Archaeologists have made a significant discovery in the region of Egypt where King Tutankhamun was discovered, which they say ‘reconstructs history.’
They uncovered 11 wooden coffins, including one for a child, inside rock-cut tombs and burial shafts hundreds of feet below the surface of the city of Luxor.
The wealth of artifacts found during the excavation could reveal clues to the lives of ancient Egyptians 3,600 years ago.
The discoveries, experts said, provide clues to ancient Egyptian,symbols, layout, rituals, and practices in their temples.
The trove of goods included bronze coins with the image of Alexander the Great dating to the Time of Ptolemy I (367-283BC), children’s toys made of clay and funerary masks that covered mummies, winged scarabs, beads and amulets.
Looters are believed to have picked through the tombs over the past centuries but left behind pottery tables used to offer bread, wine, meat and archer’s bows that could link the tomb’s owners to the Egyptian military.
The remains of Queen Hatshepsut’s Valley Temple was also uncovered for the first time.
She was the first woman pharaoh of Egypt, reigning from around 1479 to 1458BC.
Burial Chamber containing multiple adjacent coffins that display some of the 11 burials discovered within the rock-cut tombs
Luxor is famously known for its oldest and most ancient Egyptian sites, along with being home to the Valley of Kings where King Tut was discovered
The Zahi Hawass Foundation for Antiquities & Heritage, an organization that aims to preserve Egypt’s heritage and antiquities announced the discovery Wednesday.
Luxor is famously known for being home to the Valley of Kings where King Tut was discovered. It sits about 340 miles from the Great Pyramids.
This area was once called the ‘Great Necropolis of Millions of Years of Pharaoh,’ as several mummies and massive structures have been discovered there since the 1800s.
Unlike the pyramid that held the remains of King Tut, the newly found burials were carved into rocks that the civilization believed protected the body and soul as they journeyed to the afterlife.
Inside these unique tombs, archaeologists also found burial shafts from the 17th dynasty, the tomb of Djehuti-Mes and part of the Assassif Ptolemaic Necropolis.
Djehuti-Mes was the overseer of an ancient Egyptian queen’s palace.
And a cemetery, known as the Assassif Ptolemaic Necropolis, is a burial site where only high-ranking officials were laid to rest.
War archery bows were also found inside the burial chambers, indicating that those who owned the tombs had military backgrounds.
Head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiques Mohammad Ismail shows and discusses fragments of stones displaying scenes of rituals during media event inside to announce new discoveries in Queen Hatshepsut’s Valley Temple
Display revealing children’s dolls and toys made from clay (back left corner), bronze coins engraved with imagery of Alexander the Great (front center), and winged scarabs (front center) found within the rock-cut tombs.
Today, the city of Luxor is referred to as the world’s ‘greatest open-air museum,’ and is both a residential city home to approximately 422,407 individuals as well as a major global tourism destination.
Following recent political turmoil in Egypt, officials aim to attract tourists to popular ancient attractions such as the Luxor Temple, the Valley of Kings, and numerous other structures of history.
On November 4, 1922, archaeologists Carter and his team found steps that led to Tutankhamun’s tomb and spent several months sifting through the treasures.
The trove of grave goods included 5,000 items including solid gold funeral shoes, statues, games and strange animals. It took 10 years to clear the tomb out.
The boy king was an Egyptian pharaoh of the 18th dynasty and ruled between 1332 BC and 1323 BC.
He was the son of Akhenaten and took to the throne at the age of nine or ten.
When Tut became king, he married his half-sister, Ankhesenpaaten.
He died at around the age of 18 and his cause of death is unknown.
The young king, however, was plagued with health issues due to his parents being brother and sister.
