Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt is famous for its pyramids, pharaohs and mummies, but archaeologists are still learning about this sophisticated society. The 5,000-year-old kingdom left behind a written record and countless artifacts, allowing archaeologists to learn about its culture, including its elaborate ideas on the afterlife and gods and goddesses, as well as its taxes and trading and farming practices. Here's the latest news on Egyptian archaeology and what it can tell us about the people who lived there.

Related Topics: Archaeology, Dead Sea Scrolls, Mummies

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The tomb contains well preserved wall paintings, including this image showing fish and other goods being presented to Hetpet, who is shown seated at the far left.

4,300-Year-Old Tomb of Royal Female Official Found in Egypt

By Owen Jarus

The tomb and several tomb paintings were discovered in a cemetery on the Giza Plateau.

Mummy brothers

4,000-Year-Old Mummies Are Half Brothers, DNA Analysis Shows

By Laura Geggel

The finding settles a 111-year-old mystery that began when excavators exhumed the two mummies in Deir Rifeh.

Researchers who analyzed the density of particles called muons found an empty space (shown in this illustration) more than 98 feet (30 meters) long right above the grand gallery of the Great Pyramid — a passageway that leads to what may be the chamber of

What's Hiding Inside Egypt's Great Pyramid? Tiny Robots May Find Out

By Owen Jarus

Possibilities range from a new burial chamber to a sealed-off construction passage.

Imaging Egyptian Coffin

Cutting-Edge Camera Deciphers Messages Written on Mummy Wrappings

By Laura Geggel

About 2,000 years ago, ancient Egyptians made homemade wrappings for mummies from "recycled" scraps of paper that people had first used to scribble down shopping lists and personal notes.

Child Burials at Gebel el Silsila

4 Child Graves Discovered at Ancient Egyptian Site

By Stephanie Pappas

The youngest child was just a toddler when he or she died.

Egyptian portrait analysis

Mummified Egyptian Woman's Portrait Mapped in Incredible Detail

By Laura Geggel

More than 1,800 years ago, an artist in ancient Egypt painted the portrait of a large-eyed woman wearing a red tunic — a painting that ended up resting on the woman's dead, mummified body.

Egyptian mummy

Linen-Wrapped Mummy Found Inside 3,500-Year-Old Tomb in Luxor

By Laura Geggel

Archaeologists have excavated two ancient tombs in Luxor, Egypt, that haven't seen the light of day in about 3,500 years, according to the country's antiquities ministry.

A page from the Coptic translation of the First Apocalypse of James from the Coptic Museum in Cairo, Egypt.

Jesus' Secret Revelations? Copy of Forbidden Teachings Found in Egypt

By Brandon Specktor

A forbidden Gnostic text that claims to be Jesus' secret teachings to his brother James have been unearthed in an ancient trash heap in Egypt.

Divers have discovered the remains of three Roman-era shipwrecks, along with a votive bark likely dedicated to the god Osiris, off the coast of Alexandria, Egypt.

3 Roman-Era Shipwrecks Found Off Egyptian Coast

By Megan Gannon

The shipwreck divers also found a crystal carving of a head from the Roman-era.

Egypt gymnasium

Ancient Athletes: Greek-Style Gymnasium Unearthed in Egypt

By Laura Geggel

illustration of a void found within the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Secret Chamber? Cosmic Rays Reveal Possible Void Inside Great Pyramid

By Stephanie Pappas

But does this empty space mean anything?

The CT scans were merged with 3D scans of the child mummy's surface to create a single 3D model.

Tech Shows 2,000-Year-Old Mummy of a Little Girl in Amazing Detail

By Owen Jarus

New 3D scanning tech will reveal details about the mummified body of a 5-year-old girl who died 2,000 years ago in Egypt.

A total solar eclipse seen on Aug. 21, 2017, from Wyoming.

Bible May Record Oldest Known Solar Eclipse

By Stephanie Pappas

A possible reference to a solar eclipse in the Bible could help pinpoint the reign of Ramesses the Great.

Coptic tombstones

Ancient Coptic Tombstone Found Along Egypt's Avenue of Sphinxes

By Laura Geggel

Archaeologists unearthed an ancient Coptic tombstone during a dig Sunday (Oct. 22), according to Egypt’s antiquities ministry.

Queen Ankhnespepy II statue

Statue of Egyptian Queen Unearthed Near Giza Pyramids

By Laura Geggel

buried egyptian deities

Photos: Ancient Egyptian Statues of Deities Found in Pit

By Laura Geggel

More than 2,000 years ago, ancient Egyptian priests buried a sacred statue of Ptah, the god of craftsmen and sculptors.

ancient tomb of goldsmith and wife discovered in Luxor, Egypt.

Ancient Goldsmith's Tomb Filled with Mummies Discovered in Luxor

By Owen Jarus

A 3,500-year-old tomb built for a goldsmith named Amenemhat and his wife Amenhotep has been discovered at the ancient cemetery of Dra' Abu el-Naga in Luxor.

Multiple coffins were found inside the tomb, including this one.

In Photos: Ancient Tomb Full of Mummies Discovered in Luxor

By Owen Jarus

Photos reveal the ancient tomb of a goldsmith and his wife discovered in Luxor in Egypt.

This sculpture of an Egyptian pharaoh was found in the ancient city of Hazor in Israel. It was constructed around 4,300 years ago, at a time when pyramids were being built in Egypt, and was smashed apart when Hazor was destroyed around 3,300 years ago.

4,300-Year-Old Statue Head Depicts Mystery Pharaoh

By Owen Jarus

A sculpture of an unknown Egyptian pharaoh's head, found at the ancient city of Hazor in Israel, dates back around 4,300 years, to a time when Egyptians were building pyramids.

A child walks between looting pits dug at the ancient Egyptian site of Abusir el-Malek.

Looters of Egyptian Artifacts Try to Recruit Egyptologists for Help

By Owen Jarus

Looters of ancient Egyptian antiquities are requesting help from Egyptologists and others on social media, one Live Science reporter discovered.