Newly Discovered Tombs from the Greco-Roman Era in Egypt

 Archaeologists have uncovered several tombs from the Greco-Roman period in the Aswan region of southern Egypt, with one belonging to a high-ranking official. This discovery was announced by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of the North African country.

The mission included scholars from both the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities and Italy's University of Milan. The tombs were discovered during excavations near the Aga Khan Mausoleum on the west bank of the Nile. These burial sites were carved into nearby rocks, and the hieroglyphic inscriptions on their walls have been well-preserved, allowing archaeologists to quickly identify the burial period.

One of the tombs is situated more than two meters underground and contains a limestone sarcophagus approximately two meters tall. The sarcophagus features a lid depicting a human face with a wig and colorful decorations. Additionally, scientists found two columns of hieroglyphic texts with prayers to local deities and the name of the tomb owner. He was called Ka-Mes, a high-ranking official of his time. The tomb also housed other mummies, some of which were children.

To determine the exact period of burial, scientists plan to conduct tomography on the discovered mummies this autumn and examine the tomb's contents in greater detail. Mohamed Abdel Badi, a representative of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, stated that tombs in this area were originally constructed during the Ptolemaic era but were reused during the Roman conquests. The Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Sharif Fathi, emphasized that this finding will contribute to a deeper understanding of the social structure of the Greco-Roman period.

The Ptolemaic dynasty, often referred to as the Hellenistic or Greek period of Egypt, ruled approximately from the first half of the 3rd century to the middle of the 1st century BCE, following Alexander the Great's conquest of the state.

The Ptolemaic state encompassed nearly the entire territory of modern Egypt and the northeastern part of modern Libya. In 30 BCE, Egypt became a province of the Roman Empire.

In March, a pharaoh's tomb from an unknown dynasty was discovered in Egypt.

Angelina Shemyakina