WATANI International
30 May 2010
Colossus of wisdom
The Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) has announced the unearthing of a red granite colossus of the ancient Egyptian deity of wisdom Thoth in Luxor’s West Bank. Its date has yet to be defined, though. Secretary-General of the SCA Zahi Hawass said that evidence at the site suggests that more colossi could be found there. A similar five metres long statue was discovered there last year, he said. Afifi Ruhayem, assistant to the mission director, said the site could contain an avenue of Thoth statues that once outlined the original path leading to the temple.
45 tombs
An Egyptian archaeological mission last week discovered 45 ancient Egyptian tombs at Lahoun, in Fayoum some 100km south west Cairo.
Hawass explained that during the excavation work, the mission unearthed an 18th dynasty tomb (1550-1295 BC) containing 12 wooden sarcophagi stacked on top of one another. Each sarcophagus contains a well-preserved mummy. The mummies are covered in cartonnage decorated with religious texts from the Sarcophagus Texts and the Book of the Dead, as well as scenes featuring different ancient Egyptian deities including Horus, Hathor, Khnum and Amun.
The mission also discovered four cemeteries. The first dates back to the first and second dynasties (2750-2649 BC), the second to the Middle Kingdom (2030-1660 BC), and the third and fourth to the New Kingdom (1550-1070 BC) and The Late Period (724-343 BC).
The first and second dynasty cemeteries include 14 tombs. One was found almost completely intact, with all the funerary equipment and a wooden sarcophagus with a mummy wrapped in linen.
The Middle New Kingdoms cemetery contains 31 tombs most of which date back to the 11th and 12th dynasties (2030-1840 BC).
At the four corners of king Senwosret II’s temple in Lahoun, four shafts filled with a large collection of clay vessels were uncovered.
Last year, the mission found at Lahoun 53 stone tombs from the Middle and New Kingdom, as well as the Late Period and the Roman era.