Dig Reveals Ancient Egyptian Tomb With ‘Magnificent’ Painted Coffins

Archaeologists have uncovered an ancient Egyptian burial chamber featuring two “intricately painted” wooden coffins, among other finds.

A joint Egyptian-German mission discovered the tomb during an excavation at the archaeological site of Asyut, an ancient city that was an important cultural center around 4,000 years ago during Egypt’s Middle Kingdom, the country’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said.

“This new discovery in Asyut will add more to what we know about the Middle Kingdom, which is all too often overshadowed by the earlier Old Kingdom ‘Pyramid Age’ and the later New Kingdom, with its big name pharaohs such as Tutankhamun and [Ramesses II],” Joann Fletcher, a professor with the Department of Archaeology at the U.K.’s University of York, told Newsweek.

“And yet the Middle Kingdom was actually a time of great artistic and cultural splendor, as indeed is reflected in the quality of the paintwork on the newly discovered outer coffin visible in the excavation photographs,” said Fletcher, who was not involved in the latest research.

The newly revealed burial chamber came to light during excavation work on the tomb of Jifai-Hapi (also spelled Djefaihapi) in the necropolis of ancient Asyut.

Jifai-Hapi was an ancient Egyptian official who served as an important provincial governor of Asyut during the reign of Senusret I, a pharaoh of the 12th dynasty.

Senusret I was one of the most notable pharaohs of Egypt’s Middle Kingdom, ruling from approximately 1971 B.C. to 1926 B.C. His reign is associated with the height of the 12th dynasty’s power and stability.

Amid excavations of Jifai-Hapi’s tomb, the Egyptian-German mission uncovered the burial chamber of what appears to be his daughter, a woman named Edi.

The chamber contained wooden figurines and canopic jars, as well as two “intricately painted” wooden coffins that the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities described as among the “most magnificent” ever found.

Canopic jars were key objects in ancient Egyptian burial practices, specifically designed to hold the internal organs of the deceased, which were removed during the mummification process. These jars were typically made of alabaster, pottery or sometimes glass and were often placed in a canopic chest within the tomb alongside the mummified body.

Preliminary research into Edi’s remains—including her skull and other bones—has indicated that she died before turning 40 and had suffered from a congenital foot defect.

Further excavation work and examinations of the newly discovered remains will continue, and experts hope to shed more light on the ancient governor of Asyut and his daughter, as well as the historical period in which they lived.

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