ancient Egypt news stories on Newser

Ancient Singer Found in Egypt Tomb

Rob Quinn — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:23:18 CST

The name Nehmes Bastet isn't a familiar one nowadays but she must have been the closest thing there was to a megastar 3,000 years ago. The tomb of the female temple singer has been discovered by archaeologists exploring a site in the Valley of the Kings that was found...

Lost Pyramids Spotted From Space

Kevin Spak — Sat, 28 May 2011 06:09:05 CDT

An American Egyptologist thinks she’s discovered 17 buried pyramids, more than 1,000 lost tombs and 3,000 ancient settlements, using satellite photos and infra-red imaging. Ancient Egyptian structures were made out of mud brick, which is significantly denser than the surrounding soil, Dr. Sarah Parcak explains in a new...

Millions of Puppy Mummies Unearthed in Egypt

Evann Gastaldo — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 06:56:25 CDT

When Egypt's ancient Dog Catacombs were fully excavated for the first time in 2010, scientists found about 8 million animal mummies. They're now examining the 2,500-year-old remains, and new research shows that most of the mummies are dogs—many just hours old when mummified. They were likely the product...

New York Met Will Return Items From King Tut's Tomb

Nick McMaster — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 17:09:21 CST

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has agreed to return 19 items taken from the tomb of King Tut, the New York Post reports. The boy king's homeland of Egypt will get back a miniature bronze dog, a bracelet in the likeness of the sphinx, and various other figurines and bits...

On Scottish Island, Mystery, Egyptian Treasure?

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 07:59:07 CDT

Famous spoon-bending paranormalist Uri Geller claims the Scottish island he bought for $46,000 contains 3,500-year-old Egyptian treasure. Locals say, “Tosh.” Geller, who famously irritated Scots in 1996 by claiming he used his telekinetic powers to cause Scotland to lose to England in a soccer match, says he was...

Robot to Explore Secret Pyramid Passageway

Kevin Spak — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 18:52:38 CDT

A high-tech robot is setting out to solve one of the Great Pyramid of Giza’s long-standing puzzles. Armed with a drill, a snaking camera, and other state-of-the-art bells and whistles, the “Djedi Rover” will scamper up the mysterious 8-inch tunnels in the Pyramid of Khufu’s so-called “Queen’s Chamber.” A similar...

Cleopatra Died From Poison

Nick McMaster — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 14:39:15 CDT

Cleopatra committed suicide using poison, not by allowing herself to be bit by an asp, says a German scholar. He deduced that the widely known story of Cleopatra killing herself by allowing an Egyptian cobra to bite her was false, despite having made it into Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra . "It...

King Tut's Penis Has Gone AWOL

Alp_Arslan — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 06:47:09 CDT

It seems that King Tut and his penis have parted ways despite spending several thousand years joined at the, er, hip. When he was discovered in 1922 the king was fully intact, Time reports. Sometime in the last almost 90 years, his kingly member was removed, some hypothesize, to maintain...

Radar Uncovers Ancient Egyptian City

Rob Quinn — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 12:42:00 CDT

Archaeologists have used satellite radar images to map a long-lost Egyptian city, reports the BBC. The team discovered a detailed outline of Avaris, the summer capital of the Hyksos invaders some 3,500 years ago. The picture reveals streets, houses, tombs, and the remains of a port area. The site...