2018 The Year of Archaeological Discoveries

January 2, Remains of mud-brick walls, four furnaces and various other assorted artifacts were uncovered at the ancient city of Buto in Kafr El-Skeikh. Fragments of an unknown royal statue where found, possibly belonging to King Psmatik I. Carved in black granite, the statue is missing all of its limbs and head, and depicts the unknown king wearing the royal kilt, or Shendit. Other uncovered artifacts include a quartzite statue of the god Hur, the remnants of a sculptured hand, a variety of pottery, and fragments of the Menat Necklace which represents the Goddess Hathor.

January 8, A part of a statue for Amenhotep III, its left foot forward and made of black granite, was found in Sohag. In front of the right foot, there is a collection of hieroglyphs about the coronation and birth of King Amenhotep III.

January 10, A number of archaeological elements and remains of tombs dating back to the Greco-Roman era were found in the eastern section of the Hellenistic cemetery. The most important of these discoveries is a tombstone that was once used to close one of the burial shafts. The find yielded a collection of offering vessels and lamps decorated with scenes of deities.

January 11, There were two massive archaeological discoveries in Aswan. The first was an administrative complex that dates back to the fifth dynasty and is considered the oldest archaeological discovery in Tell Edfu site. This discovery sheds light on how ancient Egyptians used internal architectural structures to store goods, raw material, and gemstones. More than 200 artifacts which belonged to King DjedkareIsesi, in addition to many tools used in trade campaigns to Africa, were also found. The second discovery was a statue of a man and his wife performing religious rituals, and a statue made of sandstone of a seated man, in addition to two statues of the god Horus in the shape of a raven at the temple of Kom Ombo in Aswan.

January 13, A stela of 19th Dynasty King Ramses II was discovered at San Al-Hagar in Sharqiya. The stela is carved in red granite and depicts King Ramses II presenting offerings to an ancient Egyptian deity.

January 17, A tomb dating back to the second century was found in Al-Alamein, comprising a rock staircase leading down into the main chamber of the tomb, where burial holes known as “Locauli” are prominent. The southern part of the tomb contains a Greek decoration on the wall, depicting a horn with a basin surrounded by leaves and flowers.

February 4 , An Old Kingdom tomb was discovered in the Western Cemetery located in the Pyramids area in Giza belonging to to official Hetpet. The tomb dates back to the Fifth Dynasty, about 4,400 years ago.

February 24, Eight tombs containing some 40 coffins of Pharaonic priests and more than 1,000 Ushabti statues were discovered in Tuna el-Gebel in Minya. The tombs are full of jewelry, pottery and jars. In the tombs were a gold mask, coffins, mummies and statues.

February 28, New parts of the statue of Ramses II were found in the Temple of Kom Ombo in Aswan, confirming the existence and use of this temple in the modern state era. Before this discovery, the only proof was represented in Tuthmosis III, where there is a visible part in the statue that depicts King Ramses II accompanied by God Sobek and God Horus, the main gods of the Temple of Kom Ombo.

April 11, An assortment of 4,500 fragments from King Psamtek I’s colossus were uncovered at Souq el-Khamis in Matariya., confirming that the colossus depicts a standing king, with his left arm in front of the body while the right one is extended to the back.

April 22, A marble head of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius is discovered in Aswan and an Osirian temple is found in Luxor. Also found were a collection of clay pots, remains of statues and a winged frame relief decorated with offering tables bearing a sheep and goose. The relief holds the names of the kings Taharka and TanutAmun.

April 30, An ancient royal celebration hall dating back to the era of Ramses II was discovered in Matareya. A number of valuable artifacts were also uncovered such as five stone blocks, a painting of the high priests of the Sun Prince Nept Ma Raa, in addition to some pottery figures dating back to the 27th Dynasty, one of which was a small dog-shaped statue. An amulet depicting Thi from the Roman era is considered one of the most important pieces discovered. The lower part of a statue of a priest from the Ramses era was also unearthed during the digging work.

May 9, A tomb of Great Army General, Iwrhya, from King Ramsses II’s reign was discovered in the New Kingdom necropolis, south of the Causeway of King Unas in Saqqara, Giza. The tomb probably dates back to the reigns of king SethiI and King Ramesses III in the 19th Dynasty.

May 11, Remains of a temple dating back to the reign of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius were unveiled. Pius reigned from 138 AD to 161 AD and ruled the Al-Hag Ali village in Siwa Oasis, situated 350m away of Gabal Al-Marwa (Mountain of the Dead).

May 24, Parts of a huge red brick building, probably part of a bath dating back to the Greco-Roman era was uncovered. Pottery vessels, terracotta statues, bronze tools, a stone fragment engraved with hieroglyphs and a small statue of a ram were also found. The most important yield is a gold coin of King Ptolemy III. On one faces is a portrait of King Ptolemy III wearing the crown and on the other side is the Land of Prosperity surrounded with the name of the king.

June 24, A gold coin from the Islamic period was discovered by an Egyptian-French mission during an underwater excavation at Abuqir Bay in Alexandria.

June 25, A well-preserved set of canopic jars was discovered in the tomb of Karabasken (TT 391), in the South Asasif Necropolis on the West Bank of Luxor. The jars are made of Egyptian alabaster and probably held viscera. The lids depict a human, a baboon, a jackal and a falcon and are skillfully carved and modeled by three different artists. The jars belong to the “Lady of the House Amenirdis” from the 26th Dynasty.

July 1, A statuette of Osiris was uncovered at the eastern side of the King Djoser Step Pyramid in Saqqara. The statue was found in a small incision between the huge blocks of the pyramid’s eastern façade.

July 10, An ancient city dating back to the Greco-Roman era was discovered in Minya. The city, extending to about 2 kilometres and 600 meters in width, contains many ancient tombs carved in rocks as well as Greco-Roman columns, a church, and a cross.

July 14, Minister of Antiquities Khaled Anany announced the discovery of more than five stone coffins in Saqqara area, and declared it “a great archaeological discovery”. The Egyptian-German mission uncovered a complete mummification workshop which contains burial chambers with mummies dating back to the 26th and 27th dynasty. A gilded mummy mask decorated with semiprecious stones was found covering the face of one of the mummies. Three mummies, a group of canopic vessels made of calcite and 1,500 Ushabtis were also found. The coffins date back to the late period of Ancient Egypt, from the seventh century BC to the fifth century BC and mummification, and can help Egyptologists better understand methods of embalming, ancient workshops and tools.

August 9, A sphinx was found at Al-Kabbash Road in Luxor.

August 15, two ancient pieces made of mud-sand that date back to the Ptolemaic era were uncovered at the Temple of KomOmbo in Aswan. Each piece is two meters in height, and has of numerous codes and carvings.

August 16, A Yorkshire-based expert revealed that Ancient Egyptians were actually consecrating mummies 1,500 years earlier than previously thought; almost 6,000 years ago. The discovery was made after tests were performed on a mummy that dates back between 3,700-3,500 BC.

August 26, an Egyptian archaeological team discovered a cemetery that dates back to the Ptolemaic dynasty in Alexandria.

September 2, one of the oldest villages in the Nile Delta was uncovered. The importance of this discovery is based on the fact that these buildings, which date back to the Neolithic period, are not known in this region, and were only discovered by the Egyptian Exploration Society in one location, namely Sais in Gharbia Governorate. A dozen silos containing a huge quantity of animal bones and botanical remains was also discovered.

September 5, a rocky cemetery, located at the north east of Senusret I pyramid was uncovered.

September 16, a sphinx statue made of sandstone was discovered in the Temple of Kom Ombo in Aswan. The sphinx likely dates back to the Ptolemaic era.

September 18, a tomb dating back to the Late Period containing a sculpted sandstone sarcophagus with a well-preserved mummy wrapped in linen, among other things, was found. Three other tombs were found in the area where remains of clay sarcophagi were unearthed, some of which have paintings while others are inscribed with hieroglyphic texts. The mission found a collection of mummies haphazardly buried, suggesting that the tomb was used as a communal burial. The head of an unidentified sandstone statue was also uncovered along with a collection of faience amulets.

September 25, the Egyptian archaeological mission in Mit Rahina discovered a huge archaeological building in Demerdash basin area located 400 km north of Mit Rahina Museum. The structure is made of brick columns supported by huge blocks of limestone, whose foundations, external walls and inner staircase were built with red brick molds. A second building containing a large Roman bathroom and a room that might have been used for performing religious rites was found. Inside this room the mission discovered offering pot holders made of limestone decorated on one side with the head of the God, Bes. The room also contained basins for disinfection and small columns of limestone. To the north of the building and inside the eastern wall, a limestone entrance with a width of 112 cm, and a height of 106 cm was discovered. Another entrance, leading to a staircase built on two axes from the west to the east and from the south to the north, was uncovered to the right side of the former entrance. A room attached to the outer wall of the building used for servants was discovered in the northeastern corner of the building; the room contains a baking oven tile similar to that used in modern Egyptian villages.

October 1, two ancient paintings made of sandstone were uncovered, one of which belongs to the second king of the 19th dynasty King Seti I while the other belongs to King Ptolemy IV.

The first painting is 2.30 m in height and 1 m wide, with a thickness of 30 cm. It was found broken, divided into two parts but its inscriptions and writings were in good condition. The second painting was found broken into several parts, with a height of 3.25 m, width of 1.15 m and 30 cm in thickness. The first painting depicts King Seti I standing in front of the great god Horus and the goddess Sobek; this scene is topped with a winged sun as a symbol of protection. Below this scene is a text that consists of 26 lines in hieroglyphics, in which the name of King Horemheb is mentioned several times. The painting of King Ptolemy IV shows the king standing, holding a stick whose end is shaped n the form of Horus while behind him stands his wife Arsinoe III. In front him is the triad of the temple, and above them is the winged sun.

October 25, the archaeological mission working in Matareya found a full ancient royal celebration hall dating back to the era of Ramses II.

November 6, a number of fragments and maller statuary were uncovered at the Temple of the Sun in Matareya. The fragments date back to the 12th and 20th dynasties as well as the Third Intermediate Period. The discovered inscriptions refer to the creator God Atum as being responsible for the flood of the Nile.

On November 10,three tombs dating back to the Pharaonic modern-state era of Egypt and four other ancient ones containing a group of artifacts including mummified cats “Bastet”, were unearthed at Giza’s Saqqara necropolis. Bastet was a goddess of the ancient Egyptian religion.

November 14, a grave of a woman and her fetus dating back 3,700 years was uncovered at Kom Ombo, Aswan.

Thaw-Irkhet-If Sarcophagus Unveiled
At press time Egyptian archeologists held an unveiling ceremony for a previously unopened, 3,000-year-old sarcophagus of a mummified woman. The coffin is one of two ancient mummy discoveries found in perfect condition at a tomb near the east bank Nile city of Luxor, with the participation of a French mission from the University of Strasbourg, in November. The second sarcophagus was reportedly opened and examined by Egyptian authorities prior to the unveiling ceremony.

“One sarcophagus was rishi-style, which dates back to the 17th dynasty, while the other sarcophagus was from the 18th dynasty,” Minister of Antiquities Khaled Anany told. the media. “The two tombs were present with their mummies inside.”

The discovery was made following five months of excavation work, and the tomb was named after mummification priest Thaw-Irkhet-If, who is believed to have been responsible for overseeing it. After removing 300 cubic meters of ruble, the team uncovered the tomb, colorful scenes on its walls, holding over 1,000 wooden statues, colored masks, and more.