Even though weather conditions are extreme in the Eastern Desert, this territory has been inhabited since ancient times. Thus, the literary sources from the Pharaonic Period mention the medjay, whereas the Greek classical authors quote troglodytes. Nonetheless, the people from ancient times that we know best are the Blemmyes, a group of tribes that, from the 3rd Century AD, started to pressure the Roman Empire through several raids against the people and cities of Egypt. They ended up settling in the Eastern Desert, which of course includes the area of Mons Smaragdus. Late authors such as Epiphanius or Olympiodorus wrote that, from the 5th Century AD, the emerald mines were under their control.
Today, the Ababda people are the Bedouins inhabiting this area, who probably descended from the Blemmyes. They belong to one of the four tribes that make up the Beja people, inhabitants of the Eastern Desert, who are mostly based in Sudanese territory. The Ababda people were traditionally shepherds, and they herded camels, sheep and goats. After all, most of them have ended up settling in the villages around this area, even though we can still see groups of Bedouins living in the wadis with their flocks.
The Ababda people have always played a key role in the development of archaeology in the Eastern Desert, especially as local guides, since nobody knows the territory as well as they do. Therefore, the first pioneers who discovered the settlement of Mons Smaragdus ─archaeologists such as Cailliaud and Belzoni─ were always joined by the Ababda people. Even nowadays, their assistance is fundamental during excavations or explorations of the area. However, camels have been replaced by pick-up trucks, which makes traveling around the desert much easier.
Furthermore, they play a key role in the excavations and since the 1990s, they help with the sondages performed in the Berenike or Sikait settlements. As a result, some Ababda workers, who started working in these settlements at a very young age, have developed great skills and deepened their knowledge about the archaeological methodology and the materials that can be found in a dig. Therefore, the Ababda ─kind, open and welcoming people─ are a key component in any dig performed in this area of the Eastern Desert.
Sikait Project English 