necropolis

AE157 Monument 1a

Qubbet el-Hawa: The tombs of the nobles

On the West Bank of the Nile, opposite Aswan, is Qubbet el-Hawa, the necropolis of the governors of Elephantine during the Old and Middle Kingdoms. These officials – the guardians of Egypt’s southernmost border – built monumental tomb complexes on…

AE157 News 5a

Trio of tombs at Bahariya Oasis

An Egyptian team working in the Bahariya Oasis have discovered three tombs from different periods at the site of Sheikh Sobi, the necropolis for the priests and governors of the oasis from the Late Period. The first tomb was carved…

AE157 News

Necropolis discovery at Kom el-Khilgan

An Egyptian mission excavating at Kom el-Khilgan in Dakahlia Governorate has uncovered an ancient necropolis with evidence of use from the Predynastic Period through to the Graeco-Roman era. The earliest burials appear to be Maadi-Buto culture (c.4000-3500 BC), and are…

Bubasteion rock tombs

Three rock-cut tombs belonging to high officials of the early New Kingdom have been discovered by an Egyptian team in the Bubasteion necropolis at Saqqara. The tombs are inscribed with their biographies, and provide important evidence of Egypt’s foreign relations…

Tell Quesna burials

An Egyptian mission has documented an unusual funerary practice in a newly discovered tomb at the Tell Quesna necropolis (Menoufia Governorate), in the central Delta. The team discovered several burials with pottery dishes placed beneath the arms and between the…

Western Delta discoveries

Workshops from the Late Period and early Ptolemaic era have been discovered by an Egyptian-Italian (University of Padua) team working at the interconnected Kom al-Ahmar and Kom Wasit sites in the Western Delta (Beheira Governorate). The workshops consist of at…

Meir

Karl Harris continues his ‘Travels in an Antique Land’, discovering the ‘Art of Cusae’ in Middle Kingdom tombs at Meir – accompanied by a local snake charmer.

World news

Large Iron Age settlement found in Czechia Archaeologists have discovered the remains of a large settlement dating to between the 3rd and 1st century BC in the Hradec Králové region of north-east Bohemia, Czechia. First discovered in 2023 during investigations…

Intact Etruscan chamber tomb discovered

An untouched Etruscan chamber tomb dating to the 7th century BC has been uncovered in the San Giuliano necropolis in Lazio, central Italy. Investigations in the area have been carried out since 2016 by the San Giuliano Archaeological Research Project,…

More news from Aswan

Three rock-cut tombs from the Old Kingdom, reused during the Middle Kingdom, have been found by the Egyptian team working at the Qubbet el Hawa necropolis opposite Aswan. Two of the tombs have similar features and contained wooden coffins with…

Screenshot 2025 08 20 at 14.26.01

Hierakonpolis

Julian Maxwell Heath describes the excavation history of the Predynastic ‘City of the Falcon God’ and some of the important discoveries made there.

CWA news in brief

Iron Age cemetery in UAE An Iron Age necropolis recently discovered in Al Ain is the first to be found in the United Arab Emirates. The burial ground, which was unearthed as part of the Funerary Landscapes of Al Ain…

New Abydos pharaoh

Following the discovery of the Tomb of Senebkay at Abydos in 2014 (see ‘News’ in AE 82 and AE 89), a new mystery pharaoh has been found at the site, providing further evidence of a separate Abydos Dynasty (c.1700-1600 BC)…

AE147 News 5d

Taposiris Magna finds

A small white marble head of a Ptolemaic princess or queen has been discovered in a foundation deposit at the Taposiris Magna Temple by an Egyptian–Dominican mission. The team believes the queen, shown with a ‘melon’ hairstyle and wearing a…

Graeco-Roman tombs

A joint Egyptian-Italian (University of Milan) archaeological mission at Aswan has discovered a further 33 tombs in the area near the Aga Khan Mausoleum. The new discoveries were made in a Graeco-Roman necropolis that is spread across ten levels on…

New tomb at Abusir

A Czech mission working at Abusir has discovered the richly decorated tomb of a royal scribe called Djehutyemhat, who lived during Persian rule over Egypt. The superstructure of the tomb has not survived, but the team found a 14-metre shaft…

640px Archer giants Monte Prama5

Supersize finds from Sardinia and Egypt

At the site of Mont'e Prama in Sardinia, archaeologists have uncovered Bronze Age fragmentary sculptures of two boxers. And at Saqqara, a host of statues, coffins, and figurines have been revealed.