Archaeologists Found a Surprise Hiding in an Ancient Egyptian Tomb—A Second Body

A roughly 3,900-year-old tomb of an Egyptian priestess named Idy was discovered full of burial goods.

Located behind a stone wall within a famous tomb near the ancient city of Asyut, experts were surprised by the detail and intricacies of the decorations.

The find from Egypt's Middle Kingdom could help scholars better understand the period.

One of the most famous tombs in all of Egypt was holding a family secret: another body.

After 20 years of fieldwork in the mountains of Gebel Asyut al-Gharbi—located near the ancient Egyptian city of Asyut—archaeologists discovered the grave of Idy, a priestess of the goddess Hathor. Idy was also known as the "Lady of the House," which was a title reserved for prominent families. Her grave was found tucked behind a stone wall within the tomb of her father, Diefaihapi I, who was a regional governor of the ancient city and one of the most powerful people of his day. The find was dated to 1880 B.C.

His rock-cut tomb —36 feet high, 92 feet deep and 229 feet wide—was filled with exquisite paintings and inscriptions. What experts didn't know was that a side chamber that had been closed off by a stone wall. That chamber included a vertical shaft (about 46 feet deep) and the grave of Diefaihapi I's only daughter, Idy. Because of its hidden nature, it remained largely untouched (but not totally unscathed) by looters.

The find, which was the result of the Asyut Project led by Jochem Kahl, professor of Egyptology at Free University of Berlin, opens a new window into our understanding of the culture of the Middle Kingdom —Egypt's least-understood period.

The most striking discoveries in Idy's grave are two elaborately decorated coffins made from imported wood. One fits inside the other—the small coffin is 7.5 feet long and the larger is 8.6 feet long. Mohamed Ismail Khaled, secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, called the objects "some of the most amazing coffins ever found," according to a translated statement from Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

The team also discovered a small coffin lid, wood statues, a dagger, a pharaonic insignia, and food offerings.

The coffins feature intricate images and texts articulating the journey into the afterlife . The team of university experts said in a statement that the decorations on the inside and outside of the coffins are more detailed than those found on comparable objects from the same period, and reflect true quality of craftsmanship.

An additional chest—this one also full of inscriptions—contained canopic jars that once stored Idy's liver, spleen, lungs, and intestines. Remnants of Idy's clothes and bones—some of which were partially destroyed by looters—now offer clues into her life. For instance, the experts said that she was likely no more than 40 years old when she died, and suffered some sort of foot ailment. Looters removed part of the mummified remains and smashed the canopy vessels, but her skull and some bones were still on site.

The scholars located Idy's grave while doing cleaning at Diefaihapi I's tomb—the largest non-royal tomb in Egypt from the Middle Kingdom period, further emphasizing his importance.

Asyut—once a politically and culturally powerful city in the Middle Kingdom—doesn't have the same prominence in Egyptian archaeology as cities such as Memphis or Thebes, largely because it was buried by flood sediments. Uncovering more details about the city, its powerful inhabitants, and the culture that surrounded them could provide new insight into Egypt's often-understudied Middle Kingdom.

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