Egypt uncovers three ancient tombs in Bahariya Oasis

Dubai: Egyptian archaeologists have uncovered three tombs dating to different periods of the country’s history at the Sheikh Subi archaeological site in the Bahariya Oasis, including a family burial containing five mummies and two collective tombs believed to date to the Roman era.

The discovery was made by an Egyptian archaeological mission during its current excavation season at the site in the Western Desert, Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said. Sherif Fathy, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, said the finds provided new evidence about the history of the oasis and added to understanding of ancient Egyptian civilisation.

Hisham El Leithy, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the first discovery was a collective tomb carved into sandstone and believed to have served as a family burial for five people. The tomb dates to Egypt’s Late Period and contained five mummies.

The second tomb, believed to date to the Roman period, was built in a staircase design, while the third, also attributed to the Roman era, was a collective burial featuring burial shafts.

Excavations also yielded a range of funerary objects, including pottery vessels, small bottles and dishes of various shapes and sizes, as well as limestone and sandstone offering tables. Archaeologists also found small terracotta votive figurines depicting maternal figures and stylised animals.

The Sheikh Subi site contains a necropolis associated with the governors and priests of the Bahariya Oasis during the Late Period. Carved into an archaeological hill, it is considered one of the oasis’s important ancient sites.

The site also contains the Bawiti Temple, built by a governor of Bahariya during Egypt’s 26th Dynasty in honour of King Amasis II.

The latest discovery adds to Bahariya Oasis’s rich archaeological record, which spans different periods of Egyptian history and includes the renowned Valley of the Golden Mummies, a vast Greco-Roman burial site.