In the Enigmatic Sands of Oxyrhynchus: Archaeologists Unearth Ancient Tombs, Echoes of a Bygone Love Story. Spanish Researchers Make a Gripping Discovery Almost 100 Miles South of Cairo, Revealing the Burial Secrets of a Couple from the Saite Dynasty (525 BC) in Limestone Sarcophagi.
One of the tombs appears to have been open since ancient times, suggesting it had been looted by tomb robbers, but archaeologists still found an ornate sarcophagus inside.
The stone coffin was shaped like a woman and the lid had been displaced.
Inside, the expedition discovered a stone amulet on a headrest and numerous beads.
The second tomb was found sealed and contained the remains of a man buried in a male-shaped sarcophagus.
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Archaeologists in Egypt found ancient remains with tongues made of gold (Image: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities Facebook)
The excavators discovered two tombs, one of which was still sealed (Image: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities Facebook)
Next to the body, archaeologists found numerous amulets, papyrus stems, scarabs, beads and feathers.
Among the priceless artifacts was a falcon-headed figure of the god Horus, whose left eye was said to be the Sun and his right eye was the Moon.
Archaeologists also recovered more than 400 Ushabti figurines made of faience, a type of glazed ceramic beads.
But even more intriguing was the discovery of a set of “tongues” made of gold leaf.
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Egyptian “megatomb” discovered in Cairo’s Saqqara region
Mapped out the most important archaeological sites in Egypt (Image: EXPRESS)
One of the golden tongues can still be seen poking out of the man’s exceptionally well-preserved skull.
It is believed that the dead were given these unusual objects so that they could speak in the afterlife when they faced the god Osiris.
In ancient Egyptian mythology, Osiris was killed by his brother Seth, but was resurrected by his wife Isis, after which he descended into the underworld to rule the afterlife.
According to lead researchers Maite Mascort and Esther Pons, the latest discoveries will help scientists better understand the funerary rights observed during the Saite dynasty.
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Golden tongues were believed to help the dead speak in the afterlife (Image: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities Facebook)
More than 400 Ushabti figurines were found in the tombs (Image: Facebook of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities)
Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities wrote in a translated Facebook post: “Mr. Jamal al-Samastawi, Director General of Antiquities of Central Egypt, said that the Spanish mission has been working in the Bahnasa archaeological area for almost thirty years, during which he found many tombs dating from the Sawi, Greco-Roman and Coptic periods.
“Noting that the Al-Bahnasa region was famous for its papyri written in Greek, which were published in dozens of volumes at the University of Oxford, since it was part of the XIX region of Upper Egypt and had great fame in Coptic times and Islamic. .”
Earlier this year, an expedition to the ancient city of Taposiris Magna reported the discovery of a mummy with a similar golden tongue.
Taposiris Magna is known as the “great tomb of Osiris” and the mummy was found among 16 burial chambers.
In one of the graves, a woman was buried with a death mask that covered much of her body.
The remains probably date from the Ptolemaic period, between 305 and 30 BC
And three years ago, the world was stunned by the discovery of a huge black sarcophagus filled with a stomach-churning red liquid.
The gruesome find inspired an online petition to allow people to drink the ancient “juice” so they could “assume their powers and finally die.”