Largest-ever cache of ancient Egyptian statues found in Saqqara necropolis

Cairo, May 30 (EFE).- Egyptian archaeologists have discovered the largest ever cache of bronze statues dating back to the Late Period of ancient Egypt (724-343 BC) at the necropolis of Saqqara near the capital Cairo, officials said Monday.

“The find includes 150 bronze statues of different sizes of various ancient Egyptian deities such as Anubis, Amun-Min, Osiris, Isis, Nefertum, Bastet and Hathor, and bronze vessels used in rituals of Isis,” Mostafa Waziri, head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said in a statement.

The Egyptian archaeological mission also found a collection of 250 painted wooden coffins with well-preserved mummies inside, along with a papyrus that is believed to contain verses of the Book of the Dead, Waziri added.

In 2019, some 75 wooden and bronze cat statues of different sizes were unearthed in the same area.

In recent years, Egypt has made a series of discovery announcements to promote tourism, a sector that has been hit hard by the recent global crises. EFE

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