US EditionHomer's Iliad Papyrus Found Inside Egyptian Mummy in Archaeological First
Archaeologists found a rare Iliad fragment inside a mummy and gold-and-copper tongue plates meant to help the dead speak in the afterlife.
- On Monday, Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced the discovery of a Roman-era mummy at Oxyrhynchus containing a papyrus fragment from Book II of Homer's Iliad, marking the first known instance of a Greek literary text used in embalming.
- A Spanish-Egyptian team from the University of Barcelona led the excavation at the ancient site, now known as Al-Bahnasa, between November and December 2025, uncovering a burial complex reflecting Roman-period cultural syncretism where Egyptian traditions merged with Greek and Roman influences.
- Among recovered artifacts were terracotta and bronze figurines of Harpocrates and Cupid, alongside mummies featuring three golden tongues and one copper tongue placed in the deceased's mouths, believed to ensure communication with the gods in the afterlife.
- Ignasi-Xavier Adiego, a professor in the Department of Classical, Romance and Semitic Languages at the University of Barcelona, noted that while Greek papyri appear in funerary contexts, "this is not the first time we have found Greek papyri, bundled, sealed, and incorporated into the mummification process, but until now, their content was mainly magical."
- Experts are currently using advanced imaging and papyrological techniques to study the fragment and burial goods, as ongoing research aims to illuminate the cultural fusion and literary significance of this unique find in Minya Governorate.
29 Articles
29 Articles
Copy found in 1,600-year-old mummy
Archaeological mission in Oxyrhynchus has found Homer's 'Iliad' inside a Roman-era mummy
The Oxyrhynchus Archaeological Mission, run by the Institute of Ancient Near East Studies (IPOA) at the University of Barcelona and led by Maite Mascort and Esther Pons, has identified a papyrus containing a fragment of Homer's "Iliad" inside a Roman-era tomb dating to approximately 1,600 years ago, in the Egyptian town of Al Bahnasa, ancient Oxyrhynchus. The discovery is exceptional: it is the first time in the history of archaeology that a Gre…
The discovery is "exceptional" because it is the first time a lyrical text has been deliberately incorporated into a funerary context.
Among the bandages of a mummified individual who died in Roman times in the ancient Egyptian city of Oxirrinco , Spanish archaeologists of the University of Barcelona (UB) and the University Institute of the Near Ancient East (IPOA) have discovered a relevant papyrus with a fragment of the Canto II of the 'Ilíada' of Homer . «It is a very important novelty», values Esther Pons, conservative-Chief of the Department of Egyptian Antiquities and the…
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 42% of the sources lean Right
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
