FILE- A 30-ton archaeological sarcophagus was found below a building in Alexandria governorate, Egypt - Ministry of Antiquities official Facebook page
CAIRO - 19 July 2018: Egypt started opening the mysterious sarcophagus unearthed 20 days ago in Alexandria, amid rumors over a "possible curse" that could be cast on the world once the sarcophagus is opened.
On July 1, Egypt unearthed a 2,000-year-old sarcophagus in Alexandria, revealing that it is made of black granite of about 265 meters in length and 185 cm in height. The 30-ton tomb was found at a depth of 5 meters beneath the surface of the land.
Here is the live update:
15:48
Waziri stated in a press statement that one of the found skulls shows multiple fractures, revealing that it has been hit by a sharp instrument and that it belongs to a warrior.
He added that the other two skulls are intact and belong to men, pointing out that they will be subject to rays to identify their ages and face shapes.
15:25
The Armed Forces removed the cars in the area surrounding the sarcophagus to facilitate the entrance of the loader, which will be used for lifting the mysterious sarcophagus.
Waziri remarked that experts from Upper Egypt have participated in opening the coffin; he further revealed that the red liquid was found to be sewage water that leaked inside the coffin through a crack in its eastern side, causing the decomposition of the mummies.
In the same context, Alexandria Governor Mohamed Sultan told Egypt Today that the three mummies will be moved to the Alexandria National Museum, while the coffin will be transferred to the Military Museum located at the military northern region.
Sultan explained that the Ministry of Antiquities will use sensor devices to detect the presence of more antiquities, and carry out studies on the discovered mummies to determine the era they belong to.
14:39 Three decomposed mummies were found in the sarcophagus, declared Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Mostafa Waziri.
Waziri stressed that none of the three mummies belong to a Ptolemaic or Roman royal family and the coffin does not have inscriptions or a cartouche bearing their names.
Three decomposed mummies were found in the sarcophagus- Egypt Today/Asmaa Ali Badr
He further pointed out that no evidence such as silver or gold metallic masks, small statues, amulets or inscriptions were found to prove that the mummies belong to a royal family.
In this regard, he denied the rumors spread by some international newspapers that opening the sarcophagus would unleash the curse that would bring disaster to the world.
14:00 "The sarcophagus has been opened, but we have not been hit by a curse," said Waziri, dismissing claims made by some UK media outlets about "possible curse" could be cast on the world in case the tomb was opened.
Since its discovery, the mysterious tomb has internationally grasped the attention, and several international websites warned of its opening as it would be “a risky business or so history tells us” for the possibility of unleashing the curse that would bring disaster to the world, as remarked by the British news website The Sun.
“BAFFLED archaeologists who found a 2,000-year-old mysterious black granite tomb in an Egyptian city where Alexander the Great is believed to be buried have pried it open two weeks after it was dug up,” according to the British news website Express.
Here is a video footage showing a man pouring red-colored liquid found inside the tomb after taking samples to be analyzed by the archaeological team assigned to assigned to supervise the opening of the mysterious sarcophagus.
CAIRO - 19 July 2018: Egypt started opening the mysterious sarcophagus unearthed 20 days ago in Alexandria, amid rumors over a "possible curse" that could be cast on the world once the sarcophagus is opened.
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