Archeologists have discovered a number of ancient burial chambers containing some 40 mummies in the desert province of Minya, south of Cairo.

The chambers, which were cut out of rock, are thought to have belonged to a middle-class family.

Officials said the family probably lived during the Ptolemaic, early Roman or Byzantine period.

An archeologist works next to a coffin inside a tomb discovered in the desert province of Minya, south of Cairo, Egypt, today

The mummies were wrapped in linen and thought to have belonged to a middle-class family

A partially-uncovered skull wrapped in linen was also found in the burial chamber

The mummies are in good condition and at least 10 are of children.

Some were decorated with 'demotic handwriting' - a form of ancient Egyptian script used by ordinary people.

Archeologists also unearthed pottery, papyri and colorful mummy cases.

Egypt has made a series of archaeological finds recently, and it has been heavily promoting them to revive its tourism industry.

Tourism is a staple of its economy that was decimated by the chaos that followed its 2011 uprising.

At least 10 of the mummies discovered today are thought to be children

It is thought the family probably lived during the Ptolemaic, early Roman or Byzantine period