Egypt announces new archaeological discovery in Alexandria

Egypt announces new archaeological discovery in Alexandria

A joint Egyptian-Dominican mission has announced the discovery of 16 burials in rock-cut tombs, or burial shafts, at the Temple of Taposiris Magna, west of Alexandria, Egypt.

The mission, headed by lawyer and archaeologist Kathleen Martinez, features experts from the University of Santo Domingo.

The type of rock-cut tombs discovered were popular in Egypt's Greco-Roman era. A number of mummies were discovered in the shafts, although they are reportedly in a poor state of preservation.

The mummies feature the characteristics of mummification in the Greco-Roman era, and were found with the remnants of gilded sarcophagi, in addition to gold foil amulets. The latter were shaped in the form of a tongue, and placed in the mouth of the mummy in a special ritual to ensure their ability to speak before the Osirian court in the afterlife.

Martinez said that among the most important of these mummies were two that preserved the remains of scrolls and parts of the sarcophagi. The first was found with the remains of gilded decorations showing the Ancient Egyptian god Osiris, the god of the afterlife.

The other mummy was discovered wearing a crown decorated with horns, and the cobra snake at the forehead. The chest of the mummy shows a