Cambrian sandstone exposures at Timna Park, southern Israel.
MITZPE RAMON, ISRAEL — Our last stop on our shabbat trip today was at Timna Park north of Eilat, Israel. Here we saw a combination of geology and archaeology. The porous sandstones exposed in the cliffs have been mineralized along fault and joint planes by a green copper ore. The world’s oldest underground copper mines, dating back 6000 years, are here, along with hundreds of more “modern” mines hand-dug by Egyptians between the 14th and 12th centuries BCE. The sandstone itself is rich with geological information, including cross-bedding, channels, and a very prominent honeycomb weathering.
Micah Risacher and Andrew Retzler at Timna Park.
Micah and Andrew are well protected in this complicated part of the world! No worries.
Blogger’s note: We have only limited internet access on this trip, so we may not be answering our personal email very often. I send these posts in pre-written bursts when we get some internet time.
Nice pictures. Did you take them into the mines? I still remember crawling into one of the holes.
Hi Elyssa! Too hot for an extended stay this time. We loved the views, though!