The igneous-metamorphic complex has been referred to in the Egyptian geology as the “basement complex” or the “basement” because it formed the base upon which younger underformed Phanerozoic sedimentary beds were deposited.
Basement rocks in Egypt cover extensive areas in the Eastern Desert and southern Sinai. In the Western Desert south of latitude 24oN, exposures of basement rocks project above the Nubia sandstone as scattered outcrops in the area extending from the Nile Valley in the east to Gabal Uweinat in the west where the largest outcrop of these rocks is encountered. The basement rocks of Eastern Desert and southern Sinai constitute part of the Arabian-Nubian shield, exposed along both sides of the Red Sea which has been cratonized during the Pan-African tectonic-thermal event around 600 Ma ago.