Located in the region of the Western Desert area Fayoum Governorate of Egypt, Whale valley is historically known for its archaeological fossils. It’s Egyptian name is ‘Wadi Al Hitan’
Discoveries:
A vast paleontological area containing invaluable fossil remains of the earliest, and now extinct, suborder of whales known as Archaeoceti.It is a fascinating look at evolution and an insight into how whales evolved from land animals to ocean going mammals and considered one of the best and most important discoveries of its kind. The remains go as far as showing how these creatures started to lose their limbs as land animals to then re - form into sea creatures.
One of the most famous and recent discoveries by an American palaeontologist was that of the full skeleton of a Basilosaurus which derived from an earlier species from different parts of the world including Pakistan, Europe, North America and Asian which, at these times, were creatures who walked not swam. Whale Valley has the world’s largest collection of discovered (and still undiscovered) fossils from the ocean and land masses dating back as far as 40 to 50 million years ago when considerable evidence shows that the basin of Wadi Hitan. At this time, the Tethys Sea reached far south of the existing Mediterranean.
Visitors:
Ongoing digs are constantly common in Whale Valley as there are more discoveries found year after year. Therefore, visitors with a keen interest in palaeontology and even regular tourists are excited and amazed at what they see. Numbers grow each year and the region itself is very attractive to the eye and a treasured memory to take home from Egypt.