Geological heritage of Luxor and its vicinities, Egypt: a new assessment and geotourism perspectives

Abstract

Geological heritage is an important resource for socio-economic development of Egypt, and, thus, it requires careful exploration. Potentially unique geological features available in Luxor city and its vicinities, including the Dababiya Protectorate, are reassessed on the basis of literature review and field work. This permits to establish six geological heritage types, namely, stratigraphical, palaeogeographical, sedimentary, palaeontological, geochemical, and geomorphological types. Localities representing these types are proposed as geosites, namely, the Dababiya Quarry with the Global Standard Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) for the base-Eocene and horizons representing the Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), Gebel Gurnah with the type section of the Thebes Formation, and the localities of the Hatshepsut and Luxor temples representing geological activity of the past civilization. Global rank is assigned to two of these geosites, namely, the Dababiya Quarry and the Hatshepsut Temple. Generally, the geological heritage of Luxor and its vicinities boasts significant geodiversity that is adequately displayed at the geosites. Involvement of the documented geological heritage into tourism activities is possible via integration of geotourism with some other kinds of tourism (cultural, archaeological, etc.) and strategic planning of urban geotourism.