Archaeologists have uncovered a 3,000-year-old tomb near the southern Egyptian city of Luxor, Egypt’s tourism and antiquities ministry announced on Sunday, the latest in a string of discoveries officials hope will help boost tourism in the country.
The tomb, identified as belonging to a man named Paser, was found by a Dutch archaeological mission from Leiden University at the Sheikh Abd el-Qurna necropolis on Luxor’s West Bank, according to the ministry. Specialists believe it dates to the Ramesside period, spanning Egypt’s 19th and 20th dynasties, based on the artistic style of its inscriptions, a dating that adds to the find’s significance for understanding funerary architecture of the era.
Archaeologists uncovered a 3,000-year-old tomb near the southern Egyptian city of Luxor, Egypt’s tourism and antiquities ministry said on Sunday. Specialists believe the tomb dates to the Ramesside period, which spans Egypt’s 19th and 20th dynasties, based on the artistic style… pic.twitter.com/MHhs6zhrod
— CGTN Africa (@cgtnafrica) July 12, 2026
The tomb sits east of an already-known burial site and follows the traditional layout of private funerary monuments from Thebes, the capital of the New Kingdom (1570-1069 BC) era. It consists of an open courtyard leading to a chapel cut into the rock in the shape of an inverted “T,” with burial chambers below ground level.
Well-preserved architectural features were found in the courtyard, including a brick bench designed to support a funerary stele, along with a staircase flanked by sloped ramps leading to the monument’s entrance.
Inside, inscriptions bear Paser’s name and depict him worshipping deities in shrines, as well as sitting with his wife in front of an offering table, imagery considered highly valuable for studying the religious beliefs of the period. The excavation team said documentation and study work will continue in order to determine exactly who was buried in the tomb and to clarify its historical and archaeological context.
The discovery comes as Egypt continues to promote its archaeological finds to strengthen tourism, a key source of foreign currency for the country. Luxor is home to some of the world’s most significant ancient monuments and archaeological sites, and continues to draw strong interest from the international scientific community and visitors alike.
