Egyptian archaeologists have discovered an ancient necropolis containing dozens of beautifully preserved mummies dating back as far as 4,000 years. Excavations sponsored by Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities revealed 53 tombs cut into rock south east of the Illahun pyramids in the oasis of Fayoum.

Antiquities chief Zahi Hawass described four of the mummies, dating to the 22nd Dynasty (931-725 BC), as among the most beautiful ever discovered. Sitting in wooden coffins, the mummies are wrapped in linen and painted in the traditional Egyptian colours of gold, turquoise and terracotta.

The decoration and inscriptions on the mummy trappings are remarkably well preserved.The mission, led by Supervisor of Antiquities for Middle Egypt Dr. Abdel-Rahman El-Ayedi, also recovered charred remains from a number of other coffins, which are thought to have burned during the Coptic period.

Among the remains, the team unearthed 15 painted masks, clay pots and protection charms known as amulets.The archeologists also found a Middle Kingdom funerary chapel with offering table.

Preliminary study suggests the chapel was reused in subsequent periods, perhaps as late as the Roman era (30 BC to 337 AD). Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni, who announced the discovery, said the tombs vary in design. While some are reached through a single burial shaft, others have another shaft leading to a second, lower chamber.

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