Archaeologists in Egypt have a hard question to respond : who is the prodigious flesh forget inside this massive sarcophagus ?
The breakthrough was made during an excavation in the Sidi Gaber territorial dominion of Alexandria . assess a thumping 2.65 meters ( 8.7 infantry ) in length , the discovery is the largest granite sarcophagus ever found in the area , which is renowned for its ancient keepsake .
An initial look over at the black granite sarcophagus indicates that it dates back to the Ptolemaic point , an era of Egyptian history that start up in 323 BCE following the death of Alexander the Great and ended in 30 BCE after the destruction of Cleopatra VII and invasion by the Romans .
Inan announcementmade on Sunday , Dr Ayman Ashmawy , head of the government ’s Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Sector , noted that the tomb was found at a profoundness of 5 meters ( 16 feet ) beneath the primer coat ’s Earth’s surface . Along with its considerable length , it is also 1.85 meters ( 6 feet ) marvelous and 1.65 meters ( 5.4 foot ) wide .
Most interestingly , Dr Ashmawy said the bed of trench mortar between the lid and the soundbox of the sarcophagus come along to be intact , indicating the contents of the Harlan Fiske Stone casket have not catch the light of Clarence Day since ancientness .
Judging by the particular size of the casket , this was most potential the burial place of someone at least of temperate status and wealthiness , but who ? Well , unfortunately , it probably is n’t some ancient heavyweight . Sarcophagi run to be a fair chip bigger than the person they carry . For example , the longest sarcophagusever discover in Egypt was over 4 meters ( 13 feet ) long . The person inside , the averagely - designed swayer Merneptah , was for sure not this tall .
luckily , there are some big clue laying around . Not far from the sarcophagus , the squad found a carve head made out of alabaster believed to picture the " owner " of the tomb . Alabaster is a soft rock , normally used for carving , so most of the feature have eroded by . However , some further police detective work might be able-bodied to uncover its mysterious identity .
Thanks to its plentiful and varied history , thecityof Alexandria is on a regular basis the site of unbelievable archaeological discoveries . Like many of the coastal ports in theMediterranean , the urban center has been an invaluable trading post of goods , ideas , people , and cultures . Just a few month ago , just off the coast of the city , underwater archaeologists founda collection of ancient shipwrecks and treasuresthat would make Indiana Jones himself jealous .
