– Terraces and tombs from the Second, Third and Eighteenth Dynasties change the known area of the Saqqara cemetery
The Saqqara archaeological area is still revealing its secrets, as the Egyptian-Japanese archaeological mission discovered terraces, tombs, and burials that reveal more about the history of this archaeological area. Important.
Sherif Fathi, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, appreciated the efforts made by Egyptian and foreign archaeological missions to unveil more archaeological discoveries, which in turn contribute to revealing more of the history and secrets of Egyptian civilization.
During archaeological excavations on the eastern slope of the Saqqara region, the joint Egyptian-Japanese archaeological mission between the Supreme Council of Antiquities discovered And Japan’s Kanazawa University revealed four tombs dating back to the late Second Dynasty and early Third Dynasty, and more than ten burials from the Eighteenth Dynasty of the New Kingdom.
Dr. Muhammad Ismail Khaled, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, stressed the importance of this discovery, which indicates that the archaeological area of Saqqara still carries within it many secrets that have not yet been revealed, pointing out that This new discovery indicates that the current Saqqara cemetery extends northward over a larger area than is currently known, and the discovery of burials dating back to the early Eighteenth Dynasty proves that the use of Saqqara as a cemetery for the modern state began when the city of Memphis was restored as the capital of the Egyptian state after the expulsion of the Hyksos.
For his part, Mohamed Abdel Badie, head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said that these tombs date back to the era of the Second and Third Dynasties. It consists of two mudbrick mastabas and two tombs carved into the rock, one of which is located near the edge of the northern Saqqara plateau and has an upper building and a well fortified with a limestone dam at the entrance to the passage leading to the burial chamber. The other mastaba is adjacent to the rocky slope and consists of an upper part of mudbrick and a rectangular well in the In the middle of it, several vessels were uncovered in the area adjacent to it, including an Egyptian alabaster plate and a solid cylindrical vessel that may have belonged to Its history dates back to the late Second Dynasty and early Third Dynasty, in addition to its limestone dam Which will the mission More excavation work will be carried out during the coming seasons to reveal what is contained within it.
While Dr. pointed out. Nosmu Kawai, head of the mission from the Japanese side, said that during its current excavation season, the mission also carried out restoration and cleaning work on the Greco-Roman catacombs, which the mission uncovered during its previous excavation seasons. The work team was also able, during the cleaning work, to uncover mummified human remains and a collection of artifacts, including "Terracotta" models Funeral vaults and terracotta shards from the heads of the gods Isis and Aphrodite, as well as shards of wooden coffins and pieces of pottery. The mission will complete its work during the next excavation season in an attempt to unlock more of the secrets of this important archaeological area.
