
Image copyright
AFP
Fifty mummies dating back to the Ptolemaic era (305-30BC) have been found by Egyptian archaeologists, the antiquities ministry says.
The mummies, of which 12 were children, were found in four burial chambers 9m (30ft) deep in the Tuna El-Gebel site in Minya, south of the capital Cairo.
Some were wrapped in linen, others were in stone coffins or wooden sarcophagi.
Their identities were unknown, officials said, but they were likely to have held important positions.
Image copyright
Reuters
The Tuna El-Gebel site is in Minya, to the south of Cairo
Image copyright
AFP
Fragments of sarcophagi were on some of the mummies
Image copyright
AFP
Among the discoveries was this partially uncovered skull wrapped in linen
Image copyright
AFP
Children were among the mummies found
Image copyright
AFP
Some of the mummies were in stone coffins
Image copyright
AFP
Egypt’s antiquities minister said the newly discovered tombs may have been a familial grave for a well-off middle class family