<Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> </Td> <Td> </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> </Td> <Td> </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <P> Sinai was called Mafkat or "country of turquoise" by the ancient Egyptians From the time of the First Dynasty or before, the Egyptians mined turquoise in Sinai at two locations, now called by their Egyptian Arabic names Wadi Magharah and Serabit El Khadim . The mines were worked intermittently and on a seasonal basis for thousands of years . Modern attempts to exploit the deposits have been unprofitable . These may be the first historically attested mines . </P> <P> At the end of the time of Darius I, the Great (521--486 BCE) Sinai was part of the Persian province of Abar - Nahra, which means "beyond the river (Euphrates). </P>

Where is the sinai peninsula located on a map