On Saturday, Egypt announced the discovery of two tombs and human and animal mummification workshops in Saqqara, the latest in a series of discoveries it hopes will revive its tourism industry.
Mostafa Waziri, head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, told reporters that the two large “embalming workshops” date from the 30th dynasty (380-343 BC) and Ptolemaic (305-30 BC) eras.
After a year-long excavation near the goddess Bastet’s sanctuary in Saqqara, 30 kilometres (18.6 miles) south of Cairo, the catacombs of mummified cats were found.
In 2019, hundreds of mummified animals and statues were found there.
“We found human and animal embalming workshops. “We found all the ancient mummification tools,” Waziri said.
Both workshops had stone beds, clay pots, ritual vessels, natron salt, and linens
Two small 4,400- and 3,400-year-old tombs of two priests, Ne Hesut Ba of the Old Kingdom’s fifth dynasty and Men Kheber of the late kingdom’s 18th, were found nearby during the Saqqara excavations.
Officials said Men Kheber’s tomb had “scenes showing the deceased in different positions” while Ne Hesut Ba’s had inscriptions of cultivation, hunting, and other daily activities.
In recent years, Egypt has excavated Saqqara and other ancient sites, making several notable discoveries.
After completion, the Grand Egyptian Museum near Cairo’s Giza Pyramids will open.
After recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and Ukraine conflict, Egypt hopes to attract more tourists.
According to recent central bank data, tourism revenues rose 25.7% to $7.3 billion in the second half of 2022.
