Egypt discovers five pharaonic tombs in Saqqara

Egypt discovered five tombs “in good condition and erected for senior officials” in the necropolis of Memphis, in Saqqara, the capital of the Old Kingdom of the Pharaohs.

This place, located just over fifteen kilometers south of the famous pyramids of the Giza plateau, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is known for the famous step pyramid of Pharaoh Djoser, the first of the Pharaonic era.

The monument, built around 2,700 BC, by architect Imhotep, is considered one of the oldest on the planet's surface.

The five tombs were discovered by Egyptian archaeologists northeast of the pyramid of King Merenre I, who ruled Egypt around 2270 BC (BC)

According to the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the tombs contained the remains of senior officials.

In the vault of one of them, called Iry, excavations brought to light a sarcophagus in limestone and colorful ornaments depict funerary scenes, including “offering tables, the seven oil paintings and the facade of a palace,” he said in a statement.

Of the other three tombs, two six meters deep, belonged to two women, one of whom was “solely responsible for the embellishment of the king”, and to the priest Pepi Nefhany.

And the last one, dedicated to “Henu, butler of the royal house”, sinks seven meters deep, according to the same source.

In January 2021, Egypt had unveiled new archaeological “treasures” in the Saqqara necropolis, including some fifty sarcophagi from the New Kingdom over 3,000 years old, claiming that they allowed “rewriting the history” of this period.

The Egyptian authorities hope to open the “Grand Egyptian Museum” near the Giza plateau in the coming months and count on these new discoveries to revive tourism, hard hit by the covid-19 pandemic.

This sector, which employs two million people and generates more than 10% of GDP, has been half mast since the Arab Spring of 2011.

sbh/bk/aoc/eg