In the field: Saqqara tombs press release from SCA

Two large 26th Dynasty tombs have been found in Saqqara by an Egyptian excavation mission from the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), Culture Minister Farouk Hosni announced today.

Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the SCA and the head of the mission, said that the two newly discovered tombs were found at the Ras El Mudir area at Saqqara, near the entrance point of the archaeological site. He explained that both tombs are cut into the limestone rock of the hill and the first one is the largest yet found at Saqqara. It is composed of a large rock-hewn hall followed by a number of small rooms and corridors. Outside the tomb on its eastern side are two large walls, the first is made of limestone while the other is of mud brick.

Dr. Hawass said that during excavation the team found two rooms full of dust that lead to another hall where a number of coffins, skeletons and pots were found. This hall has a corridor that leads to a smaller room with a seven-meter deep burial shaft. At the tomb’s northern end the team found a room full of clay pots and fragments along with ancient coffins and mummies of eagles.

Early investigations, said Dr. Hawass, reveal that the tomb can be dated to the 26th Dynasty and it was reused several times during its history and was likely robbed at the end of the Roman period.

As for the second tomb, continued Dr. Hawass, the team found a number of Saite Period clay pots and coffins scattered inside a sealed limestone room.