Archaeologists have recently uncovered an ancient Egyptian tomb that sheds light on a king from over 3,600 years ago, but the exact identity of the ruler remains a mystery. The tomb, found in Abydos, Egypt, was discovered in January. It features a large limestone burial chamber with multiple rooms and a decorated entryway, but the name of the king who was buried there is unclear. Unfortunately, graverobbers damaged some of the hieroglyphic text on the tomb, making it unreadable.
The tomb, which does not contain any skeletal remains, is believed to belong to a king from the Abydos Dynasty. This dynasty, which ruled Upper Egypt between 1640 and 1540 BC, is one of the least understood in ancient Egyptian history. The king’s identity is unclear, and it’s possible he’s one of several rulers who are not mentioned in traditional records of ancient Egyptian monarchs.
Josef Wegner, the Egyptologist who led the excavation, explains that the Abydos Dynasty was largely forgotten due to political instability during that period. The discovery of this tomb opens up new opportunities for research into this mysterious dynasty.
The tomb was found about 23 feet underground in a necropolis in Abydos, an ancient burial ground. Abydos was considered a sacred site and was the burial place of the first pharaohs. It also held the tombs of many kings from different dynasties.
Over a decade ago, Wegner and his team uncovered a tomb that confirmed the existence of the Abydos Dynasty. That tomb belonged to King Seneb-Kay, a ruler who was not recorded in historical texts. So far, they’ve discovered eight tombs from this dynasty. The newly discovered tomb is larger than Seneb-Kay’s, which suggests it may belong to an earlier ruler from the dynasty.
The researchers suspect the tomb could belong to either King Senaiib or King Paentjeni, two other rulers from the dynasty. However, they acknowledge it’s possible the tomb belongs to a completely unknown king.
The tomb still features two painted images of the goddesses Isis and Nephthys, which are often seen in funerary art. The researchers plan to explore more of the area in hopes of finding additional tombs, using advanced technology like ground-penetrating radar and magnetometry.
Salima Ikram, an expert in Egyptology, praised the discovery for helping to better understand this little-known period of Egyptian history. She hopes future excavations will reveal more tombs and provide further insight into the Abydos Dynasty.
Josef Wegner/The Penn Museum