New Discovery, Alexandria: Archaeological Inspection Unearths A Partial Ptolemaic Necropolis in Alexandria

Ptolemaic rock-hewn tombs uncovered in Alexandria's western cemetery. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.

An Egyptian archaeological mission discovered a Ptolemaic necropolis in Alexandria’s western cemetery while carrying out a preliminary archaeological inspection before erecting an iron gate around a workshop at the Gabal Al-Zaytoun railway station in Alexandria.

Mostafa Waziri, the secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, told Ahram Online that the ministry has allocated money for an excavation and to uncover the remaining part of the cemetery. 

He added that the mission found a collection of rock-hewn tombs with stairs leading to a small hall that may had been used as a resting area for visitors, as well as another open court surrounded by burial recesses.

Aymen Ashmawi, the head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Sector, said that the mission also unearthed a collection of lamps decorated with animal scenes and a cistern for funerary rituals, along with a number of clay and glass pots. A collection of skeletons and human bones were also uncovered.

“Early studies show that this necropolis had been used across several historical periods and that it was dedicated to impoverished citizens,” Ashmawi explains. He added that some of the tombs featured coloured and decorated layers of plaster, while other parts were coloured less.

Regretfully the tombs are in very poor condition due to a lack of conservation during the British colonial period when the railways were constructed, as well as the deterioration suffered as a result of the military invasion in World War II.

Source: Ahram Online

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News, Alexandria: Recently Discovered Alexandria Sarcophagus Opened; Does Not Belong to Alexander the Great

A black granite sarcophagus that was discovered earlier this month in Alexandria has been opened in a ceremony attended by Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Mostafa Waziri. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.

Waziri confirmed to Ahram Online that the sarcophagus does not belong to Alexander the Great (356 – 323 BC) as had been speculated by some on social media.

A committee from the Ministry of Antiquities has said that the sarcophagus houses the remains of three warriors who appear to have died during battle. The opening had been delayed for three days to water leaks.

Waziri said that the date of the sarcophagus has not yet been determined, although early inspection suggests that it dates to the Ptolemaic (332–30 BC) or Roman (30 BC – 642 CE) eras.

Shaaban Abdel-Moneim, an expert on mummies, said that the skull of one of the skeletons bears the mark of an arrow wound. Waziri said that the skeletons and the sarcophagus will be transferred to the antiquities ministry storehouse in Alexandria, where they will undergo restoration and further inspection.

Source: Ahram Online

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New Discovery, Alexandria: Clues Point to Occupant of Ancient 'Mystery' Sarcophagus

A sealed black stone coffin discovered in Egypt has sparked the imagination of the Internet. But who's the likely—or unlikely—owner?

The discovery of this 30-ton sealed granite sarcophagus,

believed to be some 2,000 years old

Two weeks since its discovery, the sealed black granite sarcophagus uncovered at an Egyptian construction site—a find that has captured the attention of the Internet and sparked countless mummy jokes about the curse it may unleash—has yet to be opened.

Officials at Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities are reportedly exasperated from fielding countless global press inquiries regarding when and how the stone coffin will be unsealed, and so far they’ve refused, understandably, to speculate who its long-dead occupant may be.

But to narrow down the possibilities, local archaeologists, who are not being named since they are not authorized to speak to National Geographic on behalf of the ministry, share their ideas about whom the sarcophagus likely does not belong to.

The July 1 account of the discovery in Egypt's state-run newspaper, Al Ahram, was straightforward enough: A large stone sarcophagus—still sealed—was uncovered during a construction survey in the city of Alexandria on Egypt's Mediterranean coast. A worn alabaster head of a man, possibly the coffin's occupant, was found nearby, and the burial site was believed to date from the Ptolemaic period (ca. 323-30 B.C.).

The nearly nine-foot-long, five-foot-wide sarcophagus is the largest ancient coffin yet discovered in the city, according to an official statement. This has prompted speculation that it may be the resting place of a powerful or wealthy person—perhaps even that of Alexander the Great, who founded his namesake city in 331 B.C.

While some historical accounts claim that the great Macedonian conqueror was ultimately buried in Alexandria following his death in 323 B.C., his tomb has never been found.

Two archaeologists who work in Alexandria and have knowledge of the discovery spoke independently to National Geographic. They both suspect that the sarcophagus itself may date to an earlier pharaonic dynasty in Egypt's long history, due in part to its unusually large proportions.

One of the two archaeologists believes that, since Alexandria wasn't even founded until the fourth century B.C., the massive sarcophagus may have been brought to the city empty, from an earlier, dynastic-period site down the Nile—such as Memphis—and then re-used to bury someone in later years.

Source: National Geographic

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