Hundreds of burial statues suggest that ancient Egyptian pharaohs moved the bodies of different rulers and stole their tombs

Egyptian archaeologists discovered 225 shabtis (figurines intended to serve as servants of the deceased in the afterlife) that belonged to the pharaoh Shoshenq III in another pharaoh’s tomb.

These figurines were found in the northern Egyptian ruins of Tanis, in the northern chamber of the tomb of Osorkon II, near an unmarked sarcophagus. The shabti hieroglyphs allowed the team to identify to whom they belonged.

Although the tomb and sarcophagus were discovered in 1939, Shabti was recently discovered by an Egyptian and French team carrying out conservation work, Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said in a translated statement. The research team has also discovered new inscriptions and is currently deciphering and analyzing them.

you may like

Ancient Egyptians believed that shabti (also known as ushabti) ​​figurines served the deceased in the afterlife, performing various tasks such as farming and carrying the deceased’s belongings, and are often found in Egyptian tombs. Wealthy and powerful people tended to be buried with hundreds of shabtis. For example, Tutankhamun’s tomb contains more than 400 tombs.

Shoshenq III (also spelled Sheshonk III) ruled from around 825 BC to around 773 BC, when Egypt was not unified. The reign of Shoshenk III was long and difficult, there were bloody wars between the kings of the north. [himself] and the two kings of the south [his cousins] of Egypt,” Frédéric Parodeau, director of the French archaeological mission in Tanis, where the team discovered Shabti, told Live Science via email.

Despite the conflict, Shoshenku III managed to “erect many monuments in Tanis.” [especially] “There was a large gate at the entrance to the main part of the temple,” Pailodeau said. The pharaoh also built his own tomb at Tanis, where Osorkon II (reigned from c. 874 to c. 850 BC) was already buried. Osorkon II and Shoshenq III are both part of what modern Egyptologists call Egypt’s 22nd Dynasty.

The discovery of a shabti made of faience (glazed pottery) in Osorkon II’s tomb indicates that Shoshenku III was buried in an unmarked sarcophagus in Osorkon II’s tomb rather than in his own tomb. Researchers have known about this tomb for some time, but they didn’t know that Shoshenk III was buried there.

“The presence of Shabtis near the anonymous sarcophagus and the inscriptions on the connected walls clearly indicate that: [Shoshenq III] He was buried here instead of in his own grave,” Peyroudeau said.

Why Shoshenk III was buried in the tomb of his predecessor is “a question that we have to think about,” he said, noting that conflicts and disputes over Shoshenk’s successor could have been the cause.

Aidan Dodson, a professor of Egyptology at the University of Bristol, said some of the artifacts in Shoshenk III’s tomb bear the name of Shoshenk IV, who ruled the 23rd dynasty. “So the latter could have taken over Shoshenk III’s tomb and buried Shoshenk III in the nearby Osorkon II tomb,” Dodson told Live Science via email.

In ancient Egypt, it was not uncommon for tombs to be reused. However, it is unclear why Shoshenk IV reused Shoshenk III’s tomb and transferred it to Osorkon II’s tomb.

Conservation of Osorkon II’s tomb and analysis of the shabti and inscriptions are ongoing.

Mummy Quiz: Can you solve the mysteries of ancient Egypt?