The French archaeological mission, headed by Professor Frederic Colin of the University of Strasbourg, has discovered three wooden coffins in El-Assasif Necropolis in al-Qarnah, located on Luxor’s West Bank.
The coffins were discovered in the outer courtyard of cemetery No. 33 at the archeological site.
Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Mostafa Waziri said in a statement on Wednesday that the three coffins dated back to the era of the 18th Dynasty, adding that they remain in good condition and bear colorful decorations and hieroglyphics.
The first coffin, designated for a woman named Ti Abo, is 195 cm long and features colorful artwork and hieroglyphic inscriptions, while the second coffin, which belongs to a woman named Rao, measures in at around 190 cm in length and is painted yellow with hieroglyphic inscriptions on a white background, Director-General of West Bank Antiquities in Luxor Fathi Yassin said.
The third coffin is about 180 cm long with white and brown paintings. It is covered with a layer of gypsum and has no writing, he added.
The French archaeological mission has been working in Egypt for two seasons, according to Yassin, and it has already succeeded in uncovering sandstone paintings featuring the names of two senior statesmen, Titi Ankh and Anini.
The mission also discovered a wooden coffin for a man named Boya dating back to the 18th Dynasty.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
