Egypt – Archaeological Discoveries & Museum News

Three important archeological sites open in Luxor
The tomb of King Ramses VI is open again after completing the restoration works in association with the US mission. The Funerary Temple of King Seti I in the West Bank of Luxor is also reopened after renovating it and preparing it for tourists’ visits. The third important project of developing and modernizing the annex of Luxor Museum, displaying the Thebes’ glorious military history, is scheduled to be inaugurated in a world gala this month.

Egypt shows restored Ramses VI sarcophagus
Egypt unveiled the restored sarcophagus of pharaoh Ramses VI and a statue of Queen Tiye, one of the few well-known female rulers of the ancient world.

The sarcophagus was pieced together from 250 fragments likely broken and scattered in the pharaoh’s tomb by ancient tomb robbers, reconstruction experts said. The tomb of Ramses VI is one of the largest in the Valley of the Kings, the ancient royal burial ground for Egypt’s pharaohs. Ramses VI ruled about 3,100 years ago. The sarcophagus is carved in the shape of a mummy from a single block of green conglomerate, and is on display in the pharaoh’s tomb.

The restored lid shows a face with wide-set eyes and full lips, and crossed hands holding royal scepters. Much of the lid is missing and some fragments on the sides are supported with steel rods.
Only the face is a replica. The original face is on display at the British Museum. Zahi Hawass, head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said he hoped it would be returned to complete the sarcophagus.
Hawass also revealed the statues of Amenhotep III, who ruled around 1372 B.C., and his wife, Queen Tiye. The statues were partly buried in Nile silt and a pool of water near the Temple of Memnon outside Luxor, about 310 miles south of Cairo.

The 10-foot statue of Queen Tiye shows her wearing a wig and a long dress and holding a floral whisk and papyrus, which were royal symbols. The find highlights the “golden age of art and prosperity” under Amenhotep, he said.
 
Chip Vincent, director of the Egypt project at the American Research Center in Cairo, said 10 American, Canadian and Egyptian experts worked for two years on the sarcophagus reconstruction. The work was funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development.

“In the past, visitors to the tomb would only see the broken pieces of the sarcophagus,” Vincent said. “Now they have the experience to see the head and the face of the pharaoh.”

Also unveiled was a 4-foot-tall white, headless hippopotamus found by German archaeologists excavating the Temple of Memnon site. Previously, hippopotamus representations were restricted to wall scenes and small models. Egyptian and German archaeologists also showed newly excavated sites of a mortuary temple of Seti I in Qurna, on the west bank of the Nile. The temple, from about 1250 B.C., was dedicated to the god Amun-Re. It was built for Seti’s father, Ramses I, who ruled for only two years. The temple was completed by Seti’s son, Ramses II.

Grave of Egyptian king’s courtiers
 
A grave believed to belong to courtiers or servants of King Aha, the first king of ancient Egypt’s first dynasty, was uncovered by an American excavation mission in Abydos in Upper Egypt.

The enclosure found in Abydos contains “a very well-preserved chapel surrounded with six subsidiary graves belonging to courtiers’ servants intended to serve the king in the afterlife”.
The enclosure lies about 1,5km away from the tomb of King Aha, discovered in 1900 by British archaeologist Flinders Petrie.

Judging from skeletons found in the grave, the archaeologists concluded that the servants were most likely sacrificed to be buried near King Aha. Expedition co-director David O’Conner said the discovery was significant because the reign of Aha is associated with major changes in royal architecture.
The archaeologists also uncovered another enclosure of an unknown first dynasty king that included three graves.

“Unusually, these did not contain human burials but were packed with bodies of ten donkeys which are intended to meet the king’s transportation needs in the afterlife,” said Zahi Hawwas of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.

Archeological discovery of unknown pharaonic king inscription

The American archaeological expedition working in cooperation with the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) in Al-Kharga Oasis discovered a rocky inscription north of the oasis including a royal name dating back to pre-dynastic era (32nd century B.C).

The SCA Secretary-General Dr. Zahi Hawass said that the name was unknown and the rocky inscription discovery came during the survey actions by the archaeological teamwork in Al-Kharga oasis region.

The chairman of the US archaeological expedition Dr. Solima Al-Harram pointed out that the discovery would reveal new information about the Egyptian royal presence in the western desert in the pre-dynastic era.

She added that the inscription showed a new royal name which read Hoor within a shape representing the old pharaonic palace on top of it a bird of Horus, common at the eras of 1st and 2nd dynasties.

She asserted that the inscription indicated the trade activities with Africa through the western desert or to find out the different natural raw materials for buildings and industries during that early period of the Egyptian history preceding the era of the unified country.

EXCAVATIONS

Underwater dig in Alex. E. Harbour, Abu Qir

The Supreme Council for Antiquities (SCA) has approved a plan by an European archaeological mission for exploration in Alexandria’s East Harbour and off the coast at Abu Qir.

Head of the Underwater Exploration Unit in Alexandria, Alaa Elddin Mahrous, said that the European team would begin work on the sites on April 1st under SCA supervision.

SCA Chief, Dr. Zahi Hawas, also gave the go-ahead to a Russian mission to explore the Mahsoura area between El-Anfoushi and Agami on the north coast. The Russian team is to work in mid-April.

MUSEUMS

Developing the aquarium museum in Hurghada

Currently, the aquarium of Hurghada, belonging to National Seafaring & Fisheries Institute, is undergoing an overall development process. The new museum shall hold a new tourist spot and remarkable sightseeing, especially for college students and scholars. It is wide for a variety of scarce species of fish mummified 50 years ago, together with a vast array of shells for scientific purposes as well as under sea investigation.

It has got as much as 13 species of fish such as: Picassos, shrimps, puffer-box and doctor fish, al-harira subfamily, sea-cancer, groupers, sea serpents, mackerels,  mantas, different sizes of dolphins , turtles, aqua-tortoise, white sharks, hammer heads, whales, as well as king fish and barracudas.

The museum also provides also a panoramic view of underwater life.

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April 2, 2004   Posted in: Egypt