Archaeologists Discovered a Funerary Complex Left Untouched for Nearly 4,000 Years

 Archaeologists Discovered a Funerary Complex Left Untouched for Nearly 4,000 Years

Popular Mechanics  March 4 2026

Finds from the site include necklaces, amulets, and cursive hieroglyphs inscribed on pots.

Along the west bank of the Nile near Aswan, Egypt, a series of rock-cut tombs have been holding centuries of history and artifacts. A renewed excavation at the Oubbet el-Hawa site has uncovered some of it, digging up a funerary complex with roots coinciding with the construction of the great pyramids of the Old Kingdom from 2686 to 2181 B.C.E.

While scouring the funerary shafts and chambers of the rocky outcropping, archaeologists discovered that the location was much more than an Old Kingdom burial plot, with plenty of evidence of reuse. First built during the age of the great pyramids, the site was then repurposed during the First Intermediate Period and the Middle Kingdom, showing the prominence Oubbet el-Hawa held for centuries. 

 Archaeologists Unearthed a 1,000-Year-Old Tomb Filled With Gold

 Remains of one person, likely a high status individual, lay at the center of the tomb, surrounded by the gold and other human remains.

Archaeologists have finally dug into a tomb first identified in Panama in 2009, and their excavation efforts have quite literally struck gold.

As crews excavated the archaeological site El Caño in the Coclé province of Panama, work inside the tomb dubbed Tomb 3 is expanding the known funerary record of the country’s central provinces between the eighth and 11^th centuries C.E. The team discovered that the complex structure was full of golden grave goods, including bracelets, ear ornaments, and pectoral plates. There were also plenty of elaborately decorated ceramics, some with iconography highlighting local artisan traditions. 

 The find, as revealed in a translated statement from the Panama Ministry of Culture, is now being called one of the most important pre-Hispanic cemeteries in the region. “We are ready to tell the world much more about our cultural wealth,” Maria Eugenia Herrera, Panama’s minister of culture, said in a statement.

POSITIVITY - A song by Alun Buffry, words by Alun, vocals and Music by AI

Extract from Myhat in Egypt Through the Eyes of a God

 Myhat in Egypt Through the Eyes of a God 

Ana pointed to a worker who was doing something amidst a field of green crop. He was wearing just a loin cloth. It was very hot, much hotter than Ed had expected for quite early in the day. Ed felt overdressed in the djellaba over his jeans and tee-shirt, with me still clinging onto his head.

When they reached the worker, Ana spoke to him in Arabic.

The man shrugged and said something back. He was staring straight at me; I knew that I fascinated him and he wanted me on his head – not that Ed knew, but I would not have minded for a while, just to see through the man's eyes.

“He's saying hello, I think,” Ana said, turning to Ed.

“It's not Arabic though, it's more like Berber, the language they still speak in the desert in Morocco. I didn't know they spoke it here. I'll try and ask him where we are.”

Ana tried a few words and pointed around the place where they stood.”

The man pointed across the river and said “Oo – are – set.”

Ana looked at him and pointed also across the river. She said “Luxor?”

The man shrugged and said “Happy”.

Ana said said something that was not English and smiled. “Temple of Hatshepsut?” she asked.

Another shrug.

“Temple Karnak? Ramasseum?”

No response to that, just a big smile on his face and a small bow.

“Oo – are - set! Oo – are - set!” he said pointing and laughing.

“I don't know those words,” said Ana, “maybe it's somebody's name, like his boss? Or just an oo - are”

“Oh well,” said Ed, “From what I can guess, if we go round the hill we should find the road back to the village or at least see something familiar. It's kind of weird here. It doesn't look at all right. I just can't fathom where we are.”

They bowed slightly to the smiling man and set out to walk around the end of the hill that covered the tombs and tunnels they had passed through. From there, Ed thought, they should be able to see Luxor and the Temple.

In fact they did see a town spread out on the other side of the Nile, quite a large place but it was certainly not Luxor.

There were no big buildings or hotels, no Temple, just what looked like a palace. There were no tourist cruise boats moored there, no feluccas, just small craft, going back and forth across the river. There was no ferry.

Ed was quite stressed out by now, I could tell, and I too was getting concerned that they were lost. Yet this side was not exactly a huge area, just fields between the hills and the river.

It just looked like somewhere completely different, as if they had exited the tunnels many miles up or down stream, somewhere they had never been before. They found no road, saw no trace of human habitation except for the few men working in the fields.

“The phone's still not working,” said Ana, “I think we better go back and find that boulder and get back to Ayman and find out what's going on. Maybe he knows where we are. Maybe he has been here himself.”

They walked back round the hill and scrambled up to find the chalk marks.

As Ed was about to climb through the gap above the boulder with the chalk mark, Ana asked “Is this yours?”

She passed Ed a small lighter which had a picture of the pyramids on. Ed flicked it, but it didn't work. He put it in his pocket anyway. It was a very hot day and I knew that Ed was keen to get back into the cool tunnels.

They quickly climbed back into the tunnel and followed the chalk marks, much faster than it had taken them coming this way, not stopping so much. There were several other tunnels leading off at points, so I sensed Ed was glad he'd marked the way. He had not noticed them all on the way through.

Just about half an hour later, they exited through to the garden in the dilapidated house.

“I'll phone Ayman,” said Ed.

As he looked at his own mobile phone, he said “Well I get a signal but my phone says it's only eight-thirty”

Ana checked her own phone. “Weird, mine too. But it must have been two o'clock at least when we turned back, the sun was really high and I'm sure we were away for longer than that. We've definitely been gone for more than a few hours. It took over an hour to get through to the other end and we were there for at least four hours.”

Ed phoned Ayman and said that they were back but that they had a problem so would like to meet him again later.

Ed and Ana left the garden, covering once again the entrance to the tunnels behind them.

They walked back to the hotel; sure enough it was only late morning.

They had black tea with milk and a late breakfast of corn flakes with milk, eggs and bread and sweet cakes and orange juice. They were both very hungry.

Ed took out some maps of the area and began scrutinising them.

“I can't work this out at all,” he said, “whichever way we went and wherever we came out on the hillside, we ought to have been able to see Luxor and the Temples and we should have found the road. And I don't know why there weren't any boats. There aren't any towns that size for miles”

He decided to walk the short distance from the hotel towards the river. Ana said that she wanted to take a rest so he went alone.

Ed saw everything was as as it should be. There was the river, the ferry and, on the East Bank, he could see the cruise boats and Luxor town along with its Temple and tall lush hotels. Plenty of people about too, as usual, carrying on their daily business, taxies and trucks, donkeys pulling carts.

Puzzled still, he went back to the hotel.

Ana said that Ayman had phoned her to say that Youssef would pick them up at six o'clock.

“I've been thinking about what that guy said. You know when he pointed and said Oo – are - set?

“Well there's nowhere here called that and I asked the manager at reception if he knew anyone called that or any place and he said no. But he said that centuries ago the old place was called Waset even before it was called Thebes.”

“I looked it up and he's right but that was four thousand years ago, in the time of Pharaohs Senusret the First and Amenemhat the Second.”

Ah, another Hat, I thought, maybe an ancestor. Remember dear reader, that I had also heard of a woman Pharaoh called Hatshepsut, who also had a temple built here.

Ana continued: “The books say they were Twelfth dynasty, after Mentuhotep the Second, Eleventh dynasty. They'd had a war with the North which lasted for about fifty years and then many of the Nomes were united. The town was called Waset. Waset was a Goddess.”

“Maybe what we saw was some sort of touristy replica or something, but it must be a huge site. We''ll ask Ayman about it this evening,” said Ed.

“Pretty weird. I'm going to ask Ayman if we can go back; we'll cross the river and find out what's going on,” said Ed.

 

Positivity, a song by Alun Buffry with vocals and music by AI

Song (AI) The River of Life by Alun Buffry

 AI produced version of a song from my poem "The River of Life"  

I would welcome any human being that can produce a better version of these words to music

River of Life!

Whether we laugh, or whether we cry,

the river of life goes rushing by,

down the hills and mountain sides,

into valleys, long and wide,

towards the ocean that is its goal,

it's journey travelled by our soul.

When I was but a little boy,

the river rippled and dashed with joy,

and as I grew and longed to learn,

the river for the ocean yearned.

As young man travelled round the world,

the river twisted, turned and twirled,

eager to find it's resting place,

eager to travel in time and space.

And as the seeking man grew older,

the river found the bigger boulders,

but on it travelled without care,

it knew it's destiny's not there.

The rushing water's now quite slow,

the river old has nothing to show,

it's happiness is calm and deep,

as old man takes his final sleep.

The ocean that is never ending,

is to the sky it's waters lending,

to rain again on mountain top,

to make sure life's rivers never stop.

The rivers message lies in this

Ocean of Mercy, Peace and Bliss

The River Aru in Kashmir, where I wrote these words in 1981

More Poems

My My - a song by Prem Rawat

Gratitude - a song by Prem Rawat

 

Origins of Egypt's Great Pyramid upended as clues point to lost civilization from 20,000 years ago

Origins of Egypt's Great Pyramid upended as clues point to lost civilization from 20,000 years ago.

 by Stacy Liberatore, MSN, February 25, 2026

 For more than a century, Egyptologists have dated the Great Pyramid to around 2580 BC, about 4,600 years ago.

A controversial new study now claims the monument could be tens of thousands of years older.

Italian engineer Alberto Donini from the University of Bologna said erosion patterns at the pyramid's base suggest it may have been built between 20,000 and 40,000 years ago, far earlier than the conventional timeline.

Donini's Relative Erosion Method (REM) estimated the pyramid's age by comparing how much erosion occurred on stones exposed since construction with nearby stones whose exposure time is known.

By measuring the difference in wear, he calculated how long the older stones have been exposed, producing dates that far exceed traditional estimates.

The study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, examined twelve points around the pyramid's base.  Some measurements suggested tens of thousands of years of erosion, with the average pointing to roughly 25,000 years.

Donini also proposed that Pharaoh Khufu may have renovated the pyramid rather than built it, potentially revising assumptions about its original authorship.

If the dates proposed by Donini are accurate, the Great Pyramid could predate not only the reign of Khufu but also the rise of any known advanced civilizations, raising fundamental questions about human history and architectural knowledge in the distant past. 

The Great Pyramid of Giza, the largest of the three pyramids on the Giza Plateau, was built by Pharaoh Khufu during Egypt's Fourth Dynasty. 

It sits alongside the Pyramid of Khafre, the Pyramid of Menkaure and the Great Sphinx, all shrouded in mystery due to their precise alignment, unusual construction methods, and debated purpose. 

 

The new study measured erosion at twelve points around the base of the Great Pyramid of Khufu. 

At each point, Donini compared limestone surfaces that had been exposed since the pyramid's construction with adjacent surfaces that were only exposed after the outer casing blocks were removed about 675 years ago. 

He measured the volume of eroded material on both surfaces and calculated a ratio, which allowed him to estimate how long the older stones had been exposed.

Each point produced a different age, ranging from about 5,700 to over 54,000 years.

However, the average suggested a 68 percent probability that the pyramid was built between roughly 11,000 and 39,000 years ago, with an overall average of about 24,900 years.

Donini emphasized that REM does not provide a precise construction date, but rather an estimate of the structure's age range with an associated probability. 

Although the resulting date ranges are wide, the conclusions indicate a low probability for the official archaeological dating of 2,560 BC,' he said.

The study challenges long-held assumptions about ancient Egypt and has ignited debate among archaeologists, historians and engineers. 

Some scholars have pointed out that evidence for the pyramid’s construction has always relied heavily on textual sources, like the later inscriptions found inside the monument, which may not reflect the original building period.

Donini’s approach differs from traditional archaeological dating, which often relies on historical records, carbon dating of organic material, or stylistic comparisons with other monuments. 

By focusing on the physical erosion of the stone itself, REM offers a method that is independent of historical accounts, providing an entirely new perspective on the pyramid’s age.

The study also acknowledges that many factors, including climate variation, acid rain, foot traffic, and partial burial under sand, introduce uncertainty into the calculations. Despite these variables, the consistent results across twelve measurement points strengthen the claim that the pyramid’s base has endured tens of thousands of years of exposure.

Whether the findings will overturn centuries of Egyptological consensus remains to be seen, but the research has already reopened one of archaeology’s most enduring mysteries.

 

Egypt discovers 4,300-year-old body wrapped in pure gold inside limestone coffin

Egypt discovers 4,300-year-old body wrapped in pure gold inside limestone coffin 

Business Insider Africa,  Olamilekan Okebiorun, 22 February 2026

 

 Archaeologists in Egypt have uncovered a 4,300-year-old mummy wrapped in gold inside a sealed limestone coffin at the Saqqara necropolis, south of Cairo, in a discovery that highlights the enduring link between gold, power and belief in one of Africa’s most historically influential civilisations.

•  Archaeologists discovered a 4,300-year-old gold-wrapped mummy in a sealed limestone coffin at Saqqara, Egypt.

• The mummy belonged to Heka-shepes and dates back to the Old Kingdom’s Fifth and Sixth Dynasties.
• Gold symbolized divinity and eternal life in ancient Egypt, and its use in burial rites indicated elite status.
• The find coincides with the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum, enhancing Egypt’s appeal to tourists.

 According to Earth.com, the mummy was found at the bottom of a 15-metre shaft inside a rectangular limestone sarcophagus that had remained sealed with ancient mortar for more than four millennia.

Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass, working with the Supreme Council of Antiquities, identified the deceased as Heka-shepes based on inscriptions within the burial chamber.

The tomb dates back to Egypt’s Fifth and Sixth Dynasties during the Old Kingdom period.

Gold as a symbol of divinity and status

Earth.com reported that the body was wrapped in sheets of gold leaf that had remained undisturbed since burial. In ancient Egypt, gold symbolised the flesh of the gods and eternal life.

Artisans hammered the metal into thin sheets and pressed it onto the wrappings using resin, a process reserved for a small elite.

The use of gold in burial rites signalled both immense wealth and spiritual aspiration. Most Old Kingdom tombs were looted over time, making intact discoveries of this scale rare.

For modern Egypt, gold remains economically strategic. The country is among Africa’s notable gold producers, with mining exports contributing to foreign exchange earnings.

The ancient association with gold continues to shape Egypt’s global brand as a cradle of wealth, craftsmanship and civilisation.

The mummy belonged to Heka-shepes and dates back to the Old Kingdom’s Fifth and Sixth Dynasties.

Cultural capital and tourism

The discovery comes as Egypt expands its tourism offering with the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum, a landmark project near the Giza Pyramids that is now welcoming visitors.

The museum, one of the largest archaeological museums in the world, houses more than 100,000 artefacts and is expected to significantly boost visitor numbers.

ourism remains a key foreign currency earner for Africa’s second-largest economy, and high-profile discoveries often fuel renewed global interest in Egypt’s heritage.

Saqqara, located near the Step Pyramid of Djoser, has produced a series of major finds in recent years. Each announcement reinforces Egypt’s soft power and its status as a global centre of ancient civilisation.

Officials say conservation teams are now working to stabilise the mummy and associated artefacts. Preserving fragile materials such as wood, textiles and pigment requires controlled conditions and detailed scanning before items are moved or displayed.

For Egypt, the gold-wrapped mummy is more than an archaeological milestone.

It is a reminder that gold has long been intertwined with the country’s wealth, belief systems and global standing, from the pharaohs of the Old Kingdom to modern export markets across Africa and beyond. 

 

 

 

My journey to India 1972, a visualisation