Seheil Island
Seheil is one of the largest islands in the Nile, and the tall hill on its southeastern flank was a quarry for granite. It was also used as a resting spot for those trading with the Nubians and by the pharaoh's army, who etched hundreds of inscriptions and cartouches on the rocks—the oldest dates from the Middle Kingdom (2130–1649 BC). A climb up the slopes reveals the Famine Stela, a hieroglyph-covered slab. Although it was carved during the Ptolemaic Dynasty (305–30 BC), it recounts an episode from the reign of King Djoser 2,500 years prior. The story goes that Egypt had been suffering from drought and famine for seven years when an adviser to the king suggested that he make an offering to Khnum, the god that controls the Nile flood. Khnum appeared to the pharaoh in a dream and brought back the flood, and Djoser honored him by constructing a temple in his honor on Elephantine Island, the ruins of which you can still visit.
You can reach Seheil Island independently by hiring a felucca or motorboat, or as part of a tour organized by a Nubian guesthouse in Gharb Soheil. In addition to climbing the hill to the stela, the tour might also take you into a Nubian house in the nearby village for tea and cakes.
