The tomb of an unknown pharaoh has been discovered by archaeologists in Egypt – but the king’s name has been lost to the ages, with researchers now scrambling to find out who he was
Archaeologists were left scratching their heads after unearthing the tomb of an unknown Egyptian pharaoh seven metres under the surface, with the identity of the mummified sovereign perplexing experts.
The newfound tomb, nestled in the ancient Mount Anubis region of Abydos, is casting fresh light on regal burials within the necropolis.
Amidst the continuing mysteries, faded carvings depicting the deities Isis and Nephthys were spotted alongside the entryway to the burial chamber, yet another puzzle for archaeologists.
Researchers noted another extraordinary find – a set of yellow bands, which they believe would have once displayed the ruler’s name in hieroglyphics.
Similarities between the unearthed adornments and glyphs with those found at King Senebkay’s grave have caught the attention of scholars, reports the Express.
“The king’s name was originally recorded in painted scenes on plastered brickwork that decorated the underground entrance to the limestone burial chamber,” said Josef Wegner, an Egyptologist from the University of Pennsylvania who oversaw the dig, in his discussion with Live Science.
“However, the hieroglyphic texts were damaged by ancient tomb robbers, and not enough survives to read the king’s name.”
According to the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, this crypt is speculated to be over 3,600 years old and connected to a monarch from an era marked by conflict and turmoil.
During this period, the Hyksos dynasty held sway over lower Egypt. The Hyksos, a name translating to “rulers of foreign lands,” were a people from western Asia who introduced pivotal technologies, including the horse and chariot.
The tomb itself was constructed from a limestone burial chamber overlaid with mud brick vaults, reaching an impressive height of approximately 5m.
Mohamed Abdel Badie, Head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector, noted that the newly unearthed tomb appears significantly larger than other mausoleums from the Abydos Dynasty discovered to date.
The identity of the tomb’s occupant remains a mystery, but it is believed to belong to one of the kings who ruled prior to Senebkay, according to Badie.
This groundbreaking discovery follows closely on the heels of another major archaeological find – the Royal burial site of Egyptian pharaoh Thutmose II. The same excavation also revealed a pottery workshop dating back to the Roman era in the village of Banawit, located north of Abydos.
Abydos is one of the most ancient cities in Egypt, with its history stretching back to the Abydos Dynasty, a succession of kings who governed Upper Egypt between 1700 and 1600 BC.
Anna-Latifa Mourad-Cizek, an archaeologist at the University of Chicago, underscored the potential of this find to reshape our understanding of a relatively obscure period in ancient history. She pointed out that there is currently “a very limited body of evidence” regarding this region and its rulers, rendering the discovery of the tomb “highly significant.”
However, much work remains to be done to fully unravel the secrets of this ancient site.
