god of salvation and protection and was probably adapted to Horus.

The rock tomb of the Piyris was created in the hillside sloping to the east and is located in the northern part of the complex. Gradually, the sanctuary was expanded again and again in three construction phases, mainly to the south and east. In front of the rock sanctuary, the actual sanctuary was built in adobe architecture. The system is divided into three parts from north to south. The northern group, also known as the northern sanctuary, consists of three rooms. The westernmost is the actual burial chapel with a niche. To the east there is a courtyard and a terrace. Remnants of the original wall painting can still be seen in the northern group of rooms.

The second, middle group of rooms, also called the Central Shrine, consists of a total of five rooms. The westernmost again forms the chapel. On the right wall (north wall) a graffito from the time of Septimus Severus (200 AD) was found. Two more rooms follow, the first still in the rock. The rock tombs can be reached from the two westernmost rooms. There were two burial chambers, each with an anteroom. A courtyard and a terrace formed the end. A graffito from AD 140 was found on the west wall of the courtyard, which is the oldest inscription from Qaṣr el-Labacha. The southern room group was a farm building with seven rooms.

About 250 meters north of the Piyris sanctuary is the so-called 25.72583330.5533333 North Temple(25 ° 43 '33 "N.30 ° 33 '12 "E) made of mud bricks, which is 9 × 27 meters in size and oriented from east to west. You enter it in the east, further entrances were on the south and north sides. The temple contained three long rooms. The largest hall is in the east. The eastern hall had a flat ceiling, the rear one a barrel vaulted ceiling. In the 1990s, the Egyptian Antiquities Service found a limestone fragment with the name of Amun and an imperial title.

The remains of several can be found near the temple Roman tombs.

You will also find one from Roman times here Water source and the associated Aqueductsthat are still functional.

activities

An overnight stay outdoors on site is conceivable.

kitchen

Even if you wouldn't suspect it, a family member of the Tuleibs still lives here. There should still be some time for tea. For a picnic you can go to the el-'Umda restaurant in el-Munīra have it delivered.

Otherwise there is only again in the city el-Chārga Restaurants.

accommodation

Accommodation is usually in the city el-Chārga elected.

trips

Since you need an all-terrain vehicle (4 × 4) for the journey, of which it is in the city el-Chārga There are not very many and the price of which is significantly higher than a normal taxi, it makes sense to visit other places where you also need an all-terrain vehicle:

• Ain Umm ed-Dabadib with a Roman fortress, an aqueduct and rock tombs.
• Village el-Munira with a big one roman fortress in the east of the village.
• Qasr ed-Dabaschiya with a Roman pigeon tower (so-called columbarium) and temple.

The route can be tackled in one day.

literature

• Reddé, Michel: Sites militaires romains de l’oasis de Kharga. In:Bulletin de l’Institut français d’archéologie orientale (BIFAO), vol.99 (1999), Pp. 377-396, especially pp. 380, 389-393. Qaṣr el-Labacha fortress.
• Dunand, Françoise; Heim, Jean-Louis; Lichtenberg, Roger: La nécropole d’ʿAyn el-Labakha (Oasis Kharga): Recherches archéologiques et anthropologiques. In:Hawass, Zahi (Ed.): Egyptology at the dawn of the twenty-first century; proceedings of the Eighth International Congress of Egyptologists Cairo, 2000; Vol.1; Archeology. Cairo: American University at Cairo Press, 2003, ISBN 978-977-424-674-6 , Pp. 154-161. Qaṣr el-Labacha cemetery.
• Hussein, nobility: Le sanctuaire rupestre de Piyris à Ayn al-Labakha, Oasis de Kharga. Le Caire: Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale, 2000, Mémoires / Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale [MIFAO]; 116, ISBN 978-2-7247-0264-4 . Scientific representation of the rock temple of Piyris.
• Schacht, Ilka: A Preliminary Survey of the Ancient Qanat Systems of the Northern Kharga Oasis. In:Communications from the German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Department (MDAIK), vol.59 (2003), Pp. 411-423. Qanat systems.
• Hölbl, Günther: Ancient Egypt in the Roman Empire; 3: Sanctuaries and religious life in the Egyptian deserts and oases. Mainz on the Rhine: Babble, 2005, Zabern's illustrated books on archeology, ISBN 978-3-8053-3512-6 , Pp. 41-42. Piyris rock temple.
• Ibrahim, Bahgat Ahmed; Dunand, Françoise; Heim, Jean-Louis; Lichtenberg, Magdi; Hussein, Kabashy: The matériel archéologique et les restes humains de la nécropole d’Ain el-Labakha (Oasis de Kharga). Paris: Cybele, 2008, ISBN 978-2-915840-07-0 . Qaṣr el-Labacha cemetery.

Individual evidence