MENOUFIYA, EGYPT—Ahram Online reports that a funerary complex dated to the Late Period (ca. 712–332 B.C.) and Greco-Roman period (ca. 332 B.C.–A.D. 641) has been found at the Tell Quesna necropolis in northern Egypt. Burials, more than 500 faience ushabti figurines, amulets carved from semiprecious stones, blue and green faience beads, and pottery imported from the Greek island of Rhodes have been recovered. Some of the pottery contains residues of substances thought to have been used in mummification or in funerary rituals. The many beads are thought to have formed a net or body covering. Hisham El-Leithy of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities said that the complex features a central hall connected to several burial chambers with vaulted entrances. The chambers are thought to have had vaulted ceilings. “The value of the find extends beyond the diversity of the unearthed artifacts, providing new evidence that enhances understanding of funerary customs as well as the cultural and economic interactions that shaped the region during the Late and Greco-Roman periods,” said Sherif Fathy, Egypt’s Minister of Tourism and Antiquities. To read more about the Roman era in Egypt, go to “An Egyptian Temple Reborn.”
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