ARCHAEOLOGISTS have found a 2,000-year-old tomb and are amazed by its contents. Who is inside the 2000-year-old tomb? Is the mummy Alexander the Great?
A 2,000 tomb has been uncovered in Alexandria, Egypt (Image: EPA)
A black granite sarcophagus that measures 9.5ft long has been uncovered deep within the ground of an Egyptian city.
The ancient mummy dates back to the Ptolemaic period between 305BC and 30BC.
It was dug up and delicately removed from the ground more than two weeks ago.
Archaeologists have carefully pried open the ancient artefact, and have been amazed by what they’ve seen.
Who is inside the 2000-year-old tomb?
The mummified bodies of three skeletons and foul smelling sewage water were found when archaeologists opened the coffin.
This sarcophagus is the largest ever to be uncovered in the city of Alexandria, where ancient ruins are rarely found.
“We found the bones of three people, in what looks like a family burial… Unfortunately the mummies inside were not in the best condition and only the bones remain,” said Mostafa Waziri, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
Construction workers first made the discovery, before archaeologists took over the excavations.
They have also unearthed the alabaster head of a man, which could possibly be the tomb’s occupant.
A lack of inscription inside the tomb means that telling who is inside is left down to science.
The tomb was found 16 feet underground, and luckily, no ancient curse was unleashed after opening the artifact.
Mr Waziri declared: “We’ve opened it and, thank God, the world has not fallen into darkness.
“I was the first to put my whole head inside the sarcophagus… and here I stand before you … I am fine.”
Could the mummy be Alexander the Great?
Due to the size of the sarcophagus, speculation of whom it holds has been rife.
Many believed the eerie ancient coffin could hold the bones of Alexander the Great.
However, the discovery of this mysterious sarcophagus could reinstate interest in the hunt for the final resting place of Alexander the Great.
Alabaster bust of a man found in the 2,000 year old tomb (Image: EPA)
The ancient Greek King’s burial place has been so far lost to history.
He was a member of the Argead dynasty and died at the age of just 32 in 323 BC.
It would have been a find-of-the-century level discovery if tests prove the lost Greek lies in the sarcophagus.
However, experts believe that the skeletons belonged to three soldiers.
Sources:express.co.uk
