Remarkable Tomb Discovery in Dakhla Oasis
Archaeologists working in Egypt’s Dakhla Oasis have uncovered a Roman-period tomb featuring a distinctive pyramid-shaped superstructure made from mudbrick. This significant find was made at Bir al-Shaghala, a site under excavation since 2002 led by Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities. The tomb belonged to a man and his wife, dating back to the late 3rd or early 4th century AD.
Inside, researchers found a 19-line funerary poem written in ancient Greek, honoring a man named Psychis, who is believed to have been a judge. The tomb also contains a depiction of the seventh hour from the Amduat—a classic Egyptian text describing the sun god’s nocturnal journey through the underworld. This particular scene dates to the New Kingdom period, over a millennium before the tomb’s burial. The entrance is adorned with sandstone, hieroglyphic funerary spells, a cornice featuring a winged solar disk, and two cobras.
Architectural Features and Contents of the Tomb
The doorway to the tomb is sealed with a stone slab decorated with Osirian imagery and additional burial spells. Objects found within include:
- a sandstone offering table,
- a sandstone purification basin,
- several pottery vessels,
- and a bronze coin depicting the Roman Emperor Constantine.
This tomb is located in the Motis necropolis, which served as the capital of the Dakhla Oasis during the Ptolemaic and Roman eras.
Excavations at Bir al-Shaghala have revealed diverse architectural designs blending Egyptian styles with Ptolemaic and Roman influences. Some tombs feature open inner courtyards and stairways surrounded by outdoor altars used for funerary rites. Others include upper burial chapels topped with pyramid-like structures. Several burial chambers contain stone or mudbrick coffins beneath vaulted ceilings made of sandstone or mudbrick.
The tomb walls are decorated with Egyptian "Books of the Underworld" alongside Greek and Roman motifs. Above the main entrance stands a chapel built of mudbrick, containing a funerary altar supported by four square mudbrick columns. This suggests the tomb may have been reused during a later period. Archaeologists also discovered a rectangular stone funerary stele with a pediment and a carved solar disk embedded in the southern wall of the pyramid structure.
This archaeological find highlights the rich cultural interactions between Egyptian, Greek, and Roman traditions in antiquity.
It also emphasizes the historical and cultural significance of the Motis necropolis as a hub where multiple civilizations intersected. Ongoing excavations in the area promise to shed further light on the lives and customs of the people who inhabited this oasis thousands of years ago.
This recent discovery adds to the growing body of archaeological finds in Egypt, where ancient burial sites continue to offer insights into the past. For instance, a remarkable 4400-year-old tomb of Judge Yunmin was recently uncovered in Saqqara, showcasing vivid reliefs and intricate burial scenes that reflect the rich cultural heritage of ancient Egypt.