26th Dynasty cemetery uncovered in Egypt's Minya

Luxor is ancient Thebes and has a fascinating past. Share your knowledge or ask your questions here.

Moderators: DJKeefy, 4u Network

Post Reply
User avatar
Winged Isis
Egyptian Pharaoh
Egyptian Pharaoh
Posts: 3867
Joined: Thu Jul 05, 2007 2:38 pm
Location: Australia
Has thanked: 824 times
Been thanked: 766 times
Gender:
Australia

26th Dynasty cemetery uncovered in Egypt's Minya

Post by Winged Isis »

26th Dynasty cemetery uncovered in Egypt's Minya
The new discovery has yielded a large cache of figurines and a fully preserved mummy
Nevine El-Aref , Saturday 24 Feb 2018
Egypt

In the middle of the desert, six kilometres south of Tuna Al-Gabal archaeological site, Egyptian and international media gathered to witness the announcement of a new discovery.
Five showcases displaying the artefacts uncovered from burial sites in the cemetery were guarded by inspectors. Minister of Antiquities Kaled El-Enany, who was on site, announced the discovery of a 26th Dynasty cemetery that consists of a large number of burial shafts.

The discovery was made out by an Egyptian mission led by Mostafa Waziri, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), who started excavations at end of 2017.

“Excavation work is scheduled to last for five years in an attempt to uncover all the burials of the cemetery,” El-Enany told Ahram Online. He explained that the discovery is still fresh, and many more are to come as excavation continues.

Waziri said that in the last three months the mission has discovered a group of tombs and burials that belong to priests of the ancient Egyptian god Thoth, the main deity of the 15th nome and its capital Al-Ashmounein.

One the discovered tombs belongs to a high-priest of god Thoth, “Hersa-Essei”. The tomb houses 13 burials in which was found a large number of ushabti figurines carved in faience. A collection of 1,000 figurines are in a very good state of conservation while other statuettes were found broken in pieces.

“Restorers are now busy collecting all of the parts for restoration,” Waziri pointed out. He continued that four canopic jars made of alabaster with lids bearing the faces of the four sons of the god Horus were also unearthed. They are in a very good state of conservation and still contain the mummified inner organs of the deceased. The jars are decorated with hieroglyphic texts showing the name and titles of its respective owner.

The mummy of high-priest “Djehuty-Irdy-Es” was also found.

The mummy is decorated with a bronze collar depicting the god Nut stretching her wings to protect the deceased according to ancient Egyptian belief. It is also decorated with a collection of blue and red precious beads as well as bronze gilded sheets, two eyes carved in bronze and ornamented with ivory and crystal beads.

Four amulets of semi-precious stones were also found on the mummy. It is decorated with hieroglyphic texts, one of which is engraved with a phrase saying: "Happy New Year.”

The mission has also unearthed 40 limestone sarcophagi of different shapes and sizes, some of them with anthropoid lids decorated with the names and different titles of their owners.

Another family tomb was uncovered in the cemetery, Waziri said. It houses a collection of gigantic sarcophagi of different shapes and sizes, ushabti figurines bearing the names of their owners who were priests of the gods during their time.

Other funerary collections showing the skills and art tastes of the ancient Egyptians were also found.

Al-Gurifa site was subject to an attempt at illegal excavation in 2002, a matter that led the SCA at the time to start comprehensive excavation work on site in 2002 and 2004 under the supervision of archaeologist Atta Makram.

In 2004, the site was declared an archaeological site under the guard of the SCA.

In 2017, excavation work resumed to uncover the part of the cemetery of the New Kingdom and Late Period.

The cemeteries of the Old Kingdom, First Intermediate Period and the Middle Kingdom were on the east bank of the Nile in Al-Sheikh Saad and Eeir Al-Barsha area.

The Ptolemaic period of the cemetery was on the west bank of the Nile at Tuna Al-Gabal.


Photos here: http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/291590.aspx


Carpe diem! :le:
newcastle
Egyptian God
Egyptian God
Posts: 8695
Joined: Thu Oct 17, 2013 11:49 am
Has thanked: 1548 times
Been thanked: 5127 times
Contact:
Egypt

Re: 26th Dynasty cemetery uncovered in Egypt's Minya

Post by newcastle »

Thank you WI. A fascinating area (at least for those with a keen interest in egyptology). It's even made it to the BBc News which is having a bit of an Egypt-fest this weekend.....although the other topics of the Ethiopian Dam and torture under the current regime are less "positive".

I see we had the usual hyperbole from the Egyptian side (in several reports and repeated by the BBC) :

"Egypt hopes that recent discoveries across the country will help spur the vital tourism sector, partially driven by antiquities sightseeing, which was hit hard by political turmoil following the 2011 uprising."

Dream on. Minya isn't exactly a mecca for tourists.

The burials, from 26th Dynasty through to the Ptolomaic period, cover a huge area, on both sides of the Nile, and it's not easy to divine who's digging where at this stage. It'll presumably become clearer ...in a few years' time.

Interestingly, Minya is also the site of an incredible "City of the Dead" - the Zawiyet al-Mayyiteen cemetery.

Comprised of innumerable white conical domes, that stretch out across a wide plain, the necropolis appears similar to waves in the sea. Each of the several hundred mud-brick mausolea of the necropolis is topped with a dome. The cemetery stretches for several kilometers and was used by Muslims and Coptic Christians alike. Much more recent then than the pharaonic burials referred to above.

Further confirmation of Anthony Sassin's thesis that Egyptian burial customs have echoed through the centuries.

It's reckoned to be one of the largest cemeteries in the world....and still in use.

Image

Image

Many more pictures can be found at the blog http://jennyfaraway.com/el-minya-cemetery/
Post Reply
  • Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post