A amazing gold covered mummy was found in a sealed sarcophagus south of Cairo, EgyptIt was reported this Friday.
According to expert analysis, the remains belonged to a man named Hekashepes and it is one of the mummies oldest and most complete ever found; the body was found along with three other graves.
The discovery made by archaeologists in Egypt was surprising: a mummified body covered in gold, inside a sealed sarcophagus that it had not been opened in 4,300 years.
The remains, belonging to a man named Hekashepes, are believed to be one of the oldest and most complete mummies ever found.
It was discovered in a grave 15 meters deep located in Saqqara, south of Cairo, where three other tombs were also found. The largest of the mummies that were unearthed in that ancient necropolis belong to a man named Khnumdjedef, who was a priest and assistant to the nobles.
Another belonged to a man named Meri, who was an official who held the title of “secret keeper,” which allowed him to perform special religious rituals.
A judge and writer named Fetek is believed to have been buried in the other tomb, where a collection of what are believed to be the largest statues ever found in the area. Various items, such as ceramic pieces, were also found among the tombs.
The discoveries belong somewhere between the 25th and 22nd centuries BC. “This discovery is very important because it connects the kings with the people who live around them,” said Ali Abu Deshish, another archaeologist involved in the excavation.
Saqqara was an active cemetery for more than 3,000 years and was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is located in what was the ancient Egyptian capital, Memphis, and Home to more than a dozen pyramids, including the Step Pyramidnear where a hole containing the mummy was found.
The discovery after experts in the southern Egyptian city of Luxor announced the discovery of an entire Roman-era residential city, dating to the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD
The archaeologists found residential buildings, towers, and what they called “metal workshops,” which contained Roman pots, tools, and coins. Egypt has announced many important archaeological discoveries in recent yearsas part of efforts to revive its tourism industry.
The government expects its Grand Egyptian Museum, due to open this year, to attract 30 million tourists a year by 2028. However, critics have accused the government of prioritizing media findings to attract more tourism, rather than academic research.
Source: Scope
