Alexandria is a city with a long history. Founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC, Alexandria became an important centre of Hellenistic civilisation, and Egypt’s capital for almost a millennium from the Graeco-Roman Period until the Islamic conquest of Egypt by Amr ibn al-Aas in AD 641.
There are three main Graeco-Roman necropolis sites across the city: the eastern and western cemeteries, and the Pharos Island cemetery. The eastern cemetery begins at el-Shatby, and extends to the south outside the eastern walls of the city at el-Hadara, and to the east through the areas of Camp Cezar, el-Ibrahimia, Sporting, Cleopatra, Sidi Gaber, Stanley, and Mustafa Kamel. It was in use from the Ptolemaic era until the 2nd century AD. The western necropolis, which includes the Kom el-Shuqafa catacombs, was used throughout the Ptolemaic era and the Christian period until the Arab conquest. It extends west from the Minet el-Basal area to include the cemeteries outside the western city walls at el-Wardian, Mafrousa, and Gabbari. The third necropolis is located on Pharos Island and includes Anfushi and Ras el-Tin.
Recent excavations
During the 2000s, ahead of proposed building work, Egyptian teams carried out excavations and rescue work in parts of the eastern cemetery near to el-Shatby, and excavated two Hellenistic tombs at the el-Haddad and el-Ibrahimia sites. Two large Graeco-Roman cemeteries were also discovered: one at el-Abd (2012-2019) and the second at Tanis Street (2013-2014). The Tanis Street site appears to have been in use during the Ptolemaic and Roman periods. Other work was carried out to the east at Sidi Gaber where, in 2018, a giant black granite sarcophagus was discovered (see AE 109, ‘News’).
Excavating Leicestershire and Rutland