Exploring the Valley of the Mummies

Egypt is distinguished by having one of the best historical civilizations ever, which is the Pharaonic civilization, so most tourists who come to Egypt aim primarily to visit its historical tourist attractions. One of the most important historical landmarks in Egypt is the Valley of the Mummies, which was recently discovered less than 30 years ago, in which a very large number of important mummies in the history of Egypt were found, so we will talk in detail in this article about the Valley of the Mummies and mention all the details about it.

Origins of the Mummy Valley

The Valley of the Mummies is a huge place in an area in Egypt called the Bahariya Oasis in the Western Desert. The mummies buried in this valley date back to the Greco-Roman era, as most of them were in good condition when they were discovered. This was in the late last century by one of the very famous Egyptian archaeologists, Dr. Zahi Hawass.

These mummies belong to Roman families and individuals who lived in the Bahariya Oasis area, and these tombs were a group of chambers containing mummies in gold-plated coffins. They are considered the best mummies found in Egypt from the Roman era, as they are approximately 2,000 years old, and have not been greatly affected by time.

Hidden Treasures Revealed

These mummies were found alongside a large collection of treasures, jewelry, and pieces of gold coins. Also, a group of rings and bracelets were found, which were used to identify the social status of each mummy in this valley. There was also a group of daily tools that the owners of these mummies used during the Roman period in Egypt.

In addition to all these treasures that were buried with these mummies, the masks that were on the face were also gold or made of other materials plated with gold. These masks represented the features of each person in a professional manner, indicating that most of these mummies belonged to people of high social status at that time.

Also, a group of Roman coins were found, which were the main reason for identifying and knowing the history of these mummies, and it was determined that they date back to the third century BC. Ultraviolet examinations were conducted to determine their ages, and other details, and it was discovered that most of them died from plague or cholera.

Discovering the Mummies

Discovering the Mummies

The story of the discovery of the Valley of the Mummies is very strange by one of the guards at the Temple of Alexander the Great, which is about 6 km from the valley. This guard was returning home and noticed that his donkey was running scared from a certain place. This guard went to find out what happened, and found that the donkey had fallen into a hole in the ground, and when he looked into this hole, he found golden faces looking at him smiling.

Specialists in Egypt began excavating this area and found five tombs containing about 105 golden mummies. All of these mummies were mummified and had a group of scenes of ancient Egyptian deities. The upper body of these mummies was also engraved starting from the chest and connected to the gilded mask made of gypsum plated with gold. These details varied from one person to another according to the standard of living and social status.

After conducting a series of researches by archaeologists in Egypt, it was determined that these mummies date back to the aristocratic class that lived in the Egyptian oases in the Roman era. However, no writings or texts were found indicating the names of these mummies, but golden treasures and some other personal belongings were found.

Cultural Significance

Cultural Significance

the Valley of the Mummies in the Bahariya Oasis in Egypt has a very great cultural significance that can be summarized as follows:

• This valley reflects the popular culture in ancient Egypt, which was related to death and the afterlife, which made them greatly interested in mummification.
• It indicates the existence of great cultural diversity in this period, especially since some of the mummies that were found reflected the extent of wealth and luxury of their owners, unlike some other mummies.
• This area in the Bahariya Oasis has become one of the most important tourist destinations in Egypt, and tourists from all over the world flock to visit it specifically.
• Although this era was the Roman era in Egypt, these people were greatly influenced by the traditional funeral rituals in Egypt with some simple Roman touches.
• This discovery is considered one of the most important discoveries in the modern era, which greatly enhanced the prosperity of tourism in Egypt.
• Through it, much was discovered about the different mummification methods that were relied upon during this period.

The Valley of the Mummies in the Bahariya Oasis is considered one of the most important archaeological discoveries in the modern era, which amazed the world when it was discovered. The reason why this discovery was widely resonated at that time is the number of mummies and treasures that were found in this area, in which large amounts of gold were discovered. This area has now become one of the most important and wonderful tourist attractions in Egypt that cannot be missed when in Egypt.