New Discovery: Mummification workshop installation in Sakkara.

35 Mummies, 5 sarcophagi, mummification oils in jars with inscribed names of the oils and much more. Also the gilded silver mask, the first to be discovered in Egypt since 1939.

The Egyptian-German mission working since March 2016 and directed by Dr. Ramadan B. Hussein.

The mission started 100% Egyptian then in 2017 the team invited more members from Germany and USA. University of Tubingen in Germany is a part of the team.

"The Saqqara Saite Tombs Project" The Saite Dynasty (Dynasty 26, ca. 664-525 BC.), best known for the cultural practice of archaism, has produced extensive and diverse repertoire of cultural revivals, running the gamut from architectural styles of tombs, themes of reliefs, literary genres to funerary texts. The Saqqara Cemetery has, so far, the largest concentration of Saite Sarcophagus-tombs, approximately 12 tombs, their architectural features and inscriptions have not been properly documented or published. The Saqqara Saite Tombs Project is launched in March 2016.

As a second round of epigraphical and archaeological survey, it focuses on the re-excavation, documentation, conservation and publication of the tombs of Padinist, Psamtek and Amentefnakht, all discovered between 1899 and 1950.

More details to follow including exclusive footage from the press conference held this morning by the Minister of Antiquities in Sakkara at the site of the discovery.

#Egypt #Egyptology #Archaeology #Sakkara #Mummification

The God statue Discovered in the First Ancient Egyptian Pyramid

During the restoration work of Djoser (Zoser) step pyramid in Sakkara, a bronze statue of the ancient Egyptian God Osiris was found.

The team working at the site discovered the statue during the restoration and preservation work of the west side of the pyramid.

Dr. Mostafa Waziry, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said that the statue was found inside a small hole (gap) between the large stone blocks of the pyramid’s façade while removing the debris.

The Statue represents God Osiris standing holding a feather in one hand and sceptre in the other hand wearing Atef crown. The statue has traces of gypsum in some parts.

The statue measures 63 cm height (2 feet and 1 inch) and 15 cm width at the widest part.

Mr. Sabry Farag, General Director of Sakkara antiquities, said that the statue dated to late period and it was probably put in this gap by one of the priests to keep it safe and as a symbol of Osiris relation to the resurrection.

Osiris statue is now at the restoration lab in Sakkara’s antiquities storehouse.

#Egypt #Cairo #Sakkara #StepPyramid #Pyramids #AncientEgypt #Osiris #Discovery #History #Saqqara

3500-year-old Army General’s Tomb Discovered by Egyptian Archaeologists

Cairo University archaeological mission directed by Dr. Ola El Aguizy discovered a tomb of the Great Army General in the period of King Ramses II, which named “Iwrhya” in Sakkara.  

Dr. Ola El Aguizy said that the discovery was carried out in the last excavation season 2017/2018, which resulted an important discovery in the New Kingdom necropolis south of the Causeway of King Unas in Saqqara. 

She added “This tomb is probably dated to both the reigns of kings Seti I and Ramses II. It is still not fully excavated, yet it has already given us a lot of material testifying to the high status of its owner and his family.”

The owner of the tomb is a high army General, and High steward of the domain of Amun, High steward of the estates of Ramses II in the domain of Amun (the Ramesseum).  

His name appears on the tomb together with that of his son “Yuppa” and his grand-son “Hatiay”; the latter occupying a very significant position in the inscriptions on the blocks found on the walls still in place. He had begun his military career during the reign of king Seti I and reached the highest positions in the Egyptian court during the reign of king Ramses II.

The fact that the names of many members of the family of Iwrhya: his son Yuppa and his grandson Hatiay are very prominent in the tomb might suggest that it might be a family tomb. This could not be surely attested except after the excavations of its sanctuary and its shaft.

Dr. El-Aguizy, pointed out that the tomb seems to follow the style of the contemporary tombs in the area: forecourt – statue room with adjacent plastered vaulted storehouses, peristyle court and western chapels which are still not excavated.

This high official from foreign origin was among the many foreigners who settled in Egypt and succeeded to reach high positions in the Egyptian society in the New Kingdom.

The scenes whether they are on the walls or on the blocks found buried in the sand which Dr. Ola El Aguizy, show the daily life activities

A block also discovered in the sand, probably detached from the northern wall shows quite an exceptional scene of an infantry unit and charioteers crossing a waterway with crocodiles. The preliminary study of this scene proved that it represents the eastern boarders of Egypt with its fortified walls. 

The scene has only one parallel represented on the outer north wall of the hypostyle court of the Karnak temple in Thebes showing king Seti I returning from his victorious campaign against the Shasu Bedouins and entering Egypt through the same waterway with crocodiles.  

The remains of such fortified walls were discovered in the past few years by Dr. Mohamed Abdel Maqsoud and his team working on the site known as Tell Heboua I and II; on the Pelusian branch of the Nile, in Eastern Qantara.

The archaeological discoveries in this area (Qantara) has also proved that there was an active daily life in this garrison: Wine cellars, livestock the scenes on the walls 

All the scenes of this tomb are quite exceptional, and its artistic features are very characteristic to the time of king Seti I and that of king Ramses II; a fact that proves that this tomb has been constructed over different phases. 

#Egypt #Egyptology #Archaeology #Discovery #AncientEgypt #Sakkara #Saqqara 

4000 years old wooden head discovered in Sakkara

A wooden head, probably of the sixth dynasty queen Ankhnespepy II, has been unearthed in the area located to the east of her Pyramid in Sakkara necropolis during excavation work carried out by a French-Swiss team from Geneva University.

Dr. Mostafa Waziry, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities announced today. 

Dr. Waziry explains that the head is almost human proportions with a small part of the neck which reached 30 cm tall. The ears are decorated with wooden earrings.

Professor, Philip Collombert, Head of the French-Swiss mission said that the head was found in a disturbed layer to the east of the queen's pyramid near the area where the pyramidion was uncovered early this week. 

The mission has uncovered a large upper part of a granite obelisk that may belongs to the queen's funerary temple.

Dr. Collombert said that the head is not in good conservation condition and it will be subjected to restoration.

"It is a promising area that could reveal more of its secrets soon," said Dr. Waziri. He added that the mission is to continue its excavations in an attempt to discover the queen's pyramid surroundings and the rest of its funerary complex and collection.

#Egypt #Sakkara #Egyptology #Archaeology #Discovery 

4000 years old wooden head discovered in Sakkara

A wooden head, probably of the sixth dynasty queen Ankhnespepy II, has been unearthed in the area located to the east of her Pyramid in Sakkara necropolis during excavation work carried out by a French-Swiss team from Geneva University.

Dr. Mostafa Waziry, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities announced today. 

Dr. Waziry explains that the head is almost human proportions with a small part of the neck which reached 30 cm tall. The ears are decorated with wooden earrings.

Professor, Philip Collombert, Head of the French-Swiss mission said that the head was found in a disturbed layer to the east of the queen's pyramid near the area where the pyramidion was uncovered early this week. 

The mission has uncovered a large upper part of a granite obelisk that may belongs to the queen's funerary temple.

Dr. Collombert said that the head is not in good conservation condition and it will be subjected to restoration.

"It is a promising area that could reveal more of its secrets soon," said Dr. Waziri. He added that the mission is to continue its excavations in an attempt to discover the queen's pyramid surroundings and the rest of its funerary complex and collection.

#Egypt #Sakkara #Egyptology #Archaeology #Discovery 

Celebrating the museum of the museums anniversary with a 21th centurytouch

The Egyptian museum in Cairo celebrates 114th anniversary of its opening for the first time in 1902 on 15th of November.

The celebration organised by the Ministry of Antiquities will be held on Thursday 17th of November 2016 at 6pm (Cairo Local Time)

Dr. Khalid El-Anany, minister of antiquities, is expected to announce on this occasion the opening of the Egyptian museum in Cairo for visitors twice a week in the evenings every Sunday and Thursday.

The bold move was decided on a few months ago and developed from an idea into a reality after spending 2 million Egyptian pounds on the new lighting system indoors and outdoors which was funded by the ministry of tourism and executed by the projects department in the ministry of antiquities directed by Eng. Waad Abo El-Ela.

Also on the same evening, Dr. Khalid El-Anany will cut the ribbon for an exhibition of the finds of the late Egyptian archaeologists Dr. Selim Hassan. The exhibition features 9 objects as well as photographs, plans and notes documented his excavations. There will be also a hologram show of some of the objects discovered by him beside a virtual reality show of his excavations in Unas pyramid in Sakkara. 

Luxor Times will be there and will try to broadcast live stream of the event "if Internet signal permitted" Stay tuned!

#Egypt #Antiquities #Egyptology #Sakkara #EgyptianMuseum #KingTut #Heritage #History #AncientEgypt #ThisIsEgypt #LuxorTimes

Ministry of Antiquities offer a yearly pass to all sites and museums

Starting from September, Ministry of Antiquities will offer a yearly pass to all sites and museums in Egypt (multiple visits) except (Queen Nefertari tomb and Seti I tomb) for 3400 Egyptian pounds to foreigners and Arab nationalities residents in Egypt and for 2900 pounds to foreigners who are working for foreign diplomatic missions and international organisations in Egypt. 

The same pass including Nefertari and Seti I tomb is for 4400 Egyptian pounds to foreigners and Arab nationalities residents in Egypt. The same pass for 3900 pounds to foreigners who are working for foreign diplomatic missions and international organisations in Egypt.

As for Luxor, there will be "Luxor Pass" available from beginning of November for tourists and it will be in two type.

One includes all open to public sites and museums except Seti I and Nefertari tombs for 1000 Egyptian pounds and 500 pounds for students.

The second includes all sites open to public including Seti I and Nefertari tombs for 2400 Egyptian pounds and 1200 pounds for students.

Luxor Pass will be for multiple visits and for duration of 5 days. 

#Egypt #Luxor #Egyptology #Antiquities #ThisIsEgypt #Karnak #Valleyofthekings #KingTut #Pyramids  

Ancient Egyptian masterpiece returned to Egypt

The Egyptian embassy in Switzerland has received the 7 sacred oils tablet and it should be sent back to Egypt in the next few days. 

The tablet represents an offerings tablet for the seven sacred oils. It dates from the beginning of the 6th Dynasty. 

The seven sacred oils are those used in the Opening of the Mouth Ritual for the anointing of the mouth and eyes of the statue or mummy of the deceased.

The travertine (Egyptian alabaster) tablet measures 16.5 x 7.7 x 1.5 cm. It includes 7 depressions to contain the oils.

 It was found by the Egyptian-Australian mission worked in the area of the king Teti cemetery, at Saqqara in 1996. 

The tablet was displayed at the Egyptian museum in Cairo for the Centennial Exhibition in 2003 then it went back to the storehouse in Saqqara till it was stolen and exchanged with a fake copy and the original was smuggled out of Egypt after 2011 turmoil. The smuggled tablet appeared in Belgium where it was sold to the swizz antiquities collector “Jean Claude Condoure”

#Egypt #Egyptology #Archaeology #SmuggledAntiquities #LuxorTimes

Another King Tut's related discovery would change chapters in history books. This time in Sakkara

This morning at Sakkara, Dr. Mamdouh El-Damaty, minister of antiquities, accompanied with governor of Giza and Dr. Alain Zivie (head of the French mission who has been working on the site since 1996 and discovered the tomb of Maia) visited the tomb after the completion of the cleaning and restoration of the tomb.

Maia’s tomb will be open to public for the first time soon.

Dr. El-Damaty said "During the recent cleaning of the tomb, an ostracon was found inscribed with the title of "Mistress of Women" which made the team believe that Maia wasn't only King Tutankhamon's wet nurse but she probably had a higher position if she held the title "Mistress of Women" even though the "wet nurse" is the most known title of her.

The minister added "There is a possibility that Maia could be the sister of Tutankhamon who is called "Meritaten"." In the royal tomb of Meketaten (Elder daughter of Akhnaten) in Tell Amarna there is a scene depicting "Meritaten" breast feeding (nursing) a baby who is believed to be "Tutankhamon"

Dr. Mahmoud Affifi, head of Egyptian antiquities department, said "The tomb was reused heavily in late periods and Greco-Roman time as cats cemetery where original scenes and inscriptions were covered with stones and building material. The cleaning process included removing all those addition to show the tomb as it was in its original state."

Dr. Mahmoud Affifi mentioned that the tomb will receive the visitors soon in the near future.

Below a video of Minister of Antiquties, Dr. Mamdouh El-Damaty talking to Luxor Times about what is possible to be found behind the walls of King Tutankhamon's tomb in the Valley of the Kings (KV62) and the link with Maia's tomb in Sakkara.

Last year, there was a sarcophagus dated back to Third Intermediate Period (TIP) discovered in the tomb during clearing the debris. (More information HERE)

Photos and video copyrights: Luxor Times magazine

Photographer: Mohamed Anwar

#Egypt #Cairo #Giza #Sakkara #Saqqara #KingTut #NewKingdom #History #Archaeology #Egyptology #KV62 #TIP 

Old Kingdom statue to be repatriated from France

On 1st of October, Cairo airport will receive a statue dated to 6th Dynasty back from France.

The statue was stolen from Sakkara antiquities warehouse. The person who had possession of the statue decided to return it to Egypt when he knew it was stolen and smuggled. 

Mr. Ahmed Ali, head of repatriated antiquities department, said "The wooden statue is 33cm length. 

It is a cosmetic spoon depicts a swimming woman."

It will be received by a committee of the Egyptian Museum upon arrival. 

#Egypt #Cairo #Egyptology #Archaeology #Antiquities #AncientEgypt #Makeup

Photo: courtesy of MOA 

French archaeologists unearth two Old Kingdom tombs

Minister of Antiquities announced today the discovery of two 6th Dynasty (Old Kingdom) tombs at the site of Tabit El-Geish, south of Sakkara.

The two tombs belong to priests who were contemporary to the reign of Pepi II (2240-2150 B.C). The tombs were discovered by the mission of the IFAO (Institut Français d’archéologie Orientale) directed by Dr. Vassil Dobrev.

The first tomb of a priest called "Ankhti" where the burial chambers was found in a shaft 12 meters deep and the second tomb belongs to a priest called "Sabi" where the burial chamber was found in a shaft 6 meters deep. In both tombs there are offering scenes.

 (Above: Ankhti tomb)

In the burial chambers of both tombs, human remains and skeletons of the tombs owners were found scattered around which could indicate that the tombs were robbed and vandalised during the 7th or 8th Dynasty.

There were alabaster jars found as well as coloured limestone offerings samples with pottery.

Dr. Vassil Dobrev, director of the mission, said that the upper part of the tombs were built with mud brick and the burial chambers were cut into the white limestone bedrock.

Both tombs have scenes of offerings lists and The seven sacred oils are those used in the Opening of the Mouth Ritual.

(Above: Photos of Sabo tomb. All photos are courtesy of MOA)

#Egypt #Sakkara #Giza #AncientEgypt #Heritage #History #Egyptology #Archaeology #IFAO  

Tracked Ancient Egyptian antiquities after illicit digs and smuggled abroad

Ministry of Antiquities managed to track 5 ancient Egyptian relics were smuggled from Egypt.
The antiquities were a result of illicit digs in south Sakkara at the site of Tabit Al Geish (Tabit Al Geyoush) in 2002.

The minister said "Studying the objects we found that they are parts of the left corner and the entrance of the tomb of "Haw Nefer" who was a priest of the time of Pepi I of 6th Dynasty (Old Kingdom). The tomb was discovered by the French mission of IFAO on Sakkara in 2001."

The minister referred to the cooperation with IFAO to confirm that the antiquities were a result of illicit dig after the first season of excavation for the mission them were smuggled abroad.

 The ministry found 3 of the 5 objects were bought by the museum of fine arts in the Hungarian capital, Budapest from an auction house which the auction house claimed they received in 1974.
The auction house claim is contracting the fact that there were no digs or excavation work in the site before year 2000 till the French mission started an organised excavation in 2001.

The other two objects were found at an auction house in France.

Ali Ahmed, director of Repatriated Antiquities department, said "The 5 objects are a part of Priest “Hau-Nefer” tomb entrance. The ministry took the legal procedures to return the Egyptian antiquities."