Sarcophagus Unearthed Near Cairo Hailed as Major Milestone

Saqqara, 2 Oct (ONA) --- A remarkable Egyptian sarcophagus which has lain within a burial chamber undisturbed for thousands of years, has emerged from deep beneath the sands near Cairo. Excited archaeologists described the milestone as a significant “dream discovery”, the British Guardian reported.

The giant granite sarcophagus is covered in inscriptions dedicated to Ptah-em-wia, who headed the treasury of King Ramses II, one of Egypt’s old pharaohs.

Ola El Aguizy, emeritus professor of the faculty of archaeology at Cairo University, discovered it in Saqqara, an ancient necropolis about 20 miles south of Cairo. She has found the underground burial chamber with the sarcophagus, which could reveal more about those who ruled Egypt after Tutankhamun.

Finding a complete sarcophagus in its original tomb is incredibly rare. El Aguizy told the Observer: “The discovery of this sarcophagus in its original place in the burial shaft was very exciting because it is the sarcophagus of the owner of the tomb, which is not always the case. Sometimes the sarcophagus is for a different person of a later period, when the tomb was used in later periods. But this time it is not the case.”

---Ends/Hilal/AG