Tomb of Antony and Cleopatra to be uncovered soon

CAIRO – 14 January 2019: “The long-lost tomb of Antony and Cleopatra will be eventually uncovered. The burial site has been finally estimated to be in the region of Taposiris Magna, 30 kilometersaway from Alexandria,” Egyptian archaeologist ZahiHawass said in a statement during Palermo Conference.

“I hope to find the tomb of Antony and Cleopatra soon. I do believe that they are buried in the same tomb,” Hawass stated. “We are so close to discover the accurate location of the tomb; we are on the right way. We know where exactly we have to dig,” Hawass stated to the Italian News Agency.

In a similar vein, an ancient royal celebration hall dating back to the era of Ramses II was previously discovered at Matareya district.

The Hall was unearthed below the soft-brick buildings and commercial residential areas that date back to the third transition period, particularly the 22nd and 23rd dynasties’ eras. The discovered hall has a rectangular floor of 2.9 m × 1.9 m, consisting of limestone tiles, rising 80 cm abovethe ground.

The discovered hall, which was used to hold royal celebrations such as the Jubilee feast, is considered the first of its kind in the New Kingdom era. This discovery revealed that such celebrations took place in the Re Temple at this specific area. The hall was discovered inside the palace used to host royal celebrations.

A group of brick walls of a multi-story building were also uncovered, showing the three phases of construction dating back to the era of King Ramses II.

A number of valuable artifacts were also uncovered such as five stone blocks from the reign of King Ramses II, 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.

A human amulet with a human head for a person named Thi from the Roman era is considered one of the most important pieces discovered.

The lower part of a statue for a priest from the Ramses era was also unearthed during the digging work.