Dozens of ancient coffins discovered in Egypt

Archeologist say mummies are more than 2,600 years old

GIZA, Egypt (KYMA, KECY) - Egyptian archeologists announce an exciting discovery South of Cairo.

They've found a vast necropolis filled with dozens of sealed sarcophagi with mummies still inside.

"We are announcing today that there are 59 coffins out of the shafts plus an unknown number of coffins still in situ in the three shafts. So today is not the end of the discovery. I consider that it's the beginning of a big discovery." said Khaled El-Enany, Egypt's Minister of Tourism and Antiquity

The burial vault was near the famed Step Pyramid on the Saqqara Plateau. The Plateau holds at least 11 pyramids, hundreds of tombs, and a number of historic sites. They date as far back as 2920 BC.

Tomb raiders have plundered many of the area's tombs, but this one remained untouched.

"All these coffins belong to the late period, most probably around the 26th dynasty in the 7th/6th century BC. That means they have been sealed for more than two-thousand-600 years." said El-Enany.

Egypt is publicizing the new discovery in hopes of reviving its tourism industry in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.