by Zahi Hawass

As we continued to excavate Tomb 26, we found the most beautiful female mummy. She wore a gilded gypsum mask, and a band of yellow and red flowers crowned by the uraeus (protective cobra) was upon her head. Her eyes were framed in black, and on her chest was a cartonnage mask covered with painted funerary scenes. Resting on her chest was her child, buried with the mother for eternity.

In another niche we found three mummies. The first was in a wooden coffin, wrapped in linen and with a cartonnage chest shield with scenes of the Book of the Dead. The second was also in a wooden box. It seemed that the gods wanted to make up for the day before when we lost the beautiful wooden panel, because here we discovered a second panel.

I though that if I did not ask Salah to do the conservation, it would end his career. So I said to him, "Come Salah. You have to know that everyone makes mistakes. Do this work again and do it well." The mummy was that of a woman who had originally been buried in a coffin, but only the foot panel remained. This panel was more beautiful, exciting than the golden mummies. It depicted the gate of the afterlife, guarded by a cobra. The deceased, shown as a gypsum statue, is dressed in a green Roman Garment with short sleeves, long skirt, with back bands. Over this she wears a red cloak. The right leg is in stride as if she is leaving the coffin and walking through the gate into eternal life. I thanked god for letting us find a second panel and giving courage back to Salah.

But, I could not think of the golden lady, and I was upset that we had taken from her the special panel that was meant to insure her resurrection and I feel strongly that these ancient people have the right to be left in peace. However, as archaeologists, it is our job to preserve these artefacts and learn from them, and protect our heritage.

The second wooden panel, The Egyptian Gazette, Egypt, January 30, 2006.

Egyptologists have discovered two 3,400-year-old statues of the lion-headed goddess Sekhmet and a rare statue depicting a king with Nubian features, an archaeological conservation director said on Monday.

War goddess Sekhmet embodied the cruel powers of the sun, and was also responsible for both curing and causing illness. The excavation team believe the statues were excavated from elsewhere, then hidden at a temple in Luxor either for later sale or to protect them from robbers.

One of the Sekhmet statues, made of granite and about 150 cm (five-feet) high, was holding a symbol representing life and a scroll of papyrus.

"It's extremely beautiful. Only the feet are missing and the base," said Hourig Sourouzian, the German-Armenian director of the international conservation team which found the statues.

The team, working under the German Archaeological Institute in Cairo, found the statues at the temple of 18th-dynasty pharaoh Amenhotep III in Luxor while working on a project to protect the temple from Nile water...

Egyptologists find war goddess and Nubian king, Reuters, UK, January 30, 2006.

cf. Archaeologists puzzle over statue find in Egypt, DPA via Monsters & Critics, UK, January 30, 2006. Includes a couple of pictures.

cf. Egyptologists find war goddess, AAP via Sydney Morning Herald, Australia, January 31, 2006.

cf. Icons of Egyptian goddess found in temple dig, The Scotsman, UK, January 31, 2006.

cf. Ancient Egyptian royal head puzzles archaeologists, SAPA-DPA via Mail & Guardian, South Africa, January 30, 2006.