Mummified cats, scarab beetles unearthed in Egypt
Saqqara [Egypt] Nov 11 (ANI): Archaeological excavations revealed a mass cat cemetery and rare mummified scarab beetles in an ancient burial ground of Saqqara in Egypt.
ANI
Nov 11, 2018 22:46 IST
Saqqara [Egypt] Nov 11 (ANI): Archaeological excavations revealed a mass cat cemetery and rare mummified scarab beetles in an ancient burial ground of Saqqara in Egypt.
According to the Ministry of Antiquities-Arab Republic of Egypt's official Twitter handle, a total of seven tombs were discovered at the end of the archaeological mission which was initiated in April.
Out of the seven tombs, three of them contained cat mummies which were traced back to the fifth and sixth dynasties of Egypt. Among the rest, one of them belonged to Khufu-Imhat, who is considered the overseer of buildings in Egyptian mythology.
On the other hand, the scarab beetles were unearthed from a section of one of the tombs called the Memphis necropolis. The insects were found to be wrapped in linen which was placed inside a rectangular limestone sarcophagus.
Beetles were considered sacred in ancient Egypt.
Archaeologists also unearthed an additional collection of mummies in smaller sarcophaguses. A bronze cat statue dedicated to an ancient Egyptian cat goddess Bastet, which was one of the 100 unearthed wooden cat statues. Wooden gilded statues of a lion, a cow, and a falcon, and also 1,000 other artefacts were also unearthed.
The Egyptian government officials and ambassadors came in to take a look at the newly discovered tombs and artefacts. (ANI)
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