Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism announced the discovery of a 3,200-year-old tomb belonging to Banchi, the guardian of the temple of the Egyptian god Amun, in the Saqqara necropolis, south of the Egyptian capital, Cairo.Archeologists find ancient tomb of temple guard near Giza Pyramids

The temple-shaped tomb, which dates back to the Nineteenth Dynasty (1292-1189 BC) of ancient Egypt, was discovered by a team of Dutch and Italian archaeologists.

One of the most important burial sites in ancient Egypt, Saqqara has seen a number of archaeological discoveries in recent years.

As Egypt seeks to revive its tourism industry, a major source of foreign exchange, it wants to showcase its newly discovered heritage. 11.7 million people visited the country by 2022.

“The new discovery sheds light on the development of the Saqqara Necropolis during the Ramesses period and opens the veil of new people not yet known in historical sources,” said Mustafa Vaziri, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.

The tomb resembles a freestanding temple with an entrance, an inner courtyard of columned porticoes, a shaft leading to underground burial chambers, and three chapels. It borders the tomb of Maya, a high-ranking official during the reign of ancient Egypt’s boy-king Tutankhamun.

Inside the tomb, archeologists found a stela picturing Panehsy and his wife Baia, who was the singer of Amun, in front of an offering table, as well as several other drawings of priests and religious offerings.Archeologists find ancient tomb of temple guard near Giza Pyramids

PHOTO: Egyptian antiquities workers dig at the site of the Step Pyramid of Djoser, Jan. 26, 2023.
Egyptian antiquities workers dig at the site of the Step Pyramid of Djoser, Jan. 26, 2023. Former Egyptian Minister of Antiquities announces that an Egyptian archaeological mission unearthed a group of rich fifth and sixth-dynasty tombs from the Old,

The team also unearthed four small chapels during excavation work in the area, two of which bear well-preserved reliefs of funeral scenes and drawings of the resurrection of a mummy to live in the afterlife, officials said.

The team includes archeologists from the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden (RMO), whose mission has been excavating the area since 1975, and the Egyptian Museum in Turin (Museo Egizio), which joined the excavation project as a main partner in 2015.Archeologists find ancient tomb of temple guard near Giza Pyramids