Archaeologists have opened 2,500-year-old coffins discovered in the Egyptian pyramid Skara. The discovery in the cemetery, included statues of the gods Anubis, Amun, Min, Osiris, Isis Nefertiti, Hathor and a headless statue of the cluster man Amhotep who built the Skara Pyramid.
According to the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, 250 coffins, 150 bronze statues and other artifacts found were dated to about 500 BC. “Burial caves were also found that contained 250 colored and enclosed wooden coffins containing mummies, which will be displayed in the Great Egyptian Museum,” said the head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mustafa al-Waziri.
He added: “We also found the statue of Amhotep. We hope to be able to find his grave soon.” Archaeologists have also found a sistrum – a musical instrument from the percussion family that is associated mainly with ancient Egypt, and a collection of bronze instruments that were used in rituals to worship the Egyptian goddess of fertility – Isis. Coffins containing mummies, were found in burial shafts and numbers which are in very good condition.
Another find among the finds, the first complete papyrus in a century – a form of paper or cloth made from the papyrus plant. The material is covered in hieroglyphs and will also be sent to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo for further analysis in the laboratory.
The astonishing discoveries are the latest in a number of ancient Egyptian finds in recent years. Last year, 52 burial shafts were discovered in Skara, and more than 50 wooden coffins were found inside. Earlier in 2018, National Geographic reported that archaeologists had unearthed the 4,400-year-old tomb of the royal priest and Ahti, a high priest and senior official who served under Pharaoh during the Fifth Dynasty of Egypt.