An Egyptian mummy contained the ancient text

A Greek play believed lost when the Library of Alexandria burnt down in 48 BC is to be revived after fragments of text were found in an Egyptian mummy.


Papyrus inscribed with excerpts of Aeschylus's Trojan War trilogy Achilles were found by archaeologists.

Cyprus's national theatre company, Thoc, is planning the world première in Cyprus and Greece next summer.

The plays have been reworked using the original extracts and drawing on references in texts like Homer's Iliad.

The story revolves around Achilles, the supposedly invincible warrior who was killed by Paris with a poisoned arrow at his only vulnerable spot, the heel.

Achilles recounts the warrior's many brushes with death and the slaying of Hector, son of Priam, the King of Troy.

A Greek author, Elias Malandris, worked on the project for a decade.

"We do think it is a faithful adaptation to a large extent, but nobody can say 100%," said Thoc director Andy Bargilly.

Described as the Father of Tragedy, Aeschylus is said to have written 90 plays, although only a handful survive.

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