Archaeologists Found a Completely Untouched Egyptian Tomb With 11 Bone-Filled Graves

• An archaeological restoration mission made an unexpected discovery when the team found collection of a completely untouched tomb dating back to the Middle Kingdom period.

• The finding could provide fresh insights into funerary practices from the 12^th and 13^th Egyptian dynasties.

• Along with remains of men, women, and children, archaeologists uncovered rare artifacts still in their original positions, untouched for thousands of years.

The artifacts discovered inside a tomb of 11 Egyptian burials from the height of the country’s Middle Kingdom offer a fresh perspective on the funerary practices from the 12^th and 13^th Egyptian dynasties after a restoration project wound up making quite the find.

The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced the discovery of the Al-Asasif necropolis in a translated statement, and Mohamed Ismail Khaled, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Archaeology, said that the importance of the discovery, the first in the region from the Middle Kingdom, will change the history of the area.

Inside the tomb, the discovery of which was made by a joint Egyptian-American mission involved in the cleaning and excavation of the 25^th dynasty’s tomb of Karabasken, 11 graves contained skeletons of men, women, and children. According to the statement, the sealed chamber was a tomb used for families over several generations through the 12^th and the beginning of the 13^th dynasties in Egypt. The unique pieces of jewelry found link the remains to multiple high-status families from the time period.

The 12^th dynasty lasted from 1991 B.C. to 1802 B.C., and the 13^th dynasty lasted from 1803 B.C. to 1649 B.C. The fact that the tomb had never been unsealed was quite a shock.

Ayman Ashmawi, head of the Egyptian Archaeological Sector, said in the statement that while floods heavily damaged the timber coffins and linen fabrics that wrapped the bodies, much of the burial contents were preserved and found in their original locations near the skeletons, including some jewelry still located on the bones of its original owners.

One of the most prominent finds is a unique necklace with 30 cylinder-shaped beads of amethyst stone and two cylindrical beads of agate, all surrounding a hippopotamus head. Other necklaces, bracelets, chains, rings, and belts feature red agate and blue-green ceramic, often decorated in the shape of falcons, snake heads, and hippos. The hippo held many different meanings throughout Egyptian culture, including representing power and wealth, fertility, and life, rebirth, and regeneration.

Inside two of the burials, the archaeologists uncovered copper mirrors, one with a lotus flower-shaped handle, and the other with a rare design of the face of the goddess Hathor, often associated with motherhood, with four distinct facial expressions. There was a small statue made of Venetian stone with severed legs and was decorated with an assortment of jewelry, including 4,000 clay beads to form the statue’s hair. It was common in Egyptian tradition for statues placed within tombs to have legs broken off so they couldn’t harm the deceased occupants in the afterlife.

A square table made to hold incense found in the tomb featured a low edge and a water channel in the middle, all surrounded by motifs of a bull’s head and loaf of bread, meant to preserve the deceased in their afterlife.

Excavations within the area will continue, with researchers hoping to reveal additional secrets from the ancient cemetery, hippo heads or otherwise.

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