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The discovery of a papyrus related to the ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead sparked wild online reactions. Archeologists recently uncovered a 3,500-year-old ancient Egyptian cemetery located in central Egypt. As announced by an Arabi statement by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities on October 15, the burial site dates back to the New Kingdom.
Found at the burial site were canopic jars, mummies, amulets, and statues. Additionally, a complete papyrus that referenced the Book of the Dead was also discovered. Netizens, influenced by The Mummy movies, were critical about opening and reading the archeological findings. One X (formerly Twitter) user commented:
Netizens are not too thrilled about the new Book of the Dead discovery
Netizens were extremely weary of the discovery of the Book of the Dead papyrus. Many had The Mummy and Evil Dead movies in mind while agreeing that the text should probably be left alone for good. A few others did not care and thought that we might as well get it over with. Here are a few comments from X user @TimOnPoint's tweet about the Book of the Dead:
The newly discovered burial site belonged to the New Kingdom of Egypt
In an October 15 press conference organized by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities at the Al-Gharifa in Tuna Al-Jabal archeological areas, archeologists uncovered a newly discovered ancient Egyptian burial site. The burial site, discovered at the same location as the press conference, was reportedly the "cemetery of senior officials and priests of the New Kingdom."
The ancient Egyptian New Kingdom existed between the 16th and 11th century BCE. According to a statement released by the ministry, the burial site was discovered during the seventh season of excavations in the region by the Egyptian Archaeological Mission. The site presented itself with a plethora of major archeological finds.
According to the statement, some of the finds included tombs carved into rocks, canopic vessels (made with "alabaster, limestone, and faience"), ornaments, amulets, stone sarcophagi, and coffins housing mummies made of both stone and wood.
The statement also detailed the discovery of Ushabti statues of different sizes made with pottery. These statues were reportedly made for senior officials. One senior official whose preserved body was found was "Jahuti Miss," who held the title of "supervisor of the bulls of the Temple of Amun." Another senior official was "Mrs. Nani," who held the title of "Jehuti's minstrel."
The statement detailed that the wooden human-shaped sarcophagi contained well-preserved mummies. Some of these were engraved. One engraved and colored coffin belonged to "Mrs. Ta-de-Isa, daughter of Eret Haru, the high priest of Djehuti in Al-Ashmunin." Her organs were preserved in canopic vessels next to the coffin.
In addition to these findings, the statement also reported the discovery of a complete papyrus—the first-ever complete papyrus found in the Al-Ghuraifa region. The papyrus, which was reportedly in good condition, was 13-14 meters (43-49 feet) long and talked about the Book of the Dead. Popular Mechanics claimed the papyrus contained "a portion" of the Book of the Dead.
According to the British Museum, the Book of the Dead is a modern-day name given to a set of hieroglyphic or hieratic texts that contained spells to guide the dead into the afterlife. The British Museum called it a "practical guide to the next world." This is not a single book but excerpts of spells that could allegedly be chosen and commissioned by ancient citizens who could afford to do so.
These excerpts are often found in burial sites and contain different spells that could help the journey towards the afterlife. An image of the recently discovered papyrus was not released.
