CAIRO - 31 October 2021: The tomb of Ptah-M-Wia, head of the treasury during the reign of King Ramses II was discovered by archaeological mission from Cairo University during excavation work at the Saqqara Necropolis.
Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Mostafa Waziry announced that this discovery is important because Ptah-M-Wia held several titles.
In addition to being the head of the treasury, Ptah-M-Wia was also the royal scribe, supervisor of cattle and was in charge of the sacrifices to the deities at Ramses II temple in Thebes.
The area in which Ptah-M-Wia tomb was uncovered houses tombs of top officials of the New Kingdom,including the tomb of renowned military commander Haremhab.
The head of Cairo University archaeological mission, Ola El-Egazy, added that Ptah-M-Wia tomb design is similar to the design of the other tombs near to it .
This style is titled a tomb-temple because it consists of an entrance in the form of an edifice, followed by one or more courtyards.
The tomb ends at the western side with a shrine for deities headed by a pyramidion.
The entrance of the tomb is the only uncovered part and it is carved in stone engraved with scenes showing Ptah-M-Wia.
The entrance leads to a hall with walls full of paints showing scenes of offerings processions.
The mission also managed to discover stone blocks, in addition to several Osirian columns, some of which are still lying in sand while others are standing in their original place.
Cairo University archeological mission had completed all the work of the tomb of the supreme commander of the army during the reign of King Seti I and his son, King Ramses II.
Other important discoveries made by the mission include the tomb of the mayor of Memphis, Ptah-Mas; the royal ambassador to foreign countries, Basir; and the supreme commander of the army, Eurkhi.
Ahmed Ragab, dean of the Faculty of Archeology, said that excavation work in Saqqara began in the 1970s at the New Kingdom cemetery south of the road leading to the pyramid of King Unas. Headed by Professor Sayed Tawfiq 1983-1986, this mission resulted in the discovery of many tombs dating back to the Ramesside period, including the tomb of the royal vizier Nefer-Ranpet.
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