Egypt on Monday showed a cache of ancient artifacts dating back 2,500 years, which the country’s authorities have revealed were recently discovered in the famous necropolis in Saqqara.
The artifacts were on display at a temporary exhibition near Djoser’s Step Pyramid in Saqqara, 15 miles from Cairo, the Egyptian capital.
Mostafa Waziri, head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the treasure included 250 painted sarcophagi with mummies in good condition inside, 150 bronze statues of ancient deities and bronze vessels used in the rituals of Isis, the goddess of fertility in ancient Egyptian mythology. around 500 BC
Officials also unveiled a headless bronze statue of Imhotep, the chief architect of Pharaoh Djoser, who ruled ancient Egypt between 2630 BC and 2611 BC.
250 painted sarcophagi containing mummies in good condition were part of the exhibition. Mohamed Abd El Ghani / REUTERS The cache of ancient artifacts dates back 2,500 years. Mohammed Abd El Ghani / REUTERS The artifacts were on display at a temporary exhibition near Djoser’s Step Pyramid in Saqqara. Mohammed Abd El Ghani / Reuters A man takes selfies next to exposed sarcophagi. Mohamed Abd El Ghani / Reuters
“I am very proud that the discovery was made by Egyptians and this will not be the last discovery here,” Waziri said, according to a report.
The artifacts will be on permanent display at the new Great Egyptian Museum, a project near the Giza Pyramids on the outskirts of Cairo that is set to open in September.
The Saqqara site is part of a sprawling necropolis in the ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis, which includes the Pyramids of Giza and the smaller pyramids of Abu Sir, Dahshur and Abu Ruwaish. In the 1970s, the ruins of Memphis were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The artifacts were recently discovered in a famous necropolis in Saqqara. Mohammed Abd El Ghani / REUTERS The artifacts will be transferred to a permanent exhibition at the new Great Egyptian Museum. Mohammed Abd El Ghani / REUTERS Paintings are seen on a sarcophagus. Mohammed Abd El Ghani / REUTERS Painted faces on ancient sarcophagi. Khaled Elfiki / EPA
The presentation of the new finds comes after five well-preserved ancient tombs were discovered in Saqqara in March. The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities says the tombs are at least 4,000 years old.
Last year, a team of archaeologists in southern Egypt unveiled the world’s oldest large-scale brewery, dating back more than 5,000 years.
With postal wires
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