Archaeogeophysical exploration in Egypt

The Saqqara area in Egypt has attracted many researchers interested in studying Egpyt's archeological treasures. Most studies carried out in this area have concerned classical archaeological excavations. However, the negative effects of the flowing groundwater are so significant that this area needs to be inspected much more rapidly and appropriate measures put in place to mitigate or prevent further damage. This book is concerned with the application of several geophysical techniques in investigations of regional geological features and an important local buried archaeological structure at the famous Saqqara necropolis cemetery. Combined interpretation of electrical resistivity and time-domain electromagnetic data provided important constraints on the deep regional geology of the Saqqara area. Of the methods applied in the archaeological study, georadar produced disappointing results because of the high conductivity of the shallow subsurface; the shallow conductivity distribution was established from an electrical resistivity survey. In contrast, the magnetic method provided valuable information on the lateral positions of archaeological features .

Autorentext

Mohamed Metwaly, received the M.S. degree in applied geophysics, from Mansoura University, Egypt, in 1996, and the Ph.D. degree in the applied geophysics, under a collaboration program between ETHZ, Switzerland, Mansoura University, and NRIAG, Egypt in 2004. His permanent working place is National research Institute of Astronomy.