An exciting collection of Egyptian artifacts were just discovered in Saqqara, and if you want to be the first to see them for free, you'll want to book a trip to the Imhotep Museum of Saqqara soon.
Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities announced on Saturday that seven tombs were discovered on the western side of Giza's Saqqara necropolis. Four of the tombs belong to the Old Kingdom and three were reused in the New Kingdom.
An eighth tomb was also found, but as it is currently sealed, its exact era is unknown.
Archeologists discovered thousands of relics inside the tombs, most of which were mummified animals. For instance, 200 mummified cats were discovered, as well as sarcophagi for cobras, cats, and crocodiles.
Moustafa Waziri, secretary-general of the Higher Supreme Council of Antiquities said, "Some of the found relics are statues for animals while others are mummies wrapped in their linen fabric."
However, the most significant discovery as of yet are the 200 mummified scarabs found in two large boxes in one of the burials.
"We found two large boxes in one of the burials, one has three layers, with a total of around 200 mummified scarabs, which is the first to be found in the whole world, while the other has mummified large male and female scarabs," Waziri said.
Scarabs are winged beetles that were an important symbol in Ancient Egypt. The Ministry of Antiquities verified with several museums around the world that no mummified scarabs have ever been discovered.
Waziri said, "They all agreed that they had found empty mummification boxes, yet with no body inside."
The artifacts will be displayed for free starting November 15 at the Imhotep Museum of Saqqara for a month before being distributed to museums.
The Minister of Antiquities, Khaled Anany said, "The discoveries of this area are far from over, and I believe Saqqara is going to surprise us with more for centuries if not decades."
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