Everything you need to know about the Saqqara discoveries

The City of the Dead unveils more treasures. Saqqara, located to the Southwest of Cairo, had always been one of the main cemeteries in Memphis. As old as civilized times, Saqqara housed the remains of the earliest dynastic kings, to the proximity of 3,100 B.C. This makes Saqqara about 5,120 years old (or older) to the best of our knowledge. Saqqara may be most prominently known for the Great Funerary Complex of Djoser. Beneath its dry sands, it holds numerous treasures just as fascinating as the ground level architectural masterpiece. It also houses later Pyramids such as the Pyramids of Unas and Userkaf. Saqqara held the title of "The Land of the Dead" for many ancient centuries, only to be (almost) paralleled by the Valley of Kings and Queens much later in Ancient Egyptian history. The new discovery in the Necropolis of Saqqara can only testify to its ever persistent importance.

The gates to the Funerary Complex of Djoser

So, what did the Egyptian mission find?

Three 10-12 metres deep burial shafts were uncovered. About a hundred fully intact coffins preserved under perfect conditions were found inside. They belong to the 26th dynasty, the Third Intermediate Period of Ancient Egypt. Forty gilded statues of Ptah Soker, the diety of Saqqara, were found signifying the importance the cult of the creator God held during these times. It is worthy to note that this importance resonates well all the way to the Ptolemaic dynasties. Twenty wooden statues of the divine child, Horus were also found. Ushabti statues, four golden masks and two statues of an unknown "Phnomus" were found. The exacavated area is nothing but the tombs of the noblemen. All this richness does not even have a royal lineage. The 26th dynasty has always been a great puzzlement and this discovery might bring us a step closer to understand the ongoing political turmoil at the time and the changes Ancient Egypt faced right before falling as an Empire.

More on the 26th dynasty

The dynasty is termed the Saite period relative to its Sais-based founder, Psmatik I. At the time, Egypt was under some dominion from Assyria as well as threatened by frequent Kushite attacks from the South. These were very unsettling times in Egypt where Psmatik I really proved himself. He managed to halt the Assyrian advances for a while and bring a sure end to the Kushite empire. The successors of Psmatik I would continue the struggle with the Pesian Empire, until the eminent fall of Memphis. The fact that any form of art could be produced during such troubling times is truly dazzling. It tells of a nationalist move among the Egyptians, a move based on preserving their heritage and going back to their Old/ Middle Kingdom roots. 

Where to see these treasures?

The coffins, as announced by Dr. Khaled El-Enany, the Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, shall be presented to the Egyptian Museum in El Tahrir on its 118th birthday this November. We shall try to take exclusive images from the exhibit (fingers crossed).

This is not the end.  Dr. El Enany himself has testified to the unfinished work, to the much more discoveries to come during Yesterday's Press Conference on the 14th of November. Dr. Zahi Hawass shall take care  Keep your eyes peeled for more updates from the Egyptomaniacs!


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