Egyptian gods ever present in 40+ tombs with mummies

 Image: Supreme Council of Antiquities / Associated Press via MSNBC

Scenes of Horus, Hathor, Khnum and Amun, decorated as many as 57 ornately carved sarcophagi found, recently unearthed in Egypt. The tombs date back as far as 2750 B.C. and give researchers a glimpse into the religious rites of ancient Egyptians. From MSNBC:

Egypt's archaeology chief, Zahi Hawass, said the mummies dating to the 18th Dynasty are covered in linen decorated with religious texts from the Book of the Dead and scenes featuring ancient Egyptian deities. Abdel Rahman El-Aydi, head of the archaeological mission that made the discovery, said some of the tombs are decorated with religious texts that ancient Egyptians believed would help the deceased to cross through the underworld. El-Aydi said one of the oldest tombs is almost completely intact, with all of its funerary equipment and a wooden sarcophagus containing a mummy wrapped in linen.

...a little more detail from ABC News, plus a gallery of photos from Heritage-Key.com, like the one below. Each article had the total number of tombs between 43 and 57, it wasn't exactly clear why there was a discrepancy (just FYI).

 Image: Supreme Council of Antiquities via Heritage-Key

MSNBC's story...

FOUND: Persian Army Lost in Sandstorm 2,500 Years Ago

Photo credit: Alfredo and Angelo Castiglioni via Discovery Networks

Italian researches claim to have found the remains of an ancient Persian army that disappeared in the sands of Egypt some 2,500 years ago.

From MSNBC:

Bronze weapons, a silver bracelet, an earring and hundreds of human bones found in the vast desolate wilderness of the Sahara desert have raised hopes of finally finding the lost army of Persian King Cambyses II. The 50,000 warriors were said to be buried by a cataclysmic sandstorm in 525 B.C.

"We have found the first archaeological evidence of a story reported by the Greek historian Herodotus," Dario Del Bufalo, a member of the expedition from the University of Lecce, told Discovery News.

Herodotus' tale recounts how the Persian army of more than 50,000 became lost on the way to siege Siwa Oasis. The army at the time was commanded by Cambyses II, son of Cyrus the Great, founder of the Persian Empire. The army was ordered to destroy the oracle at the Temple of Amun but never arrived. They were swallowed by the sands and the temple stood to eventually proclaim Alexander of Macedonia "Master of the Universe" (I'm not making this up) much to the chagrin of ol' Camby. Alex went on to become "the Great" and Camby, uh, died mysteriously in what was thought to be a coup d'état. Bummer!

By this time the legend of the army's disappearance passed into myth until it was recently discovered only to be recounted in the great historian's telling:

"A wind arose from the south, strong and deadly, bringing with it vast columns of whirling sand, which entirely covered up the troops and caused them wholly to disappear."

The story is utterly fascinating, you should check out the full article...

Or you could just watch the YouTube version from Discovery Networks.

Cave Complex Discovered Under Giza Pyramids!

Image copyright Andrew Collins, 2009 via Discovery News

This is REALLY cool news--a British expolorer claims to have discovered a series of caves and tunnels under the pyramids at Giza! The place is crawling with venomous spiders and bats! It's like real-life dungeon crawl!

From Discovery News:

"There is untouched archaeology down there, as well as a delicate ecosystem that includes colonies of bats and a species of spider which we have tentatively identified as the white widow," British explorer Andrew Collins said.

Collins, who will detail his findings in the book "Beneath the Pyramids" to be published in September, tracked down the entrance to the mysterious underworld after reading the forgotten memoirs of a 19th century diplomat and explorer.

"In his memoirs, British consul general Henry Salt recounts how he investigated an underground system of 'catacombs' at Giza in 1817 in the company of Italian explorer Giovanni Caviglia," Collins said.

If true, this is seriously one of the more exciting archeological finds I've heard of--like a real life Indiana Jones adventure!

Image courtesy Wikipedia

More from Discovery News...

Ancient Egyptian Stronghold Discovered

A newly discovered Egyptian fortress was discovered near the Suez Canal and El-Manzala Lake, just northeast of the town of Qantara. The outpost dates back 12 centuries before Christ and was constructed out of mud bricks. From MSNBC:

The discovery shouldn't come as a surprise; Tell Dafna was long known to be a strategic outpost against Egypt's enemies. King Ramses II of the 19th Dynasty (1279-1212 B.C.) chose the site to erect a fortress. King Psammetichus I, the first ruler of the 26th Dynasty (664-625 B.C.), later established a garrison of foreign mercenaries to defend the eastern borders of Egypt from invaders.

Dating to the 7th century B.C., the foundations unearthed by the archaeologists most likely belonged to Psammetichus I's fortified garrison town.

Read more...

Photo credit: Supreme Council of Antiquities via MSNBC

Four New Egyptian Temples Discovered!

Looks like four new temples have been uncovered near the Sinai region that may have been used to impress foreign dignitaries in ancient Egypt.

From the Star Tribune:

Archaeologists exploring an old military road in the Sinai have unearthed four new temples amidst the 3,000-year-old remains of an ancient fortified city that could have been used to impress foreign delegations visiting Egypt, antiquities authorities announced Tuesday.

Among the discoveries was the largest mud brick temple found in the Sinai with an area of 70 by 80 meters (77 by 87 yards) and fortified with mud walls 3 meters (10 feet) thick, said Zahi Hawass, chief of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities.

Read more...

Another City of the Dead

This one lies in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. Complete with mummies (of course!). It's not a new discovery--this is a travel article. What better way to spend your next holiday or vacation by digging up old friends! CNN's Paul Sussman gives a great first-person account of his own expedition.

FTA:

A few years back, when I was working as part of an archaeological mission in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt, I unearthed a slab of white limestone covered in ancient paint smears. More of that later. First, however, I should tell you about the 3,000 year-old gold jewelry.

I found the jewelry in a tomb known as KV56 (all burials in the Valley of the Kings are designated with a KV number, the most famous being KV62 -- Tutankhamun).

...and...

Among other objects, we pulled out a series of lotus-shaped gold necklace pendants, a miniature beaten-gold head of the goddess Hathor and a rectangular gold pectoral (chest-plate) link stamped with the cartouche, or royal name, of the pharaoh Seti ll (Davis had found 13 similar links which can now be viewed in the Cairo Museum). Exquisitely worked and perfectly preserved, these objects were the first, and to date only items of jewelry to have been found in the Valley since Howard Carter unearthed Tutankhamun in 1922.

Read more...