Egypt
The first day we walked the site collecting artifacts, such as pottery shards, bones and old glass which were littered across a three hundred yards to the south of the Temple of Alexander the Great. From this survey I estimated that the cemetery could be four miles square. The next step was to dig a trench and establish boundaries of the site. The architects mapped out a grid of the entire site into ten metre squares. Each of the six hundred identical squares was then assigned a number and an archeologist. One square contained Tomb 54, to which Mansour Boriak was assigned. During this season, Tomb 54 proved to contain forty-three mummies in two burial chambers. The mummies were stacked in niches cut into the wall on mastaba (bench-like) platforms. We concluded that this tomb was used by one family over many generations.
For three weeks we had the same routine. We got up at 5:00a.m., had breakfast, and left for the site at 6:00a.m. so that we began digging at 7:00. During the day, the local workers created a cheerful atmosphere by signing and singing with each bucket of sand they carried from the tomb. The work was intense, and my team worked diligently. We had no idea what the next shovel of sand might revel.Soon the rim of sloping shafts emerged, and then a few stairs leading down about ten feet, then flat earth. We had reached the floor of another tomb and staring out at us was a beautiful golden face. It was amazing! It was as if we were seeing the mummies being reborn to life. What other discoveries did these sands".
- Valley Of The Kings Discovery
http://tinyurl.com/ar5ef (Monsters and Critics) "An American archaeological mission discovered a tomb in Luxor's Valley of the Kings next to the burial place of King Tut, Egyptian antiquities authorities announced Wednesday. An excavation team from...
- The Crying Child
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/This occasional column by Zahi Hawass will be replaced in the next edition of the Egyptian Gazette, so it has been reproduced in full below:"During the third excavation season, I decided to spend four days in Bahariya...
- The Curse Of The Mummies (1)
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/This short feature by Zahi Hawass on the Al Ahram website is copied in full, because it will only be shown for a short period and will not be archived: "The curse of the mummies (Part 1)by Zahi HawassAfter the announcement...
- Donkey Discovered Valley Of The Golden Mummies
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/ The regular feature on the Egyptian Gazetter website where Zahi Hawass talks about his experiences: "On March 2, 1996, Mansour Boriak, my most experienced and trusted archaeological assistant burst in to my office,...
- My Love Of Pyramids And Mummies
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/ A piece by Zahi Hawass in the Egyptian Gazette, talking about his archaeological interests. This has been copied in full, because it will be replaced with a new article tomorrow and will not be archived: "The Valley...
Egypt
Excavations in the Valley - the tombs
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/
The Egyptian Gazette website, which was last updated on Wednesday appears to be back up and running. They are running part 1 of a piece by Zahi Hawass, in his usual slot. As usual, the whole item is reproduced here:
The Egyptian Gazette website, which was last updated on Wednesday appears to be back up and running. They are running part 1 of a piece by Zahi Hawass, in his usual slot. As usual, the whole item is reproduced here:
"In 1999 I took my team to Bahariya Oasis, for our first season of excavation. We were to stay for three weeks, until it was too hot to work in desert. We settled into the El Bashmo Lodge, a cottage-style hotel with a family feeling.
The first day we walked the site collecting artifacts, such as pottery shards, bones and old glass which were littered across a three hundred yards to the south of the Temple of Alexander the Great. From this survey I estimated that the cemetery could be four miles square. The next step was to dig a trench and establish boundaries of the site. The architects mapped out a grid of the entire site into ten metre squares. Each of the six hundred identical squares was then assigned a number and an archeologist. One square contained Tomb 54, to which Mansour Boriak was assigned. During this season, Tomb 54 proved to contain forty-three mummies in two burial chambers. The mummies were stacked in niches cut into the wall on mastaba (bench-like) platforms. We concluded that this tomb was used by one family over many generations.
For three weeks we had the same routine. We got up at 5:00a.m., had breakfast, and left for the site at 6:00a.m. so that we began digging at 7:00. During the day, the local workers created a cheerful atmosphere by signing and singing with each bucket of sand they carried from the tomb. The work was intense, and my team worked diligently. We had no idea what the next shovel of sand might revel.Soon the rim of sloping shafts emerged, and then a few stairs leading down about ten feet, then flat earth. We had reached the floor of another tomb and staring out at us was a beautiful golden face. It was amazing! It was as if we were seeing the mummies being reborn to life. What other discoveries did these sands".
- Valley Of The Kings Discovery
http://tinyurl.com/ar5ef (Monsters and Critics) "An American archaeological mission discovered a tomb in Luxor's Valley of the Kings next to the burial place of King Tut, Egyptian antiquities authorities announced Wednesday. An excavation team from...
- The Crying Child
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/This occasional column by Zahi Hawass will be replaced in the next edition of the Egyptian Gazette, so it has been reproduced in full below:"During the third excavation season, I decided to spend four days in Bahariya...
- The Curse Of The Mummies (1)
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/This short feature by Zahi Hawass on the Al Ahram website is copied in full, because it will only be shown for a short period and will not be archived: "The curse of the mummies (Part 1)by Zahi HawassAfter the announcement...
- Donkey Discovered Valley Of The Golden Mummies
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/ The regular feature on the Egyptian Gazetter website where Zahi Hawass talks about his experiences: "On March 2, 1996, Mansour Boriak, my most experienced and trusted archaeological assistant burst in to my office,...
- My Love Of Pyramids And Mummies
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/ A piece by Zahi Hawass in the Egyptian Gazette, talking about his archaeological interests. This has been copied in full, because it will be replaced with a new article tomorrow and will not be archived: "The Valley...