Egypt announces discovery of 3,500-year-old tomb in Luxor

It's a relatively modest discovery but authorities hope it will tempt tourists back to Egypt

TOPSHOT - A picture taken on September 9, 2017 shows Egyptian archaeologist restoring a wooden sacrophagus at a newly-uncovered ancient tomb for a goldsmith dedicated to the ancient Egyptian god Amun, in the Draa Abul Naga necropolis on the west bank of the ancient city of Luxor, which boasts ancient Egyptian temples and burial grounds.
The finds at the tomb of "Amun's Goldsmith, Amenemhat", which dates back to the New Kingdom (16th to 11th centuries BC), also contained a sculpture carved into a recess of him seated beside his wife, with a portrait of their son painted between them, in addition to another 150 small funerary statues carved in wood, clay and limestone.
A burial shaft in the tomb led to a chamber where the archaeologists discovered mummies, funerary statues and masks, the antiquities ministry said. / AFP PHOTO / KHALED DESOUKI
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Egypt on Saturday announced the discovery in the southern city of Luxor of a pharaonic tomb belonging to a royal goldsmith who lived more than 3,500 years ago during the reign of the 18th dynasty.

The tomb, located on the west bank of the river Nile in a cemetery for noblemen and top officials, is a relatively modest discovery, but the authorities have announced it with a great deal of fanfare in a bid to boost the country's slowly recovering tourism industry.

"We want tomorrow's newspapers to speak about Egypt and make people want to come to Egypt," antiquities minister Khaled el-Anani said.

The tomb was found in the Draa Abul Naga necropolis. Mr El-Anani said it was not in good condition, but it contains a statue of the goldsmith seated next to his wife with a portrait of their son painted between them.

The minister identified the goldsmith as Amunhat and his tomb, which is dedicated to the ancient Egyptian god Amun,  dates back to the New Kingdom (16th to 11th centuries BC),

A burial shaft in the tomb led to a chamber where the archaeologists discovered mummies, pottery, masks, coffins and about 150 small funerary statues carved in wood, clay and limestone, which belonged to Egyptians who lived during the 21st and 22nd dynasties.

The tomb was discovered by Egyptian archeologists, an indication of their growing professionalism and expertise, said Mustafa Waziri, Luxor's chief archaeologist.

"We used to escort foreign archeologists as observers, but that's now in the past. We are the leaders now," he said.