statuette of Osiris uncovered at King Djoser Step Pyramid in Saqqara

CAIRO – 1 July 2018: Egyptian archaeologists uncovered a statuette of Osiris while performing restoration works on the eastern side of the King Djoser Step Pyramid in Saqqara.




Mostafa el-Waziri, the head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, announced that the statue was found in a small incision between the huge blocks of the pyramid’s eastern façade.



Waziri added that the statuette is for Osiris, the god of resurrection and eternity, and depicts Osiris wearing the double crown, and holding a feather in one hand and a scepter in the other.




The statuette's height is 63 cm and its width is about 15 cm. Head of the Saqqara archaeological site, Sabri Farag, said that a priest of Saqqara probably concealed the statue in this area. The statuette is currently under restoration.




A 30-ton archeological sarcophagus was also found below a building in Alexandria governorate, Egypt, by the security forces on Sunday.

Inspection of the sarcophagus revealed that it is made of black granite; the security forces coordinated with the Engineering Department of the Armed Forces, as well as the Tourism police to extract the sarcophagus.

Ayman Ashmawy, head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Sector, said that the tomb was found at a depth of five meters beneath the surface of the land. It is noted that there is a layer of mortar between the lid and the body of the sarcophagus, indicating that it had not been opened since it was closed.