CAIRO, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Egypt has uncovered a new burial complex at the Tel El-Qweisna necropolis in the Nile Delta, shedding new light on funerary practices and trade links during the Late and Graeco-Roman periods, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said Wednesday.
The discovery was made by an archaeological mission from Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities during ongoing excavations at the site in Menoufia Governorate, the ministry said in a statement.
The complex has a well-planned architectural layout, featuring a central hall connected to several vaulted burial chambers, providing researchers with fresh insights into the original design of burial structures from these eras, the ministry said.
Uncovered along the complex were a wide range of funerary objects reflecting ancient Egyptian burial beliefs and rituals, it said. Among the most significant finds were 560 faience ushabti figurines of different sizes, some inscribed with passages from the Book of the Dead, an ancient Egyptian funerary text.
The mission also unearthed imported pottery from the Greek island of Rhodes, including part of a vessel handle bearing the potter's name, providing new archaeological evidence of active commercial exchanges between Ancient Egypt and the Mediterranean during the Late and Graeco-Roman periods, the ministry added.
Discovered in 1991, the Tel El-Qweisna necropolis is one of the most important burial sites in Egypt's central Nile Delta, preserving evidence of evolving funerary traditions across successive historical periods. ■