Wednesday, June 29, 2005

Sarcophagus dating to Ramesses II found (UPDATED)

The SCA have apparently announced the discovery of a giant granite sarcophagus dating to dating to the the reign of Ramesses II in Saqqara. I haven't managed to track down the original SCA statement yet, but the following summarize the main points of interest of the find - although, as usual, please see the individual articles for more information. If anyone finds an item with a photo, please post a comment or email me. Thanks.

http://www.physorg.com/news4794.html
According to this short article, "The sarcophagus which belonged to a top official who served under Pharaoh Ramses II, is decorated with colored paintings and hieroglyphic inscriptions as well as the titled carried by the man such as 'the general supervisor of the royal stables'. The sarcophagus dates back to the period between 1304 and 1237 BC. Egyptian archaeologists found the sarcophagus in the Haram Onas cemetery near the Sakara pyramids, some 23 kilometers (14 miles) south of Cairo. The ministry said human bones and skulls as well as 100 figurines, a blue talisman and two pottery containers were also found in the cemetery".

http://english.people.com.cn/200506/29/eng20050629_192998.html
"A sarcophagus of more than 3,200 years old has been discovered by a mission of Cairo University's Faculty of Archaeology in Saqqara, southwest of Cairo . . . . the big sarcophagus dating back to the reign of King Ramses II (1279-1213 BC) was made of rosy granite, bearing hieroglyphic signs and different titles of the deceased".

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=588&art_id=qw1119963603150B221
"The sarcophagus, the council statement said, was discovered by an excavation team from Cairo University. A council spokesperson said no skeleton was found in the sarcophagus. However, a collection of human bones and skulls were excavated near eight burial pits also discovered in a 16 square metre tomb."An amulet featuring goddess Nephtis and god Osiris, an alabaster quadrilateral star and a small scarab bearing the name of god Amun Re were also found," the statement said"

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