gems, quartz, amethyst, Egypt, archaeology

In June 2004, two of the authors (JAH and SES) conducted a survey of an ancient amethyst quarry near Wadi Abu Dryet, a remote outpost of Steins, which is one of only two known amethyst quarries in Egypt. Amethyst, the purple-colored, transparent to translucent variety of quartz (SiO₂), known in ancient Egypt as hesmen, was used from late Predynastic times primarily for jewelry such as beads and amulets, and occasionally for small vessels. Its popularity peaked during the Middle Kingdom and again, though to a lesser degree, during the Roman period. The modern name amethyst derives from the ancient Greek amethystos, meaning “without drunkenness,” based on the belief that the gemstone could protect against or cure intoxication—a notion likely linked to its wine-like color, though the origins of this belief remain unclear. The earliest classical reference to amethystos is found in Theophrastus’s On Stones (30–31) from the late fourth century BC, where it is described as “wine-colored.” Pliny the Elder also mentions amethyst in his Natural History (37.121), written in the first century AD, noting Egypt as one of its sources and echoing its association with wine in both color and name. In the late fourth century AD, Epiphanius, bishop of Salamis in Cyprus, authored a work with the abbreviated title, in its Latin translation, of De Gemmis. In it, Epiphanius refers to the gem amethyst and notes that it is found near the sea in the Libyan mountains. He makes no mention of Egypt, despite archaeological evidence indicating that amethyst mining there had ceased by early Roman times. It is possible that his reference to the Libyan mountains near the sea may correspond to Egypt’s Red Sea Mountains in the Eastern Desert, but this identification remains speculative and unproven.