Which Way Out of Egypt? Physical Geography Related to the Exodus Itinerary

Abstract

The Exodus narrative is rich with geographic references that are properly understood in the context of the ancient landscape of the eastern Nile Delta and adjacent Sinai Peninsula. Changes in the physical geography of the region reflect dynamic interactions between the Nile river system, the Mediterranean Sea, and tectonics of the Red Sea rift system. Coordinating field geology, archaeological sites, digital topography, and satellite imag- ery with Geographic Information Technology resulted in a map depicting the physical geography of the area of interest during the Bronze Age. The map reveals different positions of the Mediterranean coastline with associated lagoons and the existence of Pelusiac Nile distributaries, lakes, and wetlands. The restored geography constrains the path of the ancient “Ways of Horus,” the militarized coastal road between Egypt and the land of the Philistines, but also provides a plausible map of the region that is described in the Exodus texts. The relationship of the Exodus narrative to the natural geography in which it is set is no less important for understanding its meaning than historical, cultural, religious, linguistic, and literary contexts that are the subject of other contributions in this volume. Like a cryptic text in a palimpsest manuscript, ancient landscapes of the Near East are hidden beneath the veneer of desert sand and the infrastructure of human devel- opment. The purpose of this project is to create a map that depicts the natural geography of the eastern Nile Delta and northwestern Sinai during the Late Bronze Age, some 3,500–3,200 years before present. This map provides a geographic context for the history and archaeology of ancient Egypt with implications for the setting of the biblical Exodus.