Egypt on Monday unveiled the discovery of 250 sarcophagi and 150 bronze statues at the Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo, the latest in a series of remarkable finds in the region.
The Saqqara site, situated about 15 kilometers south of the famous pyramids of the Giza plateau, is part of the UNESCO world heritage list and is known for the famous stepped pyramid of Pharaoh Djoser.
This monument, built 2,700 BC by the architect Imhotep, is considered one of the oldest in the world.
Among the 150 statues discovered at the site are one of the architect, also vizier and physician Imhotep.
Inventor of carved stone construction, Imhotep “revolutionized architecture” in the ancient world, Mostafa Waziri, director of the country’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, told the press on Monday.
“Finding Imhotep’s tomb” is one of the main goals of the archaeological mission, which has already carried out four seasons of archaeological explorations at the site, added Waziri.
In addition to the statue of Imhotep, others in bronze representing the deities of the Egyptian pantheon “Osiris, Isis, Hathor, Amon Min, Nefertum and Anubis” were unveiled, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said in a statement.
And “250 wooden sarcophagi with mummies” from the 5th century BC were also found, Waziri added.
In one of them, an “intact” and “sealed” papyrus found by archaeologists was immediately transferred to the laboratory of the Egyptian museum in Tahrir Square, Cairo, to be restored and analyzed.
About nine meters long, the papyrus certainly includes chapters from the “Book of the Dead”, according to the director.
Waziri said the sarcophagi would be moved to the new Grand Egyptian Museum near the Giza plateau, which Egyptian authorities hope to open this year after many delays.
By January 2021, Egypt had already discovered new archaeological “treasures” at Saqqara, among them 50 New Kingdom sarcophagi, more than 3,000 years old.
The authorities assure that these discoveries will facilitate to “rewrite the history” of this period.
Cairo counts on the new discoveries to resume tourism, affected by Covid-19.
The sector, which employs two million people and accounts for more than 10% of GDP, has been affected since the 2011 Arab Spring.
