Mummies Were Buried on Top of One Another when Space Ran Out
Archaeologists found at least 20 mummies and a dog arranged with spatial care, suggesting reused tombs could preserve ritual order for centuries.
- A new study in Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology reveals that Theban Tomb 209 near Luxor was reused over 300 years, containing 16 human mummies and one dog arranged with deliberate spatial logic.
- Early burials in the 25th Dynasty featured high-status individuals in coffins with costly items, but by the Ptolemaic period, space constraints forced attendants to stack mummies vertically without coffins, according to University of La Laguna Egyptologist Miguel Ángel Molinero Polo.
- Study first author Jared Carballo-Pérez observed that placing a mummified dog atop two humans might signify a close relationship or reflect a 'psychopomp' role, a spiritual guide to the afterlife.
- Contrary to previous theories of chaotic burial, the detailed analysis reveals a 'funerary memory' where new depositions adapted to existing bodies; Carballo-Pérez added that deposits previously considered 'disordered' can now be reinterpreted.
- The site, part of the Theban Necropolis, demonstrates an 'accumulative biography' where reuse progressively transformed the space's organization and meaning, offering insights into how ancient Egyptians honored the past while recontextualizing burial sites.
16 Articles
16 Articles
The discovery in the Tebana tomb TT 209, in front of the current city of Luxor, has shaken the international archaeological community. A Hispanic-Egyptian team has documented an unusual funeral scene: a mummified dog placed directly on the remains of a man and a woman, in a chamber where 16 bodies accumulated for more than seven centuries of continuous reuse. The discovery, dated around 2,500 years, belongs to a period of intense funeral activit…
The Necropolis of Thebes, in front of Luxor, contains more than 400 tombs. In a study published in Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology, Spanish researchers examined in more detail a part of one of these tombs to reconstruct how this funerary space was used and reused.
Ancient Egyptian tomb shows how burial trends changed over hundreds of years
The Theban Necropolis, opposite Luxor, consists of more than 400 tombs. In a new Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology study, researchers in Spain examined part of one of these tombs—chamber three in tomb TT 209—to reconstruct how this burial space was used and reused between its construction during the Twenty-fifth Dynasty (754–656 BCE) and the Ptolemaic period (305–30 BCE), when it was abandoned.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 57% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
