Another illegal dig unearths archaeological discovery in Egypt's Giza
After a recent bust in Giza, archaeologists continued to be alarmed by illegal excavations and antiquities smuggling.
CAIRO — Three people were arrested for illegally digging for antiquities in a village in the Mit Rahina area, the site of Egypt’s ancient capital of Memphis, in Giza governorate, the Egyptian Ministry of Interior announced Aug. 29.
The arrest led Egyptian security forces to a hole the looters were digging in the area, the ministry added in a statement on Facebook. They found ancient tunnels leading to two limestone rooms engraved with hieroglyphics.
Egyptian archaeologist Hussein Abdel Basir, the director of the Antiquities Museum of Bibliotheca Alexandrina, told Al-Monitor, “It seems the new discovery dates to the era of the New Kingdom in Pharaonic history and the era of Ramses II (1292-1069 B.C.), and it may lead to a temple or a cemetery.”
Mohamed Youssef, director of the Saqqara Antiquities Area, told Al-Monitor that the security services handed over the site to antiquities officials.
