The past year or so has been a time of discovery for archaeologists. Two mysterious coffins have been uncovered under Notre Dame’s spire, while nearly 3,000 kilometers away, archaeologists recently found a previously undiscovered ancient Egyptian tomb close to the Valley of the Kings – believed to be the final resting place of Eighteenth Dynasty royalty (although their presence has yet to be confirmed of sarcophagi or human remains).
But it’s not graves with potential people that experts have located in recent days; Thousands of years old treasures, important cultural and religious items and texts were also found – as is the case with an amazing new (long) find in another ancient and fascinating Egyptian tomb in Saqqar – an Egyptian village in the center of Badarshin in the Giza district, which contains ancient burial grounds of Egyptian royalty, which serve as the necropolis of the Egyptian capital Old, Memphis. Potential mummies and queens uncovered at Sakra in May 2022; However, this time, it’s something else.
What is Sakra famous for?
Sakra is one of the most important sites in Egypt – why? Also spelled “Sakkara” or “Sakkara” in English, it consists of the most complete stone building complex ever known: the Pyramid of Djoser, which was built during the Third Dynasty of ancient Egypt. In addition to this great pyramid, 16 pharaohs built pyramids at Saqqara.
At this site – next to the iconic pyramid of Djoser – a new discovery of ancient texts was found.
What is in Sagara, Egypt?
Sacra Necropolis and the Step Pyramid in Egypt
Almost 400 kilometers from some of Egypt’s most famous tombs – in the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Kings, which contains the tomb of the famous Queen Naphtari and many other prominent royals – archaeologists discovered not a person, but a significant papyrus. scroll.
The scroll is 16 meters (52 feet) long, and consists of passages from the Book of the Dead. Over 2,000 years old, the scroll was discovered inside a coffin in a tomb located south of Djoser’s famous step pyramid in Saqqara.
This papyrus scroll is the first complete document of its kind found in Saqqara in over a century, as Mustafa Waziri, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, explained in a statement. The statement also claims that conservation work has been completed and that the text of the ancient papyrus is now being translated into Arabic.
The ancient Egyptian book of the dead consists of countless texts, which provided a fascinating insight into the cultures, traditions and beliefs of the ancient Egyptians.
But the analysis of this new scroll may tap into an even deeper level of knowledge of ancient Egyptian funerary practices.
What is Jusser’s Step Pyramid?
The necropolis of Sakra in Egypt
The Step Pyramid of Djoser was the first pyramid the Egyptians built, a prominent landmark built during the reign of Pharaoh Djoser, who ruled from around 2630 BC to 2611 BC). The land around the pyramid was used for burials for thousands of years.
living science Egypt’s former antiquities minister, Zahi Hawass, is reported to have said that archaeologists found the coffins recently found in a tomb close to the step pyramid (which contained the papyrus) date to the later period (712 BC to 332 BC).
Details about the owner of the scroll and the exact date of the papyrus are expected to be published in the near future.
What is the book of the dead?
Shutterstock
The Book of the Dead is the modern name that refers to a series of ancient texts that the Egyptians believed would aid the dead in the afterlife, helping them navigate the underworld.
These texts included ancient Egyptian burial spells intended to help the dead find their way to the afterlife and unite with Osiris – the god of the dead.
These spells gave instructions to overcome the various obstacles and challenges the dead would face on their journey to Osiris. There are almost 200 known spells; However, not all of them are in the form of written text that today’s humans are used to.
In the days of ancient Egypt, spells were written on various objects, including papyrus (a type of paper made from the papyrus plant), coffins, mummy wrappings and even figurines, all of which accompanied the deceased in his grave.
Historically, the group of texts that people today call the “Book of the Dead” were written on coffins and coffins towards the end of Egypt’s Middle Kingdom period (around 1650 BC).
During the New Kingdom period, around 1550 BC to 1069 BC, the Book of the Dead began to be written on papyrus scrolls, which became more widely used afterwards.
These texts were usually written in the hieroglyphic Egyptian language or in the cursive format of the hieratic script.
The newly discovered papyrus, which records the number of the dead, is not the longest ever found, although its 16 meters is no less impressive.
It is long, other books of the dead of a similar size exist – some are almost twice as long.
For now, the exciting wait for the translation of the revealed scroll continues.
With such extensive texts, who knows what discoveries will emerge to provide further insight into the history, minds, lives, and indeed, deaths of the ancient Egyptians—perhaps some of the most interesting people who ever built such magnificent civilizations all those thousands of years ago.
