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Trove of embalming tools unearthed in ancient Egyptian burial pit

Hundreds of pottery vessels were discovered inside a burial pit south of the pyramids of Giza dating back to the 26th Dynasty.
Mahmoud Khaled/Getty Images

CAIRO — The Czech archeological mission of the Czech Institute of Egyptology announced on Feb. 9 the discovery of a cache of embalming materials during the excavation of burial pits dating to the 26th Dynasty (about 2600 BC), located in the western part of the Abusir necropolis (south of the Giza pyramids and north of Saqqara).

Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Mostafa Waziri said in a press statement, “This cache was found inside a pit measuring 5.3 by 5.3 meters, and more than 14 meters deep, containing unique embalming materials including 370 large pottery vessels.”

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