A joint archaeological mission by Italian and Egyptian experts has unearthed 33 family tombs dating back to the Hellenistic and Roman periods near the Aga Khan Mausoleum in Aswan, Egypt.
Tombs carved into the rock were used for the burial of people from different social strata from the 6th century BC to the 3rd century AD. Inside, archaeologists discovered mummies of men, women, and children, as well as painted wooden coffins, funerary masks, pottery, terracotta figurines, and altar tables.
The researchers paid special attention to tomb No. 38, which is distinguished by its high level of preservation and architectural design. It is accessed by a nine-step brick-lined staircase, and the main chamber contains a limestone sarcophagus about two meters high. The lid is in the form of an idealized human face, and prayers to local deities are engraved on the sides.
According to the inscriptions in the tomb, its owner was the high-ranking official Ka-Mesiu, who was buried with his family members. This indicates the use of the complex as a family mausoleum. Materials from the tomb help researchers reconstruct religious rituals and understand how burials were organized during this period.
The discovery also sheds light on the social stratification of ancient Aswan. According to archaeologists, the elite were buried in the upper part of the hill, while the middle class burials were located on its slopes. Some tombs were reused in later periods, indicating the long-term significance of the necropolis for different generations.