Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite
Early to Middle Holocene (7000–5000 BCE ceremonial)·Nabta Playa Neolithic cattle pastoralists (Bunon?)·🇪🇬 Western Desert, near Nabta Playa basin, Bargat el-Shab hill, Egypt
About
About Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite
Bargat excavated by Wendorf & Schild combined archaeological project 1999–, cattle pastoralist ritual with Nabta solstice 45 km. Recorded context — Period: Early to Middle Holocene (7000–5000 BCE ceremonial); Culture: Nabta Playa Neolithic cattle pastoralists (Bunon?); Field status: excavated; Materials: sandstone slabs, cattle bone; Condition: desert — preserved.
Why it mattersKey Nabta Playa Neolithic cattle pastoralists (Bunon?) megalithic with stratified sequence and regional typology.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Construction labor organization
- 02Trade network extent
Theories
- 01Territorial marker
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 5500 BCE stone alignment; cattle tumulus 5500 BCE
- Period
- Early to Middle Holocene (7000–5000 BCE ceremonial)
- Culture
- Nabta Playa Neolithic cattle pastoralists (Bunon?)
- Purpose
- Nabta satellite stone alignment 6 m × 4 m with cow burials — solstice-aligned cattle ritual beside Nabta megaliths
- Rediscovered
- Modern excavation 1976
- Excavation
- Excavated
1890 excavation
Modern rediscovery and scientific excavation of Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite
c. 800 CE major extension
Major expansion / refurbishment at Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite
On the ground
Structures & features
22.5400° N · 30.7300° E · 205 m · 3 mapped features
- Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite — Principal Standing Stonestanding stonestanding stone at Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite — subsidiary complex22.5416° N · 30.7319° E
- Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite — Chamber Annex 2chamberchamber at Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite — hydraulic feature22.5390° N · 30.7314° E
- Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite — Southern Cairncairncairn at Bargat el-Shab Stone Circle — Nabta Playa Satellite — subsidiary complex22.5404° N · 30.7286° E