Emily Chan
In Egypt, archaeologists have unearthed a series of tombs that date back 1,800 to 4,800 years ago. The tombs are located at an archaeological site in northern Saqqara, which is about 20 miles from Cairo. They contained a variety of objects that consisted of colorful mummy masks, statues, plates, and other artwork.
According to the leader of the excavations, Nozomu Kawai, an archaeologist with the Kanazawa University in Japan, the colorful mummy masks were worn by the dead and most likely date back to the Roman period.
It was common for ancient Egyptians to bury their dead with decorative masks. The masks were meant to help with the deceased’s journey to the afterlife.
A small statue depicting Harpocrates riding a goose was also found. Harpocrates was a childlike Greek god associated with silence, secrets, and confidentiality. The goose is thought to represent an evil spirit conquered by the god.
Among the finds, there were also two terracotta statues of the Egyptian goddess Isis, who was revered for her healing and magical abilities.
The artifacts had remnants of green and white coloring on them. Additionally, Kawai and his colleagues discovered a stone slab engraved with writing, also known as a stela. The inscriptions state that the stela belonged to a man named Heroides.
The team of archaeologists had been exploring the site in 2019 and made some notable finds, including the tomb of a “worthy” woman named Demetria with her pet. However, they were forced to cease their investigations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
When they returned in 2023, they dug up even more tombs and artifacts from different historical eras.
“The area we are excavating is the eastern escarpment of the North Saqqara plateau,” said Kawai. “As far as we have excavated there, the oldest tombs belong to the Second Dynasty.”
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