Maine news, sports, weather from Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Portland, Maine

Archaeologists unearth 57 ancient tombs

The discovery at Lahoun, south of Cairo, throws new light on Egypt’s ancient religions, scientists say.

The Associated Press

CAIRO — Archaeologists have unearthed 57 ancient Egyptian tombs, most of which hold an ornately painted wooden sarcophagus with a mummy inside, Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities said Sunday.

click image to enlarge

A painted wooden sarcophagus is shown in a photo released by the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities on Sunday. It was discovered in Lahoun, where archaeologists have unearthed 57 ancient Egyptian tombs, with the oldest dating back to around 2750 B.C. and 12 belonging to the 18th dynasty which ruled Egypt during the second millennium B.C.

The Associated Press

Select images available for purchase in the
Maine Today Photo Store

The oldest tombs date back to around 2750 B.C. during the period of Egypt’s first and second dynasties, the council said. Twelve belong to the 18th dynasty, which ruled Egypt during the second millennium B.C.

The discovery throws new light on Egypt’s ancient religions, the council said.

Egypt’s archaeology chief, Zahi Hawass, said the mummies dating to the 18th dynasty are covered in linen decorated with religious texts from the Book of the Dead and scenes featuring ancient Egyptian deities.

Abdel Rahman El-Aydi, head of the archaeological mission that made the discovery, said some of the tombs are decorated with religious texts that ancient Egyptians believed would help the deceased to cross through the underworld.

El-Aydi said one of the oldest tombs is almost completely intact, with all of its funerary equipment and a wooden sarcophagus containing a mummy wrapped in linen.

In 31 tombs dating to around 2030-1840 B.C., archaeologists discovered scenes of different ancient Egyptian deities, such as the falcon-headed Horus, Hathor, Khnum and Amun, decorating some of the tombs.

The council said the findings were unearthed at Lahoun, in Fayoum, some 70 miles south of Cairo.

Last year, some 53 stone tombs dating back to various ancient periods were found in the area.