Just in time for Mother's Day, Egypt has come out with some big news for mummies.
OK, bad jokes aside, teams around Cairo University have unearthed a massive archeological find according to Reuters. Detected with radar a year ago, teams went in and found a burial chamber with at least 17 and up to 32 mummies. Testing is underway, but the early returns show the site to date from the era in Egyptian history where it was part of the Greco-Roman empire.
While it may be the biggest discovery of burial antiquities in some time, this is not the first find in Egypt of 2017 which has been a banner year for archaeology in the region. Scientists and historians are learning more and more every day about ancient history thanks to work done by those like the team from Cairo University.
Still, the real impact of this could be more monetary than informational.
"Tourism Minister Yehia Rashed said last month," Reuters writes "the new finds could boost tourist arrivals this year to about 10 million, an improvement from the 9.3 million visitors that came in 2015 but still far below the 14.7 million from 2010. No 2016 figure is yet available. "
That would be a huge boon for Egypt that has struggled with finding its tourism footing for some time now. Earlier this week, Travelpulse covered how cruising could end up being the key to Egypt's tourism comeback. Yet, rather travelers by land, sea or air, Egypt needs to ultimately convince others that they are a safe destination.
[READMORE]READ MORE: Egypt Takes Drastic Step Amid Tourism Struggles[/READMORE]
If nothing else, the timing of such finds are good for Egypt as Universal Pictures is currently rebooting their Mummy franchise with blockbuster superstar Tom Cruise. With a June 9 release date this year, Universal (and Egyptian tourism officials) hope the movie is a huge success.
The last group of movies and their spin-offs starring Brendan Frasier and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson started in 1999 and coincided with a massive boom in tourism which didn't slow down until the country's political upheaval in 2011.
Many hope historical finds like this one combined with increased interest from Hollywood could be the key for another boom just around the corner.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
