Egyptian archaeologists have announced the discovery of 59 sealed and well-preserved coffins that were buried more than 2500 years ago.
Opening one of the richly decorated sarcophagus in front of the accumulated media on Saturday, the team mummified remains wrapped in a burial fabric with brightly colored hieroglyphic inscriptions.
The dramatic location was discovered south of Cairo in the vast Saqqara Cemetery, the necropolis of the former Egyptian capital of Memphis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
“We are very much with this discovery,” said Mostafa Waziri, general secretary of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
Since the discovery of the first thirteen coffins approximately 3 weeks ago, others have been discovered in wells at depths of up to 40 feet (12 meters).
An undetermined number of additional coffins may still be buried there, said Tourism and Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anani near the 4700-year-old Djoser Pyramid.
The coffins, sealed more than 2500 years ago, date back to the defeated era of ancient Egypt, around the 6th or 7th century BC, the minister added.
“I witnessed the opening of one of the coffins. The mummy turned out to have been mummified yesterday,” al-Anani said.
Excavations in Saqqarah have exposed treasures of artifacts in recent years, such as snakes, birds, beetles and other mummified animals.
The discovery of coffins is the first major announcement since the COVID-19 outbreak in Egypt, which has led to the closure of museums and archaeological sites for approximately 3 months since last March.
Dozens of statues have also been discovered in the area, a bronze figure depicting Nefertem, an ancient god of the lotus flower.
Preliminary studies have indicated that the sarcophagus belonged to priests, statesmen and prominent figures of the ancient Egyptian society of the 26th dynasty, al-Anani said.
All coffins would be taken to the Great Egyptian Museum, which will open on the Giza Plateau, he added.
They would be placed in front of a room that housed 32 other sealed sarcophagus for priests of the 22nd dynasty, discovered last year in the southern city of Luxor.
The opening of the Great Egyptian Museum, which has been delayed in schedule, is scheduled for 2021.
The museum will house thousands of artifacts, covering various eras in Egyptian history, from the Predynastic era to the Greco-Roman era.
Egypt expects a wave of archaeological discoveries in recent years and the new museum will animate its important tourism sector, which has suffered shocks since the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, the recently peak of the coronavirus pandemic.
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