Archaeologists in Egypt have uncovered three ancient tombs containing mummies, limestone and pottery coffins, and burial objects at the Sheikh Soby site in the Bahariya Oasis.
The tombs date to different periods, including Egypt’s Late Period and the Roman era. The Egyptian archaeological mission also found pottery vessels, offering tables, and small terracotta figurines. The team discovered the finds during its current excavation season, under the direction of Sabri Farag, director general of Bahariya Oasis Antiquities.
Egyptian Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy said the finds provide new evidence about the history of the Bahariya Oasis.
Late Period and Roman-era burials uncovered
The first tomb is a collective burial carved into sandstone bedrock. Archaeologists believe it was intended for a family of five. Mohamed Abdel Badie, head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the tomb has a square shaft about three meters, or nearly 10 feet, deep. Two burial chambers lie at the bottom.
The western chamber contained a limestone coffin holding a mummy wrapped in linen. Archaeologists found the coffin inside a hollow cut into the floor. The placement matches a practice documented in Late Period tombs at the site.
The second tomb is undecorated and likely dates to the Roman period. Other discoveries in Egypt have revealed Greek and Roman rock-cut tombs that offer evidence of changing burial traditions during antiquity.
It belongs to a type of tomb reached by stairs. The third is another collective burial believed to date to Roman times. It has a rectangular shaft leading to a small, roofless hall.
Researchers believe the hall served as a temporary space for receiving the mummy during burial before it was moved into one of the chambers.
Pottery coffin bears human face
Two chambers open from the hall. Archaeologists found fragments of a pottery coffin in the southern chamber and a damaged limestone coffin in the eastern one. Similar burial finds have emerged at other sites in Egypt, including pottery coffins uncovered at a Greco-Roman cemetery in the Nile Delta.
Four smaller entrances also open from different sides of the shaft. Excavations at the eastern entrance revealed a side burial containing a cylindrical pottery coffin broken into pieces. Its lid bears a raised human face with clearly defined features.
The mission also recovered pottery vessels, small bottles and dishes, according to Qutb Fawzy, head of the Central Administration of Cairo and Giza Antiquities. Offering tables made from limestone and sandstone were also found.
Among the smaller discoveries were terracotta votive figurines. Some depict maternal figures, while others represent stylized animals.
Excavations to continue at Sheikh Soby
Sheikh Soby contains a cemetery associated with rulers and priests of the Bahariya Oasis during Egypt’s Late Period. The Egyptian tombs are carved into the archaeological hill that gives the site its name. The area also contains the Temple of Bawiti, built during the 26th Dynasty in honor of Pharaoh Amasis II.
Farag said the mission plans to continue excavations in future seasons. Archaeologists hope to uncover more tombs that could reveal how successive generations lived and buried their dead in the oasis.
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