Egypt: discovery of a war horse burial and remains of the New Kingdom

The burial of a war horse has been unearthed at the ancient site of Tell Al-Abqain in the Beheira region of Egypt. This discovery, which could have historical value, was announced in a press release from the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities on Wednesday September 15. Dated from the New Kingdom (-1570 to -1069), this ceremonial tomb sheds light on the symbolic place given to war horses during this period. It is “an uncovering of a residential complex, grain granaries, ovens and an honorary burial for a horse, probably linked to military activities,” points out the ministry in its press release.

The excavations also led to the discovery of a fragment of a stele of King Merenptah, the thirteenth son of Ramesses II, on which we can read a text written in hieratic writing, simplified hieroglyphs used by scribes. The deciphered inscription speaks of the “power of the sovereign by comparing it to that of the god Seth and that of the god Ptah, the creator”. The mission also unveiled other limestone steles, still engraved with hieroglyphs evoking the pharaoh Merenptah, the coronation of Ramses II, and Horus the god who protected the power of the Egyptian dynasties.

These discoveries shed light “not only on the military function of the fortress, but also on the daily life of its inhabitants,” underlines the Egyptian ministry. Archaeologists also revealed a vast complex of mud brick dwellings connected to the entire fortress. According to historians, they testify to sophisticated urban planning inside the fortifications with a crossing of streets oriented east-west and north-south.

The complex also includes grain silos and cylindrical kilns for firing pottery, a sign of careful management of food and resource storage within the fortress. The Egyptian mission found rooms that served as granaries, in which there were large ceramic jars that still contained charred grains of wheat.

All these new archaeological treasures will therefore clarify “the town planning within the ancient Egyptian fortresses, while confirming the strategic importance of the site as a stronghold established on the western border of the Delta” rejoice the experts from the Ministry of Antiquities. They should also shed light on the military defense system of the western line of Egypt at the time of Ramses II.