Photos: 4,400 Year-old Tomb Complex in Egypt

Friend of the Pharaoh

A tomb complex dating back 4,400 years belonging to "Kaires," a priest who claimed to be "sole friend" to the pharaoh, has been discovered near a pyramid in Egypt. — (Image credit: Photo courtesy Czech Institute of Egyptology)

A tomb complex dating back 4,400 years belonging to a priest named Kaires, who claimed to be the "sole friend" to the pharaoh, has been discovered near a pyramid in Egypt. A statue showing Kaires was found in his tomb. [Read more about the Kaires tomb discovery]

The Complex

4,400 year-old tomb complex — (Image credit: Photo courtesy Czech Institute of Egyptology)

Kaires tomb complex can be seen from the nearby pyramid of Neferirkare. The tomb complex was built in an area reserved for royal family and high state dignitaries. It's possible that Neferirkare was the pharaoh who Kaires claimed to be "sole friend" to.

Special materials

Kaires tomb complex includes a chapel, pictured here. The chapel was paved with basalt stones, a material normally reserved exclusively for pharaohs.

A grand entrance

A close-up view showing the entrance to the tomb chapel at the Kaires tomb complex. Much of the tomb chapel is now destroyed.

Laid to rest

The interior of Kaires tomb showing the sarcophagus where he was buried. The tomb was plundered in ancient times and no mummy has been found so far.

Broken peices

Within the tomb, archaeologists found the remains of a statue of Kaires. The lower half of the statue, which had to be pieced back together, is seen here.

Naming the names

Hieroglyphs found on the statue show the titles that Kaires held. Among the titles: "keeper of the secret of the Morning House" the "morning house" being the place where pharaoh got dressed and ate breakfast.

Kaires

A frontal view of the statue showing what it looked like when its pieces were put back together.

In search of history

Excavations at the tomb complex continue and more finds may be discovered.

Owen Jarus is a regular contributor to Live Science who writes about archaeology and humans' past. He has also written for The Independent (UK), The Canadian Press (CP) and The Associated Press (AP), among others. Owen has a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Toronto and a journalism degree from Ryerson University.