Further mysteries buried in the desert sands of Egypt’s Valley of the Kings have been unearthed, this time in the form of brightly decorated sarcophagi and macabre mummified remains.

Once thought to hold dark curses for those who ever dared to disturb the enclosed remains of ancient Egypt’s dead royalty, the burial ground in Luxor has yielded treasures such as King Tutankhamun’s final resting place.

A new tomb has now been uncovered there and it is believed the concealed crypt contains the mummified remains of an ancient priest and his wife. Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities reported the 3,000-year-old tomb to belong to Thaw InkhetIf.

The brightly painted sarcophagi, carved by the ancient Egyptians to transport the dead to the afterlife, were found by French and local archaeologists. Ceramic jars for organs such as intestines and lungs, removed during the funeral process, were also located within the lost vault.

“We found a new Ramesside tomb with colour paintings, a depiction of the queen Ahmose-Nefertari and their son Amenhotep I,” Minister of Antiquities Khaled El-Enany said.

Footage of the moment archaeologists undertook the daunting task to peer inside the two burial cases reveals how they carried bandaged remains dating back to the Ramesside Period, when Egypt’s pharaohs were all named Ramesses, between 1550–1295 BC.

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