Archaeologists uncover burial sites, statue in Egypt’s Aswan

CAIRO – Egypt’s Antiquities Ministry says archaeologists have uncovered four intact burial sites, part of a cemetery and an incomplete statue in different areas in the southern city of Aswan.

Thursday’s statement by the ministry says the new discoveries span different eras of Egypt’s ancient history.

The burial sites are for children and date back to the 18th dynasty, some 3,500 years ago. They include wooden coffins and funerary furniture.

The ministry also said archaeologists have uncovered part of a cemetery including mud-brick tombs from the First Intermediate Period.

Another mission unearthed a headless statue carved in limestone dating to the Greco-Roman era. The statue’s feet and right hand are missing but preliminary studies show it is dressed like the Greek goddess of virginity, wilderness and hunt, “Artemis.”