The artifacts date back to about 2,500 years ago, during the Late Period of Egypt, from the Egyptian antiquities department. The trove was found at the “Cemetery of Ancient Animals” in Saqqara, a temple complex on the outskirts of Cairo associated with the ancient Egyptian goddess, who was worshiped there in the form of a cat.

However, the complex was renamed in 2019, after archaeologists discovered various animal mummies and statues of Egyptian gods there.

Among the discoveries made on May 30, archaeologists discovered many figurines depicting cats and Egyptian gods and various gods and goddesses.

Found a statue of the goddess buried with the mummy

“Today’s discovery confirms that the temple was not dedicated to cats but also to other Egyptian gods,” said excavation director Mohammed Al Saidi.

The cemetery at Saqqara is located near the edge of a desert plateau about 25 km south of Cairo. The ancient tomb has been the site of a large-scale excavation by Egyptian archaeologists since 2018. This is the fifth largest discovery of artifacts found there – including 59 mummies found in 2018. 2020 and there are still many years of work left to do.

The latest finds include about 150 bronze statues of ancient Egyptian gods, such as Anubis, the god of death often depicted with the head of a jackal; Osiris, king of the dead; Amon-Min, a fertility god often depicted with an erect penis; Nefertem, son of Bastet; Isis, wife of Osiris and goddess of fertility; and Hathor, an extremely popular goddess who was considered the protector of women.

Archaeologists also found two painted wooden statues of the goddesses Isis and Neftis, or Nephthys – Isis’s sister. Both goddesses are depicted as guardians of coffins, and each of the two statues has a face made from layers of gold leaf.

Archaeologists also found a scroll of papyrus – paper made from reeds – in the same coffin; it was unrolled, but archaeologists think it could have been up to 10 meters long and contain chapters of the Egyptian Book of the Dead, a ritual text intended to guide a dead person’s journey through the world the other side. It has now been sent to the laboratory for further testing.

This is the first time any artifacts from Egypt’s Late Period have been found at Saqqara, according to a statement from the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities.

Mustafa Waziri, Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, noted that the first phase of excavations at Saqqara unearthed the unique tomb of a priest and official named “Wahtye”, lived around 2,500 BC during the Fifth Dynasty.

Excavators also discovered seven dolmens in this area: three from Egypt’s New Kingdom period (1570 BC to 1069 BC) and four from the Old Kingdom period (from 2575 BC). BC to 2150 BC).