The geographical evolution of the Nile River over the past 11,500 years played a crucial role in the success of Ancient Egyptian civilization, according to a study by researchers from the University of Southampton.
Around 4,000 years ago, a major shift occurred, causing the Nile to deposit large amounts of sediment, raising the valley level, transitioning to fewer, more stable channels, and expanding the floodplain near Luxor.
This transformation increased arable land, soil fertility, and may have influenced settlement patterns and the location of historical structures like the pyramids and the Karnak Temple.
The discovery of an extinct branch of the Nile, known as the Ahramat Branch or Pyramid Arm, running alongside the pyramids, sheds light on how the ancient Egyptians were able to construct these monumental structures.
This 64 km long arm, between 2-8 meters deep and 200-700 meters wide, bordered around 30 pyramids, including the famous pyramids of Giza, and may have been crucial in transporting materials and regulating water flow.
While the exact timeline of the Ahramat Branch's activity remains uncertain, its discovery opens avenues for exploring lost Egyptian cities and towns that were silted over by the shifting river.
Sources: Nature, El Pais, the-past.com, smartwatermagazine.com, techno-science.net, scitechdaily.com, techexplorist.com
This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.
