Egyptian Archaeologists Unearth Ancient Tombs Belonging to Three Senior Statesmen Who Helped Keep the New Kingdom Running
The burials were found at Dra Abu el-Naga, a necropolis for nobles and officials on the West Bank of the Nile River
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Archaeologists in the Egyptian city of Luxor have unearthed the tombs of three prominent officials from the New Kingdom period, which lasted between roughly 1550 and 1070 B.C.E.
An all-Egyptian team of researchers made the discoveries at Dra Abu el-Naga, a necropolis for nobles and notables on the West Bank of the Nile River that was first excavated in the 1920s. The area is home to some of the most important archaeological sites in the country, including the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Queens and the palace-city of Malkata.
Although parts of the three tombs at Dra Abu el-Naga have suffered extensive damage over thousands of years, archaeologists were able to determine the identities of their owners based on inscriptions of names and titles found within the tombs, says Mohamed Abdel-Badie, head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector, in a statement.
One tomb belonged to Amum-em-Ipet, who lived during the Ramesside period (as the 19th and 20th Dynasties, the last two of the New Kingdom, are collectively known) and served as an official in the Temple of Amun, reports the Associated Press’ Fatma Khaled.
The two other tombs date to the 18th Dynasty, which marked the beginning of the New Kingdom. One belonged to Baki, the supervisor of a grain silo, and the other belonged to an individual identifiable only by the initial “S,” who served at different points as a supervisor at the Temple of Amun, the mayor of a northern oasis region and a scribe.
Most of Amum-em-Ipet’s tomb has been destroyed, but its remains include a small courtyard and a hallway leading to a niche whose western wall was breached, likely to make space for a secondary burial, says Abdel-Ghaffar Wagdy, the director general of Luxor Antiquities and head of the site’s excavations, in the statement. The tomb features vivid painted depictions of a funeral procession and banquet.
A long courtyard leads to the entrance of Baki’s T-shaped tomb, where two halls intersect and lead to a burial shaft and an unfinished chamber. The tomb of “S” has a similar layout, with a small courtyard, a burial shaft and two halls, one of which is unfinished.
Artifacts uncovered during the excavation include painted funerary figurines and other grave goods that were buried alongside the statesmen in their tombs. Further research and excavation of the tombs’ burial shafts are underway, says Mohamed Ismail Khaled, secretary general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, in the statement.
This week’s discoveries add to Luxor’s reputation as a major and ever-fruitful archaeological site. Located on the Upper Nile in southern Egypt, the city and its environs have already hosted several major finds this year.
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In January, officials announced the discovery of ancient tombs and burial shafts cut into the rock near the mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut.
In February, archaeologists revealed the lost tomb of Thutmose II, a pharaoh who ruled during the 15th century B.C.E. The find marked the first time archaeologists have unearthed a pharaoh’s tomb since 1922, when King Tutankhamun’s burial site was identified.
“Part of the ceiling was still intact: a blue-painted ceiling with yellow stars on it,” field director Piers Litherland told BBC News. “And blue-painted ceilings with yellow stars are only found in kings’ tombs.”
While excavations at Luxor and elsewhere are often conducted by multinational teams of archaeologists (a British and Egyptian group made the landmark find of Thutmose’s tomb, for instance), this week’s discovery was the work of a solely Egyptian archaeological mission.
Sherif Fathy, Egypt’s minister of tourism and antiquities, hailed the achievement as “a major scientific and archaeological milestone” due to its significance in understanding New Kingdom history and bolstering Egypt’s modern archaeological prowess, writes Daily News Egypt.
