Animal Mummies and Ritual Vessels: Discovery of Ancient Workshops&Tombs in Egypt

In May, the biggest recorded human and animal preservation workshops were discovered by Egyptian archaeologists in the ancient city of Saqqara, south of Cairo, according to reports in the media, citing Egyptian Tourism and Antiquities Minister Ahmed Issa.

Two burial sites and other artifacts were also found by the team, which was headed by Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities chief Mostafa Waziri. He was reported as stating that the workshops, one of which was used for mummifying humans and the other for embalming animals, date back to the 30th Dynasty of Egypt and the start of the Ptolemaic period.

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Mostafa Waziri, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, displays a recently unearthed ancient wooden sarcophagus at the site of the Step Pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara, 24 kilometers (15 miles) southwest of Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, May 27, 2023.

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Japanese Ambassador to Egypt Oka Hiroshi (L) visits a newly discovered ancient tomb in the Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo, where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops, as well as two tombs, on May 27, 2023.

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Visitors tour the site in the Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo, where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops, as well as two tombs, on May 27, 2023.

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A colored painting is seen on a recently unearthed ancient wooden sarcophagus at the site of the Step Pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara, 24 kilometers (15 miles) southwest of Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, May 27, 2023. Saqqara is a part of Egypt's ancient capital of Memphis, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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Newly discovered ancient objects are displayed in the Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo, where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops, as well as two tombs, on May 27, 2023.

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Mostafa Abdo Sadek, the overseer of diggers,observes a newly discovered sarcophagus in the Saqqara necropolis, where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops as well as two tombs, south of Cairo on May 27, 2023.

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Newly discovered objects are displayed at the Saqqara necropolis where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops as well as two tombs, south of Cairo on May 27, 2023.

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A basket filled with doum fruit (zuriat) is displayed among other newly discovered objects at the Saqqara necropolis where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops as well as two tombs, south of Cairo on May 27, 2023.

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People visit newly discovered ancient tomb in the Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo, where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops, as well as two tombs, on May 27, 2023.

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The walls of a newly discovered ancient tomb are decorated with paintings in the Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo, where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops, as well as two tombs, on May 27, 2023.

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A visitor is reflected on a panel on which recently unearthed ancient artifacts are placed, as she films at the site of the Step Pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara, 24 kilometers (15 miles) southwest of Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, May 27, 2023. Saqqara is a part of Egypt's ancient capital of Memphis, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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A newly discovered small mummified animal is displayed at the Saqqara necropolis where archaeologists unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops as well as two tombs, south of Cairo on May 27, 2023.

Animal Mummies and Ritual Vessels: Discovery of Ancient Workshops and Tombs in Egypt