Massive 30-Ton Black Sarcophagus Discovered in Egypt With Seals Intact
A massive black sarcophagus, seemingly made of solid granite, has been recently discovered in Egypt. This rare find is even made more important by the fact that the coffin's mortar seals are still intact, indicating that its contents have not been disturbed since its burial from back in the Ptolemaic Era some 2,000 years ago.
This ancient relic was found by local authorities, who fortunately took the time to do an archaeological survey on the site of a new building on Al-Karmili Street, in the Sidi Gaber district of Alexandria before construction work began in earnest, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.
Archeological excavators found the sarcophagus around 16 feet below the ground, together with a roughly hewn bust of a man made of solid alabaster, which is believed to be a likeness of the person in the granite coffin.
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Both relics are estimated to date from the era of the Ptolemies, a royal dynasty from Greece that ruled the region from 305 to 30 B.C.E.
Dr. Mostafa Waziri, General Secretary of the Supreme Council of Antiquities explained that the sarcophagus, the largest yet discovered in Alexandria, is more than 8 feet and 8 inches in length, according to the Egypt Ministry of Antiquities' post on Facebook.
At its widest, it comes to almost 5 feet and 5 inches wide and stands more than 6 feet high from base to the top of its lid, all made of black granite.
More importantly for archaeologists, the layer of mortar securing the lid to the body of the sarcophagus was found intact, according to Ayman Ashmawy of the ministry via Science Alert. That means unlike most ancient Egyptian tombs that have been opened or otherwise damaged, the contents of this massive coffin likely remains intact as from the day it was first closed up.
