Great news, mummers and mummettes! In the small village of Tuna al-Gabal, Egypt, 17 mummies were found in a massive secret underground burial chamber. Here’s the skinny:
- On top of the 17 mummies already found there are many dozens more still to be unearthed
- Located just West of the Nile river about 150 miles south of Cairo, about 30 feet underground
- Found by students using ground penetrating radar technology
- The first find of this kind since the 1950s
- The burial chamber dates back over 2300 years, being in use from the time just before the invasion of Alexander the Great all the way into the Roman era
- This find was unique in that these were not royal mummies- signs point to them being priests or other high ranking officials
- The burial chamber is fairly large and has multiple entrances
Perhaps the most fascinating thing about a find this great is how it demonstrates. If we can still stumble upon a massive cache of mummies like this today, how many other great discoveries are still out there waiting to be found?
It’s this kind of find that inspires you to put on your Indiana Jones hat, grab your drone equipped ground penetrating radar and join the hunt. There may still be a lost Ark of the Covenant or Tomb of Genghis Khan out there with your name on it.
More from BBC: http://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-middle-east-39908747/mummies-in-ancient-egypt-burial-site