Czech team re-excavates Saqqara tombs of Sabu and Ptahshepses

The excavation targets tombs that were found and then lost again. Auguste Mariette, the founder of the Egyptian Antiquities Service, identified about 160 Old Kingdom tombs in the area between 1858 and 1860 [5][10]. His crews concentrated on major objects and left other parts of the structures undocumented [5]. Sand buried the tombs again [1][9]. Hisham El-Leithy, secretary-general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the significance of the Czech work lies in re-excavating tombs that had stayed only partly uncovered since the 19th century [1]. He said the renewed investigation documents the monuments with modern scientific methods and is revealing new information about the religious beliefs and social lives of Old Kingdom officials [5].

Rediscovery at Saqqara

The team comes from the Czech Institute of Egyptology. It has re-excavated the tombs of Sabu and his son Ptahshepses, both high officials associated with the cult of Ptah at Memphis [5]. Both tombs date to the Old Kingdom, which the mission dates to roughly 2686 to 2181 BCE [5]. Sabu's tomb lies north of his son's [1]. Miroslav Bárta, who heads the Czech mission, said the team relocated the tomb of Ptahshepses using satellite imagery and field surveys [1][5][9].

Mariette left work on these tombs incomplete. He did not fully document it [9][10].

Egypt's minister of tourism and antiquities, Sherif Fathy, inspected the mission's work at the site, his ministry said [1]. Fathy examined architectural elements and inscriptions uncovered by the mission [1]. The offering chapel was among them [1]. He said strengthening scientific cooperation with foreign missions also builds the capacity of Egyptian archaeological professionals [1].

The mission has not disclosed a full inventory of the finds. Nor has it given a date for publishing them.

What the finds add

The find Bárta rates most highly is the offering chapel of Sabu's wife, Ikhetnefert, which Mariette never located [1][5]. The chapel was revealed for the first time during the current mission, the ministry said [1]. A false door inside it carries scenes of Ikhetnefert with her husband and their two sons, Ptahshepses and Raneferef [1][5][9][10]. Bárta said the decoration offers new insight into the family and the relationships within it [1][5]. The chapel also holds well-preserved relief carvings of Sabu and Ptahshepses overseeing processions of offering bearers [1]. Sabu's tomb has exterior walls that mimic the facades of royal palaces, which the Czech team reads as a reflection of his high standing [1][5][9]. El-Leithy said the exterior walls featured elaborate decorations [10].

The burial chamber of Ptahshepses was among the excavation's most significant finds, said Mohamed Abdel-Badei, who heads the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities [1][9]. The tomb has an offering chamber. Its entrance is adorned with reliefs of offering bearers and scenes of sacrificial slaughter [1].

Ptahshepses: career and burial

Written sources indicate that Ptahshepses served four kings of the Fifth Dynasty: Sahure, Neferirkare, Raneferef and Nyuserre [1][5][9][10]. Archaeological studies cited by Abdel-Badei identify him as the first official from outside the royal family to marry an Egyptian princess [1][9]. The princess was Khamaat [1][5][9]. She was a daughter of King Userkaf, the founder of the Fifth Dynasty [1][5][9].

The tomb had been looted in antiquity. The mummy survived untouched [1][5][9][10].

Analysis of the remains suggests he died at over 60 [1][5][9][10]. Abdel-Badei called that a remarkably advanced age by the standards of the time, and the Czech team describes him as exceptionally long-lived [1][5].

Scale and context

Sabu's tomb measured more than 175 feet long and 90 feet wide, and once stood about 16 feet tall, according to Archaeology [10]. The re-excavation has documented previously unknown parts of both tombs [5].

Mariette left about 160 Old Kingdom tombs in the area half dug. The Czech project is working through them [5][10].

Saqqara lies about 20 miles south of Cairo and was the main necropolis for Memphis, the ancient capital founded around 3100 BCE and abandoned in the 7th century CE [5]. Its tombs have been dug and documented since the 19th century [5].

The Czech Institute of Egyptology was founded in 1958-1959 as the Czechoslovak Institute of Egyptology [6]. Its principal archaeological concession in Egypt is at Abusir [6]. Work there extends to Saqqara through collaborations [6]. Its director, Renata Landgrafová, said at a Czech Day of Egyptology event in Cairo that the institute has a dual seat in Prague and Cairo [6].

No date has been given for a full publication of the results. The mission's stated aim is to locate, excavate and document tombs that were partly explored in the 19th century and later buried again [5].