[EN IMAGES] Egypt: Discovery of Five Tombs of the Pharaohs in Saqqara

Five pharaonic tombs “in good condition and erected for senior officials” were unveiled Saturday in Egypt in Saqqara, in the cemetery of Memphis, the capital of the ancient kingdom of the pharaohs.

• Read also: An unprecedented display of 22 royal mummies in Egypt

• Read also: Discovery in Egypt what could be the “oldest” brewery in the world

• Read also: Nile crocodiles are pets from the Nubians of Aswan

The site of Saqqara, just over fifteen kilometers south of the famous pyramids on the Giza plateau, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is famous for the famous Step Pyramid of Pharaoh Djoser, the first of the Pharaonic era.

This monument, which was built around 2700 BC, by the architect Imhotep, is considered one of the oldest monuments on the surface of the globe.

Egyptian archaeologists have discovered the five tombstones northeast of the pyramid of King Merin I, who ruled Egypt around 2270 BC.

According to the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the tombs contained the remains of senior officials.

In a statement, he said, excavations in the basement of one of them, named Erie, had highlighted a limestone sarcophagus and colorful decorations representing funeral scenes, including “the offering tables and the seven oils and the facade of a palace.”

Three other tombs, six meters deep, belong to two women, one of whom was “solely responsible for the beautification of the king”, as well as of the priest Bibi Navani.

And the last, dedicated to “Henu, servant of the royal house,” sinks seven meters deep from the same source.

Already in January 2021, Egypt unveiled new archaeological “treasures” in the Saqqara necropolis, including about 50 sarcophagi from the New Kingdom dating back more than 3,000 years, claiming that they “rewritten the history” of this period.

Egyptian authorities hope to open the “Grand Egyptian Museum” near the Giza Plateau in the coming months, and are counting on these new discoveries to revive tourism that has been hit hard by the Covid-19 virus.

The sector, which employs two million people and generates more than 10% of GDP, has been in a weakened state since the Arab Spring in 2011.