Archaeologists have found 13 wooden coffins in the ancient Egyptian necropolis of Saqqara.
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00:00 Archaeologists have discovered more than 13 ancient Egyptian coffins piled one on top of the other
00:05 within a burial well at the desert necropolis of Saqqara, according to the Egyptian Ministry
00:11 of Tourism and Antiquities. These coffins are thought to be 2,500 years old, and while it's
00:16 still not clear who was buried in these coffins, archaeologists hope to find out soon once they
00:21 start opening them up. The well that held the coffins was very deep, about 40 feet or 11 meters,
00:27 and actually archaeologists think that more will be found soon. This newfound discovery of 13 coffins
00:34 is the largest since October 2019 at Saqqara, when 30 wooden coffins were discovered in one cache,
00:40 according to the ministry. However, these remains are just a minuscule amount of the dead bodies,
00:46 both human and animal, that are buried at Saqqara, which is a giant necropolis and pyramid complex
00:52 at Memphis, which was ancient Egypt's first capital. Saqqara is located about 20 miles or
00:58 30 kilometers south of Cairo, and it's also the resting place of several kings who ruled during
01:04 the first and second dynasties, including Djoser, who was the first king of the third dynasty
01:09 and had the famous step pyramid at Saqqara built when he died. Back when these people were alive
01:15 2,500 years ago, it was a tumultuous time for ancient Egypt. Persia had taken over, meaning
01:22 they were ruled by foreigners. However, some of the foreigners actually invested in Egypt.
01:28 For instance, one of the rulers, known as the Persian king Darius I, actually ordered the
01:34 construction of temples and public works, and he readied the legal system and strengthened the
01:38 economy in Egypt. Archaeologists hope to learn more about this time period by studying the
01:44 remains of the people who died then.
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