Eerie discovery at Egyptian burial site with chilling messages on coffins
When people think about Egyptian discoveries, they often conjure images of pharaohs and high-ranking officials, their tombs lavishly decorated with precious artefacts, ornate coffins, and detailed cartouches revealing the identity of the interred.
However, a recent find consisting of dozens of 2,000 year old burials near the Saqqara necropolis has shed light on the lives of ordinary folk from that era.
As reported by Science Alert, it's believed this discovery represents the final resting place of individuals from working and middle-class backgrounds, rather than the societal elite.
During a September 2018 excavation, Polish Egyptologist Kamil Kuraszkiewicz from the University of Warsaw and his team were working in an area situated between the world's oldest pyramid, Djoser, and a location known as the dry moat.
The dry moat is essentially a regular ditch, approximately 20 metres deep and 40 metres wide, encircling the 4,600 year old structure, reports the Mirror US.
"Most of the mummies we discovered last season were very modest," Kuraszkiewicz told the Polish Press Agency. "They were only subjected to basic embalming treatments, wrapped in bandages and placed directly in pits dug in the sand."
This significant find follows decades of work by Polish archaeologists in Egypt, who have been instrumental in excavating the expansive "city of the dead" to uncover its hidden secrets.
The Saqqara necropolis, the ancient burial ground for the capital of Memphis and various Royal families over thousands of years, offers a unique window into the funerary customs of ancient Egyptians.
However, the site poses significant challenges to archaeologists, including numerous bodies not interred in tombs, deteriorating wooden coffins, and centuries of looting.
Despite the site's degradation, one coffin still bore enough decoration to discern some details. A necklace was depicted on the lid of the casket, positioned where the mummy's neck would have been.
Further down, imitation hieroglyphs were found, but to the scientists' disappointment, they did not reveal the identity of the casket's occupant.
These symbols were deemed utterly nonsensical, providing little insight. Nevertheless, this discovery provides a haunting glimpse into how someone was significant enough to warrant an attempt at replicating elements of the elite's burial process.
Despite these burials being simpler and more modest compared to the opulent tombs discovered in other parts of the necropolis, the mummies reveal that common folk shared similar funerary customs with the affluent. It seems artists attempted to emulate the burial rites of the wealthy, even if they didn't fully comprehend them, in an effort to bestow dignity upon the deceased.
Kuraszkiewicz shed light on the discovery, stating: "Apparently, the artisan who painted it could not read, and perhaps he tried to recreate something that he had seen before. In any case, some of the painted shapes are not hieroglyphic signs, and the whole does not form a coherent text."
The Warsaw-based researcher described the coffin as "Beautifully clumsy", revealing two depictions of Anubis - the jackal-headed guardian of the Egyptian underworld - at its foot. What caught their attention was the unusual blue colour used for both figures, as typically, these mythological creatures are depicted in black.
The team couldn't pinpoint why the artist chose blue, speculating that they might have been unfamiliar with artistic norms or it could be a nod to the deity's precious hair. Unfortunately, there wasn't much else to go on, as the coffin had been plundered long ago and the burial mask, which would have offered additional crucial clues, was missing.
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South Wales Guardian
a day ago
- South Wales Guardian
Remains of British researcher who died in Antarctica found 66 years later
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Scottish Sun
a day ago
- Scottish Sun
Frozen remains of Brit adventurer, 25, lost in Antarctic are finally found after he vanished nearly 60 years ago
'He's come home now,' Dennis' 86-year-old brother said HERO FINALLY HOME Frozen remains of Brit adventurer, 25, lost in Antarctic are finally found after he vanished nearly 60 years ago Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THE remains of a Brit researcher who died in Antarctica have been discovered nearly six decades after a tragic accident. Dennis 'Tink' Bell, at the time 25, fell into a crevasse during an Antarctic mission - leaving his devastated family unable to repatriate his body. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 6 Dennis Bell, known as 'Tink', lost his life on July 26, 1959 while working for what would later become the British Antarctic Survey Credit: British Antarctic Monument Trust 6 Dennis Bell (left) died on an expedition while he was with his pal Jeff Stokes (right) - Jeff died five weeks before hearing that Dennis' remains were found Credit: British Antarctic Monument Trust 6 Handout photo issued by British Antarctic Survey shows in 1959 the Admiralty Bay Base on King George Island, where Dennis worked Credit: PA Dennis's body was never recovered until January 29 - when a team of Polish researchers from the Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station stumbled upon bones later confirmed to be his. His brother, David Bell, told the BBC: "I had long given up on finding my brother. It is just remarkable, astonishing. I can't get over it." Born in 1934, Dennis worked with the RAF and trained as a meteorologist before joining the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey - later renamed the British Antarctic Survey. In 1958, he began a two-year posting at the UK base in Admiralty Bay, Antarctica. His main role was to send up weather balloons and radio the data back to the UK every three hours - work that meant firing up a generator in brutal sub-zero conditions. The base sat on King George Island - around 75 miles off the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. Archivist Ieuan Hopkins from the British Antarctic Survey unearthed detailed reports describing work on the "ridiculously isolated" island. One report described Dennis as "cheerful and industrious, with a mischievous sense of humour and fondness for practical jokes". He was said to have loved the husky dogs that pulled sledges around the island and was known as the hut's best cook - often managing the food store through the long winter when no supplies could get in. The fatal accident happened just weeks after his 25th birthday, while Dennis was surveying King George Island to help map the terrain. Lost 300-Year-Old Pirate Ship With £101M Treasure Discovered Off Madagascar On July 26 1959 - deep in the Antarctic winter - Dennis and his colleague and pal Jeff Stokes had climbed and surveyed a glacier. Dennis was encouraging the weary dogs but wasn't wearing his skis when he suddenly vanished into a crevasse, according to British Antarctic Survey accounts. Jeff shouted down to him and Dennis was able to call back, grabbing hold of a rope lowered in a rescue attempt. The dogs pulled at the rope, hauling Dennis - who had attached it to his belt - up towards the edge of the hole. 6 Handout photo issued by British Antarctic Survey shows Dennis Bell (left) with his colleagues and the dogs that helped them work in Antarctica in 1959 Credit: PA 6 Dennis Bell (left) had a 'mischievous sense of humour', as seen by the picture in which he is re-enacting an advert on the snow Credit: British Antarctic Monument Trust But tragically, the belt broke and Dennis fell back into the crevasse. When Jeff called out again, Dennis didn't reply. David Bell recalled how, in July 1959, a telegram boy knocked on the door of the Bells' family home in Harrow, London to deliver the devastating news of Dennis' death. He said two men from Dennis's base later visited the family and brought a sheepskin as a gesture of sympathy. "But there was no conclusion. There was no service; there was no anything. Just Dennis gone," David says. David described feeling overwhelmed by the news and expressed his gratitude to the Polish researchers who found his remains. "I'm just sad my parents never got to see this day," he said. David, who lives in Australia, plans to visit England with his sister Valerie so they can lay their beloved brother to rest. "It's wonderful; I'm going to meet my brother. You might say we shouldn't be thrilled, but we are," David said. "He's been found - he's come home now." Professor Dame Jane Francis, Director of the British Antarctic Survey, paid tribute to Dennis: "Dennis was one of the many brave personnel who contributed to the early science and exploration of Antarctica under extraordinarily harsh conditions. "Even though he was lost in 1959, his memory lived on among colleagues and in the legacy of polar research." Since 1944, 29 people have died working in the British Antarctic Territory on scientific missions, according to the British Antarctic Monument Trust. Among them were Alan Sharman and Russell Thompson, who also died in 1959.
Rhyl Journal
a day ago
- Rhyl Journal
Remains of British researcher who died in Antarctica found 66 years later
Dennis 'Tink' Bell, 25, died after falling down a crevasse on a glacier at Admiralty Bay on King George Island on July 26 1959. A team from the Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station found his remains among rocks exposed by a receding glacier on January 19 this year, the BAS said on Monday. Bone fragments were carried to the Falkland Islands on the BAS Royal Research Ship Sir David Attenborough and handed to the coroner for British Antarctic Territory Malcolm Simmons, who brought them back to London from Stanley. DNA testing carried out at King's College London finally matched the remains with samples from Mr Bell's brother David and his sister Valerie Kelly. 'When my sister Valerie and I were notified that our brother Dennis had been found after 66 years we were shocked and amazed,' David Bell, now living in Australia, said. 'The British Antarctic Survey and British Antarctic Monument Trust have been a tremendous support and, together with the sensitivity of the Polish team in bringing him home, have helped us come to terms with the tragic loss of our brilliant brother.' Bell trained as a radio operator in the Royal Air Force before joining the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey (Fids) as a meteorologist in 1958. He was stationed for a two-year assignment at Admiralty Bay, a small UK base with half a dozen men, on King George Island – one of the South Shetland Islands which lie in the Southern Ocean about 124 miles off the northern coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. On July 26 1959, Mr Bell and three of his colleagues – meteorologist Ken Gibson, surveyor Jeff Stokes, and geologist Colin Barton – left base with two dog sledges to climb the glacier and carry out survey and geological work. But on the way up, the soft snow made the journey difficult, and the dogs began to show signs of tiredness. 'To encourage them Bell went ahead… tragically without his skis,' the BAS said. 'Suddenly he disappeared leaving a gaping hole in the crevasse bridge through which he had fallen.' According to accounts in the British Antarctic Survey records, Mr Stokes made a first attempt at lifting Mr Bell out of the hole using a rope. But Mr Bell had tied the rope around his belt, which broke as he reached the lip of the crevasse. After this second fall, Mr Bell no longer responded to calls from Mr Stokes. 'That's a story I shall never get over,' Mr Bell's brother David told the BBC. Mr Stokes later met with Gibson and Barton coming down the glacier, and the three men made another attempt at finding Mr Bell. But weather conditions rapidly deteriorated, and they were not able to reach the crevasse in time, according to the BAS records. 'It was probably 12 hours before we found the site and there was no way he could have survived,' Ken Gibson said. 'The confirmation of the remains found on Ecology Glacier as those of Dennis 'Tink' Bell is both a poignant and profound moment for all of us at British Antarctic Survey,' Professor Dame Jane Francis, Director of BAS, said. 'Dennis was one of the many brave Fids personnel who contributed to the early science and exploration of Antarctica under extraordinarily harsh conditions. 'Even though he was lost in 1959, his memory lived on among colleagues and in the legacy of polar research. 'This discovery brings closure to a decades-long mystery and reminds us of the human stories embedded in the history of Antarctic science.' David Bell added: 'Dennis was the oldest of three siblings and was my hero as he seemed to be able to turn his hand to anything, servicing petrol engines, photography including processing his own films.' The Polish expedition which recovered Mr Bell's remains also found over 200 personal items, including the remains of radio equipment, a flashlight, ski poles, an inscribed Erguel wristwatch, a Swedish Mora knife, ski poles, and an ebonite pipe stem.
