Archaeologists on a joint American and Egyptian expedition near Luxor have discovered a 4,000-year-old Middle Kingdom tomb (1938 BC-1630 BC) with several intact burials, Egyptian authorities announced Friday.
In addition to the 11 sealed burials, archaeologists also found jewelry, necklaces, bracelets, armlets, two copper mirrors with ivory handles, as well as scarab rings and belts made of carnelian, garnet, earthenware and feldspar .
“One of the mirrors was found with a lotiform handle, while the second features the rather rare drawing of a four-faced Hathor presenting her as a woman with austere features,” said Dr Elena Pischikova, director of the project Conservation South Asasif, which led the excavation, said in a statement.
One of the necklaces found in a man’s grave is made of amethyst and agate beads surrounding an amulet in the shape of a hippopotamus head.
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Jewelry discovered in the tomb during excavations. (Asasif South Conservation Project)
The group also called a green-blue glazed earthenware fertility figurine an “important find.”
“It is well modeled and decorated with a variety of jewelry and diamond markings on the legs and torso,” Pischikova said. “Her cropped hair is painted black. The head is pierced with holes arranged in three sections. The holes were for attaching the “hair.” Nearly 4,000 mud beads found next to the figurine made up her hair. origin.”
The wooden coffins and fine linens found inside the tomb were largely destroyed by what researchers believe were ancient floods.
The coffins contained the skeletons of five women, two men and three children.
The tomb, discovered in the South Asasif Necropolis next to the Hatshepsut Temple on the west bank of the Nile in Luxor, probably belonged to one family, the researchers said.
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Fertility figures found inside the tomb. (Asasif South Conservation Project)
This tomb is the first from the Middle Kingdom discovered in the region, according to the South Asasif Conservation Project.
“The discovery of the first Middle Kingdom tomb in the Southern Asasif necropolis alters its history, placing Southern Asasif within the sprawling Theban Middle Kingdom necropolis,” Pischikova said.
She added: “This important discovery contributes to our understanding of the funerary practices and rituals of the Theban Necropolis of the Middle Kingdom, as well as presenting a beautiful collection of exquisitely crafted and well-preserved jewelry » on the site.
An offering plate discovered inside the tomb. (Asasif South Conservation Project)
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Hundreds of tombs have been discovered in Luxor, southern Egypt, over the years, including that of its most famous resident: Tutankhamun, an Egyptian pharaoh who reigned between 1332 and 1323 BC.
His grave was discovered in 1922.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
