Egypt unveils "one of a kind" ancient tomb, expects more finds
Egyptian archaeologists have discovered the tomb of a priest dating back more than 4,400 years in the pyramid complex of Saqqara south of the capital Cairo, authorities said Saturday. "Today we are announcing the last discovery of the year 2018, it's a new discovery, it's a private tomb," Antiquities Minister Khaled el-Enany told an audience of invited guests including reporters. "It is exceptionally well preserved, coloured, with sculpture inside. It belongs to a high official priest... (and) is more than 4,400 years old," he said.
- World
- Reuters & AFP
- Published Date: 12:00 | 15 December 2018
- Modified Date: 06:09 | 15 December 2018
"I can imagine that all of the objects can be found in this area," he said, pointing at one of the sealed shafts. "This shaft should lead to a coffin or a sarcophagus of the owner of the tomb."
The tomb is 10 metres (33 ft) long, three metres (9.8 ft) wide and just under three metres high, Waziri said.
The walls are decorated with hieroglyphs and statues of pharaohs. Waziri said the tomb was unique because of the statues and its near perfect condition.
"The colour is almost intact even though the tomb is almost 4,400 years old," he said.
The tomb lies in a buried ridge that has only partially been uncovered. Waziri said he expects more discoveries to be made there when archaeologists start more excavation work in January.
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