Archaeologists in Egypt say they have found underground burial chambers dating back 2,500 years. The researchers say a "goldmine of information" should provide fresh insight into the mummification process.
Image: Reuters/M. abd el Ghany
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German and Egyptian archaeologists said on Saturday they discovered a "mummification workshop" near the Saqqara necropolis in Egypt. The team, which includes researchers from Germany's University of Tübingen, found an underground burial shaft containing several mummies, wooden coffins and sarcophagi.
The researchers believe the discovery of an embalming cachette at the site will allow them to identify the specific oils used by ancient Eqyptians to mummify their dead. "We are in front of a goldmine of information about the chemical composition of these oils," said archaeologist Ramadan Hussein.
A broken mummy mask was amongst the artefacts discoveredImage: Reuters/M. abd el Ghany
'Only the beginning'
Hundreds of small stone statues, jars, and vessels used in the mummification process were all excavated from inside the burial chambers. The most significant discovery was a gilded silver mask, the second only such discovery ever made, according to Egypt's minister of antiquities, Khaled al-Anani. "It's only the beginning."
The Saqqara necropolis is part of Memphis, the first capital of ancient Egypt and now a UNESCO World Heritage site. The area is home to a variety of temples and tombs and the three pyramids of Giza.
Several mummies inside the newly discovered burial siteImage: Reuters/M. abd el Ghany
The artifacts are expected to be displayed in the Grand Egyptian Museum, which is currently under construction. Egypt hopes the discoveries will boost its flagging tourist industry which took a hit following a 2011 political uprising and, more recently, a spate of suicide bombings.
The rise of Islamic extremism in and around Egypt since the 1990s has seen a big rise the number of attacks targeting tourists and non-Muslims. DW looks back at some of the most devastating.
Image: picture-alliance/AA
1997 Luxor massacre
Sixty-two tourists were killed at Egypt's Deir el-Bahri archaeological site in Luxor. Six assailants, thought to have been linked to al-Qaida, disguised themselves as members of the security forces and descended on the temple armed with automatic machine guns and knives. Egyptian tourist police and military forces eventually stopped the attackers, who were either killed or committed suicide.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. El-Dakhakhny
2004 Sinai bombings
A series of bomb attacks targeting tourists in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula killed 34 people and injured 171. Most of the casualties were killed after a truck drove into the lobby of the Taba Hilton. Two more bombs went off at campsites some 50 kilometers away, killing a handful of people. Roughly half the casualties were foreigners, including 12 Israelis.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/A. Nabil
2005 Sharm el-Sheikh attacks
The attack in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh was carried out on Egypt's Revolution Day and for a decade remained the worst Islamist attack in Egypt's history. A series of bombs planted close to bars and restaurants, as well as by a hotel, killed 88 people and injured 150. The majority of victims were locals, although a number of tourists also died, including 11 British nationals.
Image: dpa
2006 Dahab bombings
The attack on the the Egyptian resort city of Dahab marked the third consecutive year that tourist resorts had been targeted. A series of blasts in a restaurant, a café and a market killed at least 23 people, most of whom were local, and wounded around 80. Egyptian officials maintain that the attacks were carried out by the Islamist cell known as Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad, a forerunner of "IS."
Image: AP
2015 Metrojet Flight 9268 disaster
All 224 mostly Russian passengers were killed when Metrojet Flight 9268 suddenly dropped out of the sky over the Egypt's Sinai peninsula, shortly after having taken off from Sharm el-Sheikh international airport. Authorities agree that it appeared a bomb had been snuck on board. The so-called "Islamic State" jihadi group claimed responsibility for the attack.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Grigoriev
2016 Attacks on Egypt's Coptic Christian minorities
While Egypt's Coptic Christians have for decades been targeted by Islamists, deadly attacks on Coptic churches have increased dramatically in recent months. At least 102 Egyptian Christians have been killed in four separate attacks since December 2016.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/Stringer
2017 Coptic church and Al-Rawda mosque bombings
On April 9, 2017, the Coptic church faith followers encountered devastating twin blasts in Tanta and Alexandria as they celebrated Palm Sunday, killing 28 and 17 people respectively. On November 24, 2017, a bomb went off outside of Al-Rawda mosque in the city of Al-Arish in the northern Sinai Peninsula, which claimed the lives of more than 300 people and injured 109 others.
