Revealed: mummy’s pet lion...
4,500-year-old cub is among the amazing finds in Egyptian tomb
A MUMMIFIED lion cub and what may be the first case of malaria are among the Egyptian marvels revealed in a Netflix show.
In what’s been called an “exciting moment for the whole world”, archaeologists made the discoveries in a 4,500-year-old tomb at Saqqara.
The tomb was found in 2018, but experts are continuing to find new treasures – many of which feature for the first time in the TV special.
The discoveries, said to be the most significant find in 50 years, were made below the tomb when diggers excavated a further five shafts after decoding information on the tomb of an ancient priest, Wahtye. Documentary makers shot the full dig, which unearthed more than 3,000 artefacts, for a feature-length film, Secrets Of The Saqqara Tomb, to be shown later this month.
The tomb is less than a mile from the Step Pyramid, one of the world’s oldest stone structures, and 20 miles from the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
James Tovell, director of the documentary, said: “This has been an exciting moment for the whole world. Shooting this film has been an experience full of thrilling surprises.
“This mission wasn’t like any other. Normally in archaeology, you labour for weeks to find anything.
Here every 30 seconds there was a new jaw-dropping discovery.
“Capturing on film the discovery of the first complete mummified lion cub in Egypt was a great moment for everyone. And then being privileged to excavate the burial shafts of the Old Kingdom priest Wahtye..”
Within the boundaries of a temple dedicated to the Egyptian cat goddess Bastet, archaeologists discovered the mummified lion. Professor Salima Ikram of the American University in Cairo said: “This opens the door to questions about the types of wild animals the Egyptians kept and how they managed them.”
There was also evidence of what may be the first recorded case of malaria. In the tomb of Wahtye, there were the bones of a family who had suffered a terrible death.
Dr Amira Shaheen, Professor of Rheumatology at Cairo University, found the bones were distended, which can indicate the family died from an epidemic such as malaria. If the theory can be proven it will be the first documented case of malaria in history, by more than 1,000 years.
Secrets Of The Saqqara Tomb, Netflix, October 28