Czech archaeologists have found a tomb belonging to a previously unknown Egyptian queen who ruled 4,500 years ago.
The tomb was found in Abu Sir, a necropolis (large ancient cemetery) southwest of Cairo, an area with several pyramids dedicated to the pharaohs who ruled during the Fifth Dynasty, including Neferefre, the king whose wife the tomb belongs to.
Antiquities minister Mamdouh al-Damaty said the name of the queen Khentakawess and that for the “first time we have discovered the name of this queen who had been unknown before the discovery of her tomb.â€
There are already two previous queens known as Khentakawess, so the queen is Khentakawess III.
Her name and her rank were inscribed on the inner walls of the tomb. Archaeologists also found 30 utensils in the tomb, 24 of which were made of limestone and four of copper.
“This discovery will help us shed light on certain unknown aspects of the Fifth Dynasty, which along with the Fourth Dynasty, witnessed the construction of the first pyramids,†said Damaty.