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Pictures of the Mons Porphyrites, Red Sea, EgyptThe Mons Porphyrites,
today Gebel Abu Dukhan, was a Roman quarry, in the Eastern Desert of
Egypt. It lies on the road between the Red Sea and Maximianopolis, the
modern Qena. Porphyry is a hard volcanic rock with inclusions of
feldspar or quartz. This red or purple Egyptian porphyry was mined
until the 5th century and was used and re-used for the creation of
numerous monuments and objects in Europe. The red porphyry was an
imperial symbol and the delivery room of the palace in Constantinople
was panelled with porphyry, that is why the children of reigning
monarch were called "porphyrogenitos" i.e. "born-in-the-purple".
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