Archaeology & History

Over 1,400 mummies unearthed in ancient Egyptian 'City of the Dead'

By T.K. Randall
June 28, 2024 ·  2 comments

The city of Aswan as it appears today. Image Credit: CC BY 3.0 Bertramz Situated along the Nile's east bank, the city, which was founded some 4,500 years ago, is today a bustling market and tourist center with a population of over 379,000 people.

It is also home to many hidden tombs, ruins and monuments dating back to antiquity.

This latest find, which was excavated over a period of five years, consists of an extensive network of tombs - 36 in total - each containing as many as 40 mummies each.

The burials cover an area in excess of 270,000ft and are spread across ten terraces.The excavations revealed that the ancient people of this city were buried according to their class, with the most important individuals at the top of the site and the middle classes buried underneath.

The tombs date back to a 900-year period beginning in 600BC and ending in 300AD.

"This was a really spectacular find, very unique in Egypt," University of Milan archaeologist Patrizia Piacentini told Mail Online.

"[The people who once lived in Aswan] covered the hill with tombs. It is kind of a City of the Dead."

Source: NDTV | Comments (2)

Tags: Egypt