Hamash area, in the Eastern Desert of Egypt, comprises several locations with ancient mine workings and building remains. Hamash is mainly known as an ancient gold mine, but copper mining has also been mentioned. Pieces of slag and slagged stone furnace fragments are found in the area indicating that smelting activities must have taken place there. At Hamash area copper minerals chalcopyrite, chalcocite, covellite and bornite, associated with pyrite and quartz were identified. The main mineralization at the smelting site and within the nearby mine was arsenopyrite and hematite. These would have provided the ores for copper and iron smelters. Five ancient Egyptian slag samples and a slagged refractory piece from Hamash-West were studied by chemical, XRD and microscopic technique.
