Egypt unveils 3,000-year-old ‘lost’ city near Luxor

Archaeologists Saturday showed off their finds at what they say is the “largest” ancient city ever found in Egypt, dating to a golden age of the pharaohs 3,000 years ago.

At the site near Luxor, home of the legendary Valley of the Kings, workers carefully carried ancient pots and showed human and animal remains dug up from the earth as members of the media toured around curved brick walls and rudimentary streets.

“This is a large city that was lost. It was connected with the god Aton and Amenhotep III,” famed Egyptologist Zahi Hawass enthusiastically told reporters Saturday.

“We found three major districts: one for administration, one for workers to sleep in and another for industry,” he said.

Spaces include workshops for drying meat, making clothes and sandals, and crafting amulets and small statues.

Mostafa Waziri, head of the country’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the site was not limited to buildings.

“We can see… economic activity, workshops and ovens,” he said.

Hawass had announced earlier this week the discovery of a “lost golden city”, and the archaeological team said the find was “the largest” ancient city ever uncovered in Egypt.

“We found one portion of the city only,” Hawass told AFP Saturday. “The city extends to the west and the north.”…

By AFP