Tag Archive
Saving the Step Pyramid of Djoser
Image via Wikipedia In a bid to preserve the 3,000-year-old Step Pyramid of Djoser, Cintec, a British engineering firm from South Wales has been called in to keep the pyramid standing, which almost collapsed in 1992 after being hit by an earthquake. The engineers will use self-inflating water-filled bags to bolster against the collapse of a... »
Looted Egyptian antiquities found in Spain’s antique shop
Eight fragments of limestone which were pillaged from from the Saqqara burial ground in the ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis, south of Cairo, in 1999 have been discovered in an antiques shop in Spain. The pieces are inscribed with hieroglyphics dating from the 3rd Century BC. A statement said they were found by an expert... »
Egyptian Archaeologists Discover Rock-Hewn Tombs at Saqqara
Two rock-hewn painted tombs considered as two of the most distinguished tombs ever found from the Old Kingdom were discovered last week at Saqqara necropolis. The tombs were found during a routine excavation carried out by an Egyptian mission in an area west of the Step Pyramid of Djoser. Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of... »
Saqqara yields another tomb
A 19th dynasty tomb that had been missing since the late 19th century have been rediscovered by an Egyptian archaeology team working in the ancient necropolis of Saqqara, led by Cairo University archaeology professor Ola el-Aguizy. The tomb belongs to an ancient mayor of Memphis, called Ptahmes, who also served as army chief, overseer of... »
Archaeologists closing in on the lost tomb of a murderer pharaoh
A history as long as that of ancient Egypt must include an assassin who murders a ruler and becomes pharaoh, if only for a brief period. Such is the story of Userkare, second pharaoh of the 6th Dynasty who ruled between Teti and Teti’s son Pepi I. He took power after Teti was murdered, perhaps... »
Largest tomb at Saqqara discovered
The Supreme Council of Antiquities has announced the discovery by Egyptian archaeologists of two tombs dating back to the 26th dynasty at the Saqqara necropolis, the site of a number of recent important findings. Both tombs are cut into the hills and, despite of being looted in the 5th Century AD, the excavators found coffins,... »
Could Imhotep be buried under the Step Pyramid of Djoser?
Image via Wikipedia Djoser permitted 11 of his daughters to be buried in his pyramid, which makes the Step Pyramid the only pyramid of the Old Kingdom that was used for the burial of the king and his royal family. Why not also allow his architect Imhotep to be buried with him? Could it be... »
VIDEO: The rise and fall of an honest Egyptian archaeologist
Muhammad Zakaria Goneim was one of a few Egyptian archaeologists of his time. His excavation work at Saqqara in 1954 led to a major discovery – a buried unfinished step pyramid belonging to Sekhemkhet, son of Djoser. Goneim found a spectacular cache of gold jewelry- 20 pieces of gold in bracelets and beads, but... »
Zahi Hawass: The Serapeum in Saqqara will open in December
We are also working now to restore the Serapeum at Saqqara. The Serapeum was discovered by Auguste Mariette in 1851, and consists of a series of huge underground galleries for the burial of the sacred Apis bulls. Burials of sacred cult animals were very common in Saqqara until the end of the Ptolemaic Period. We hope to open... »
Saving the Serapeum in Saqqara
Image via Wikipedia The Saqqara plateau served as a burial site to the ancient Egyptians for over three thousand years. It is home to pyramids, private tombs and temples, and is even the burial place of sacred animals. The most famous of the animals buried at Saqqara were the Apis bulls. From the ancient evidence we... »
