Rosetta

An Egyptian city nicknamed the “City of a Million Palm Trees,” Rosetta is located in the far north of Egypt. Administratively, it belongs to the Beheira Governorate and is the capital of the Rosetta District. It covers an area of ​​2.5 km² and had a population of 72,491 in 2006. Rosetta is situated at the head of the Rosetta branch of the Nile River, which is named after the city. It is located 263 kilometers north of Cairo.

Rosetta is considered the first city after Cairo that has retained, to a certain extent, its original architectural character, thanks to its existing Islamic monuments dating back to the Ottoman era. These monuments range from civil and religious sites to military sites and social service facilities.

The city of Rosetta lies on the west bank of the Rosetta branch of the Nile. It is bordered to the north by the Mediterranean Sea, to the east by the branch of the Nile River that bears the city’s name, to the west by Abu Qir Bay, and to the south by Tell Abu Mandur and sand dunes. It is also located 60 kilometers east of Alexandria and 55 kilometers north of Damanhur.

Over the ages, the Nile River’s intrusion into the Mediterranean Sea and the accumulation of silt deposits on its banks have lengthened the river’s mouths and estuaries. Some locations on the shoreline were once more advanced, though they are now more regressive. For thousands of years, the river and its silt have remained in the sea, forming the estuary of the Rosetta branch, which extended to its maximum extent by the end of the 19th century. From the beginning of the 20th century, the shoreline began to recede due to the decreasing amount of sediment reaching the estuary. This was an inevitable consequence of the construction of structures controlling the river’s flow, such as barrages along the Nile and the Aswan Dam to the south, as well as the increased use of water for agriculture. After the construction of the Aswan High Dam in 1965—before its inauguration—sedimentation ceased entirely, and the rate of shoreline erosion exceeded 150 meters per year.