State of conservation of the Large Temple of Sikait, Egypt. The great talc temple of Wadi El-Gemal

Abstract

This article presents a study of the Large Temple (1st century BC - 1st century AD), the most unique temples of the site of Sikait (Eastern Desert of Egypt). The presence of multiples fractures and cracks prompted a non-destructive analysis aimed at the inspections, monitoring, and preliminary diagnosis of its conservations state. Due to the excavated nature of the temple, a hybrid methodology combining mining engineering and architectural pathology was implemented. Geometric documentation was conducted through SfM photogrammetry and traditional surveying, while rock mass characterization included geomechanical station analysis and Schmidt hammer testing. Additional inspection techniques comprised damage mapping, endoscopy, Lutton tests, thermos-hygrometric monitoring, and crack monitoring. The differentiation between geological joints and stress-induced mechanical fractures revealed the structural precariousness of the monument. Analytical calculations suggest that the temple already presented intrinsic instability at the time of its construction. The deterioration of these geological discontinuities, possibly aggravated by the collapse of the upper rocky cliff, later transformed them into critical cracks. The conclusions confirm the correlation between low sclerometric strength in the bands and the advanced pathological condition of the complex, identifying the column and the south wall as the most vulnerable areas. The temple’s intrinsic geological instability and minimal structural design may explain its unfinished state. This multidisciplinary study provides the first scientific assessment of the pathological processes affecting the easternmost hemispeos of Upper Egypt.