Sandstone was one of the principal building materials of ancient Egypt, and this paper provides an overview of the varieties and sources of sandstone used in temples and other monuments. Included are lists of all known sandstone temples and quarries with precise locations given for each along with their age and status, and additionally for the quarries, size and petrology. Three megascopic properties (grain size, bedding type, and color) and one microscopic property (total feldspar content) are assessed in terms of their usefulness in recognizing sandstone varieties and their sources.