Abu Zenima (Arabic: أبو زنيمة) is a coastal city in South Sinai Governorate, Egypt. It has an area of 5,000 square kilometres (1,900 sq mi).
Location of Abu Zenima
Abu Zenima is a coastal city in South Sinai Governorate, Egypt. It has an area of 5,000 square kilometres. Meanwhile, it is situated southeast of 48 Units Housing and southeast of Old Housing 96.
History of Abu Zenima
In 2009, a whale 10 metres long and weighing 10 tonnes was found on its Red Sea coast. The minke whale was presumed to have lost its way from the Indian Ocean and starved due to the relative lack of food. The body was eventually buried in lime to display a skeleton in a visitor’s centre for public health reasons.
Attractions around Abu Zenima
Pharaoh’s Bath
It is located south of the city of Ras Sidr and consists of two parts:
- Pharaoh’s Cave, a cave that extends into the mountain by about 25 m
- The natural springs, sulfur water springs along the beach, produce water with a temperature of up to 75 degrees Celsius and have important properties for treating some bone and skin diseases. They are about 120 km away from the Martyr Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel. The Supreme Council of Antiquities recently discovered a cave with decorations from the fourth century AD. and Greek inscriptions.
Abu Murir well
It is located in the southern part of the city of Ras Sidr on the eastern side of the road leading to the city of Tur. It is a freshwater well. It is surrounded by a group of palm trees and reed forests as a natural oasis in the area. It is about 85 km away from the Martyr Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel.
Serabit El-Khadem Temple
King Senusret I of the Twelfth Dynasty built Serabit El-Khadem Temple, where the ancient Egyptians began excavating for gold and turquoise during the reign of Kings Amenemhat III and IV. Seti I, Ramses II, and Ramses VI. The number of inscriptions in Serabit el-Khadem is 387. Perhaps the most important characteristic of the Serabit el-Khadem region is that in 1905 the writings that were later known as Sinaitic inscriptions were discovered in it, which is the origin of the alphabets.
Grandal Valley
It is considered one of the most beautiful valleys in the South Sinai region. It was mentioned as the most important valley in the area in the book, The Character of Egypt by Professor Jamal Hamdan. There are many oases, wild birds and desert animals. The valley extends at a length of 75-85 km and is distinguished by its dense vegetation cover. Fresh water from natural springs flowing throughout the months of the year spreads throughout the valley. The valley is suitable for establishing Bedouin tourist resorts and safari trips extending for three days. It is located 115 km from the Martyr Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel. There are many beautiful tourist villages in Ras Sidr.
Rodalier
It is located 1.5 km southwest of Serabit el-Khadem in Abu Zenima. It contains pharaonic stone inscriptions and drawings from the Pharaonic era, the middle and modern dynasties (1900-1200 BC), and the old road leading to the Temple of Hathor.
Umm Bejma Mines
It has dense deposits of manganese, and it is likely that it was mined in ancient times and is still extracted today.
Kharij Valley
An ancient site of copper mines. It contains ancient inscriptions of Sahour (5th Dynasty, 2400 BC) and Senusret (12th Dynasty, 1900 BC).
Wadi Nasib: slag heaps, Bir Nasib
There are vast heaps of copper slag, estimated at 100,000 tons, extracted in the Pharaonic era as one of the most important mines. There are inscriptions from the Pharaonic period to the north.
Wadi Nassib: inscriptions and stone carvings, Bir Nasib
It has pharaonic stone inscriptions since the Ramesside period in 1200 BC and rocky slopes on the ground carved in the form of feet and Nabataean decorations.
Mount Makabir
A rocky high with Nabataean and Byzantine inscriptions.
Mount Samra
An ancient copper mine complex located in the southwestern part of the city (3500 – 2500 BC).
Khasm El Tarf mountain
Ruins of a stone structure from the time of human settlements in the Neolithic era and a burial ground.
Abu Zenima Port
The Port of Abu Zenima is situated east of the Gulf of Suez, on the Sinai peninsula. Its bay is between Ras Abu Zenima and Cairn Point and has a draft of over 18.3 m. A sand bank extends offshore about 1295 m from Ras Abu Zenima, marked by a conical buoy; on the east side, the bank’s edge is about 185 m from the pier head. The primary commodity handled is Dry Bulk.
Mining
The area around Abu Zenima is famous for mining uranium and manganese ores, silica sands, gypsum and kaolinite.
Climate
Köppen-Geiger’s climate classification system classifies its climate as a hot desert (BWh), like the rest of Egypt.