Archaeologists uncovered a 3,000-year-old tomb near the southern Egyptian city of Luxor, authorities said on Sunday, the latest in a series of discoveries that officials hope will boost tourism.<\/p>\n
The tomb, identified as belonging to a man named Paser, was found by a Dutch archaeological mission from Leiden University in the Sheikh Abd el-Qurna necropolis on Luxor’s West Bank, according to Egypt’s tourism and antiquities ministry. The team of archeologists will work to identify people buried there and learn more about them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Specialists believe the tomb dates to the Ramesside period, which spans Egypt’s 19th and 20th dynasties, based on the artistic style of its inscriptions.<\/p>\n
Located east of a previously known burial site, the tomb follows the traditional layout of private Theban tombs from the New Kingdom (1570-1069 BC), they added.<\/p>\n
It consists of an open courtyard leading to a rock-cut chapel shaped like an inverted “T”, with burial chambers carved beneath ground level.<\/p>\n
Archaeologists found several well-preserved architectural elements in the courtyard, including a mudbrick bench designed to hold a funerary stela and a staircase flanked by sloping ramps leading to the entrance.<\/p>\n
Inside, inscriptions bearing Paser’s name depict him worshipping various deities inside shrines, as well as seated with his wife before an offering table.<\/p>\n
The excavation team said further documentation and study will continue in order to determine who was buried in the tomb and to better understand its historical and archaeological context.<\/p>\n
The discovery comes as Egypt seeks to promote new archaeological finds to support tourism, a key source of foreign currency for the country.<\/p>\n
Luxor is home to some of the world’s most significant ancient monuments and archaeological sites. The recent discovery is part of a research project that’s been ongoing since 2018, according to the tourism and antiquities ministry.<\/p>\n
Last year, also near Luxor, a\u00a0large tomb belonging to a pharaoh<\/a> was reopened to visitors after more than 20 years of renovation. That tomb features paintings of Amenhotep III, who ruled ancient Egypt between 1390 B.C. and 1350 B.C., along with a group of ancient Egyptian gods.<\/p>\n Also this year in Egypt, in the northern Beheira province, near the Mediterranean coast, archaeologists said they’d found artifacts in part of a Greco-Roman cemetery<\/a> that dates back more than 2,300 years. The artifacts show the evolution of funerary practices over some six centuries.<\/p>\n \n More from CBS News\n <\/p>\n \n Go deeper with The Free Press\n <\/p>\n