Archaeologists have uncovered part of a cemetery thousands of years old near Egypt’s famed pyramids on the Giza plateau near Cairo.

The cemetery houses burial shafts and tombs of top officials.

The most significant artefact uncovered was a limestone statue of the tomb’s owner, his wife and his son dating back to the fifth dynasty (2465-2323 BC), officials said.

Ashraf Mohi, head of the archaeological site, said it was known that the cemetery had been reused extensively in the Late Period (664-332 BC), as archaeologists found painted and decorated wooden anthropoid coffins, and wooden and clay funerary masks from that period.

Egypt has touted a series of archaeological finds recently, hoping such discoveries will spur tourism, which suffered a major setback during the unrest that followed the 2011 uprising.

Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb Show all 10 1 /10 Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb Mummified mice and falcons on display at the newly discovered burial site Reuters Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb Mummified falcons are found inside the Tomb of Tutu in Sohag, Egypt Reuters Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb An archeologist holds an ancient mummified bird Reuters Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb A member of the Egyptian security forces walks through the entrance of the newly discovered tomb AFP/Getty Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb A mummified head of a falcon on display at the newly discovered burial site Reuters Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb Ancient decorative faces on display at the Tomb of Tutu Reuters Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb An Egyptian plainclothes police officer walks through the entrance of the burial site AFP/Getty Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb Preserved wall paintings inside the tomb Reuters Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb An Egyptian antiquities security guard walks through the tomb’s entrance AFP/Getty Egypt: Mummified mice found in ‘spectacular’ tomb An antiquities security guard takes a photo inside the newly discovered tomb AFP/Getty