Satellite Survey Pinpoints Numerous Pyramids

Several of the new finds are in the area of Saqqara.

At least 17 pyramids, 1,000 tombs, and 3,000 settlements ~ all previously unknown ~ have been revealed through use of an infra-red satellite survey of Egypt. Initial excavations have confirmed some of the findings, including two of the suspected pyramids.

“We were very intensely doing this research for over a year,” Dr. Sarah Parcak tells the BBC. She has pioneered the work in space archaeology from a NASA-sponsored laboratory in Birmingham, Alabama. “I could see the data as it was emerging, but for me the a-ha moment was when I could step back and look at everything that we'd found.”

The team analyzed images from satellites orbiting 700km above the earth, equipped with cameras so powerful they can pinpoint objects less than 1m in diameter on the earth's surface. According to the BBC, ancient Egyptians built their houses and structures out of mud brick, which is much denser than the soil that surrounds it, so the shapes of houses, temples and tombs can be seen.

"These are just the sites [close to] the surface,” Parcak says. “There are many thousands of additional sites that the Nile has covered over with silt. This is just the beginning of this kind of work.”

Click here for the complete article and photos.

First Public Showing for Mysterious Sculpture

 A mysterious sculpture ~ thought by some experts to predate the pyramids of Egypt ~ is being displayed publicly for the first time in hopes of attracting international attention and fresh insights into its origins.

No expert among the many consulted over the past decade can identify the sculpture's age or artistic tradition, nor can they decipher the "ancient, yet unidentifiable language" etched into the artwork.

The large limestone object depicting two entwined and perhaps emaciated figures, "could be one of the rarest finds of its kind," according to Clarence Epstein of Montreal’s Concordia University.

The two nude subjects ~ one a male and the other possibly a female holding a child ~ are depicted in a sitting position with abnormally large heads and elongated limbs. It was brought to Canada in the 1940s by Vincent and Olga Diniacopoulos, Greek immigrants from France who had amassed a world-class collection of antiquities gathered from Egypt, Israel and other ancient sites. The family's vast collection was donated about 10 years ago to Concordia.

The Diniacopouloses considered the mysterious sculpture the centerpiece of their collection. And while there is little documentation about the artwork's provenance, the couple had listed the object under the title "The Starving of Saqqara," referring to one of Egypt's largest burial grounds.

Click here for the complete article.
Click here for another article, with more photos and a video.

Mayor of Memphis Tomb Rediscovered

The world learned today that archaeologists have unearthed the 3,300-year-old tomb ~ lost under sand since treasure hunters stole pieces of it during the 19^th century ~ of the mayor of ancient Egypt’s capital city, Memphis. The mayor, named Ptahmes, also served as army chief, overseer of the treasury and royal scribe under Seti I and his son and successor, Ramses II, in the 13th century BC.  According to the Associated Press:

The discovery of his tomb earlier this year in a New Kingdom necropolis at Saqqara, south of Cairo, solves a riddle dating back to 1885, when foreign expeditions made off with pieces of the tomb, whose location was soon after forgotten.

"Since then it was covered by sand and no one knew about it," said Ola el-Aguizy, the Cairo University archaeology professor who led the excavation. "It is important because this tomb was the lost tomb."

Some of the artifacts ended up in museums in the Netherlands, the United States and Italy as well as the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, providing the only clues about the missing tomb.

A team from Cairo University's archaeology department found the tomb during new excavations of the area that started in 2005, el-Aguizy said. The inner chambers of the large, temple-style tomb and Ptahmes' mummy remain undiscovered. In the side sanctuaries and other chambers they uncovered, archaeologists found a vivid wall engraving of people fishing from boats made of bundles of papyrus reeds. There were also amulets and fragments of statues.

Click here for the ABC News article.

Click here for the MSNBC News article.

Pharaoh's Missing Pyramid Discovered

A section of the Saqqara Serapium along the uncovered ceremonial road.

Egyptian archaeologists have uncovered the base of a pharaoh’s "missing pyramid" and a ceremonial procession road where high priests carried mummified remains of sacred bulls.

The pyramid is believed to be that of King Menkauhor, an obscure pharaoh who ruled for only eight years more than 4,000 years ago. In 1842, German archaeologist Karl Richard Lepsius mentioned Menkauhor's pyramid among his finds at Saqqara, calling it the "Headless Pyramid" because its top was missing. But the desert sands covered Lepsius' discovery, and no archaeologist since was able to find it.

"We have filled the gap of the missing pyramid," Egyptian antiquities head Zahi Hawass said told reporters on a tour of the discoveries at Saqqara, the necropolis and burial site of the rulers of ancient Memphis, the capital of Egypt's Old Kingdom, south of Cairo.

Click here for the Discovery News article.

Antiquities Boss Tells of Pyramid Restoration

The Step Pyramid at Saqqara.

Zahi Hawass is the head archaeologist for the Egyptian Department of Antiquities and has been instrumental in many of the recent discoveries in Saqqara and other ancient sites. Anyone interested in restoration of treasured Egyptian tombs will find his blog post “Saving the Step Pyramid” fascinating. Here are three selected paragraphs:

The Step Pyramid at Saqqara dates back almost 5,000 years, to the reign of Djoser (2630-2611), the first king of Egypt’s 3rd Dynasty. The centuries have taken their natural toll on this remarkable monument, but in recent years the deterioration has accelerated with the rising water table and other changes to the environment. One year ago, the SCA initiated a major effort to save the Step Pyramid for future generations.

I am so happy to be able to tell you that our work to save the Step Pyramid is progressing well. We will soon begin to shore up the ceiling of the burial chamber. I feel as though we are truly helping to cause the name of the great king Djoser and that of his architect, the genius Imhotep, to live for generations to come.

When I was young, I was afraid of the dark, and when I first crawled into the narrow space under the sarcophagus I remembered this feeling. I lay on my back on the floor of the tunnel, with my face almost touching the sarcophagus, and my heart was beating fast. The thrill of adventure, however, immediately made me forget any fear, and I was able to look in amazement at the achievement of the ancient workmen who were able to assemble the sarcophagus from huge pieces of granite.

Click here for Zahi Hawass’s post.

Superb Artifacts Found in Saqqara Tomb

Ancient Egyptian treasures have recently been unearthed by a team of Japanese archaeologists from Waseda University who’ve been digging in the Saqqara necropolis, south of Cairo. Two weeks ago they made significant discoveries in the 3,300-year-old tomb. Top photo shows one of four wooden sarcophaguses, richly engraved with symbols and hieroglyphics. The lower photo shows three canopic jars recovered among the tomb’s numerous grave goods.

Egyptian Tomb Identity is Disputed

A section of the tomb Japanese archaeologists believe belongs to the noblewoman Isisnofret, granddaughter of Ramses II.

There is archeological disagreement over a 3,000-year-old tomb of an Egyptian noblewoman recently unearthed in the Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo.

Japanese archaeologists who found the tomb believe it belongs to Isisnofret, a granddaughter of Ramses II, the famed 19th Dynasty pharaoh who reigned over Egypt for about 68 years from 1304 to 1237 BC.

The tomb contained a broken limestone sarcophagus bearing the name of Isisnofret and the title "noble woman", three mummies and fragments of funerary objects. Isisnofret's last resting place is in an area of Saqqara where a team from Waseda University were excavating the tomb of Prince Khaemwaset, a son of Ramses II.

However, Egyptian antiquities chief Zahi Hawass told AFP he believes the tomb dates from the 18th dynasty instead of the 19th, because of the style of construction. He also dismissed the "similarities in the names" saying that there were many women called Isisnofret in ancient Egypt.

Click here for the AFP article.

More Than Twenty Mummies Found at Saqqara

Egyptian archaeologists have found more than 20 mummies in a burial chamber dating back at least 2,600 years. Eight wooden and stone sarcophagi were also discovered during the excavations at the Saqqara site, said Zahi Hawass, Egypt's chief archaeologist.

One limestone sarcophagus sealed with plaster is thought to be more than 4,000 years old, according to the BBC.

The mummies ~ 22 of which were found in niches along a wall ~ were in a tomb dating to 640BC, Hawass said. One wooden sarcophagus had not been opened since ancient times, though one official said ancient grave robbers had probably reached it first, according to a government statement.

A mummy was found in the only sarcophagus to have been opened so far, and archaeologists said they were expecting to find more mummies in the others.

At right, a worker cleans the face of the recently discovered mummy.

Click here for the BBC article and a video.

Queen Seshestet Mummy is Unearthed

Archaeologists, above, unearth the sarcophagus and mummy, whose remains are shown at left.


Egyptian archaeologists have found the mummy of Queen Seshestet, mother of a pharaoh who ruled Egypt in the 24th century BC, the government said on Thursday.

After five hours spent lifting the lid of a sarcophagus, they found a skull, legs, pelvis, other body parts wrapped in linen, and ancient pottery, the government's antiquities department said. They also found gold wrappings which would have been put on the fingers of the mummified person.

Grave robbers ransacked the burial chamber in ancient times and stole the other objects. "Although they did not find the name of the queen buried in the pyramid, all the signs indicate that she is Seshestet, the mother of King Teti, the first king of the Sixth Dynasty," chief archaeologist Zahi Hawass said in a statement. Teti ruled Egypt for at least 10 years around the year 2300 BC and is buried nearby.

Click here for the Reuters article.

Two More Ancient Tombs Found in Saqqara

Workers continue digging around openings of the newly discovered tombs at Saqqara, south of Cairo.

Panels of hieroglyphics adorn the entrances to both tombs.

Egyptian archaeologists have found the tombs of two court officials ~ one in charge of pyramid-building, the other of music ~ from the reign of Pharaoh Unas.

"We announce today a major important discovery at Saqqara, the discovery of two new tombs dating back to 4,300 years ago," Zahi Hawass, Egypt's antiquities chief, said earlier today.

One belonged to Iya Maat, supervisor of pyramid-building under the reign of Unas. He organized the acquisition of granite and limestone from Aswan and other materials from the Western Desert.

The second tomb housed the remains of Thanah, who was in charge of singers in the court of Unas. The entrance of Thanah's tomb shows carved images of her smelling lotus flowers.

Tomb Contents Long Stolen

Both tombs feature hieroglyphics at their entrances but the contents of the tombs have long since been stolen, Hawass said, adding that 70 percent of Egypt's ancient monuments remain buried under sand.

The death of Unas brought to an end the fifth dynasty, as he did not have a male heir. His daughter is widely believed to have become a queen to the first king of the sixth dynasty, which is considered to be the last dynasty of the Old Kingdom (2613-2494 BC), after which Egypt descended into famine and social upheaval.

Click here for the complete Reuters article.