EGYPT: Tombs belonging to pharaoh's dentists uncovered in Cairo

Record ID: 828470

  • Title: EGYPT: Tombs belonging to pharaoh's dentists uncovered in Cairo
  • Date: 22nd October 2006
  • Summary: (W3) CAIRO, EGYPT (OCTOBER 18, 2006) (REUTERS) PAN OUT FROM STEP PYRAMID TO DENTIST TOMB WIDE SHOT OF TOMB COMPLEX
  • Embargoed: 6th November 2006 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Egypt
  • Country: Egypt
  • Topics: History
  • Reuters ID: LVAB1FDPTV5DPR380S4JS8BFUL0B
  • Story Text: After resting undisturbed for 4,200 years under the protection of an ancient curse, the first ever cemetery reserved for the pharaohs' dentists has been discovered in the shadow of the Saqqara pyramid in Egypt.
    The find is thought to be an archaeological first as no cemetery exclusively devoted to physicians had previously been found in Egypt.
    The cemetery is believed to date from the 5th dynasty of the old kingdom, some 4,200 years ago, and may be the oldest tomb for dentists ever found in Egypt.
    According to the head of the Supreme Council of Egyptian Antiquities, Dr. Zahi Hawass, whose team made the discovery, the three dentists buried in the tomb are thought to have served ancient Egyptian kings somewhere between the fourth and sixth dynasties, such as the Pharaohs Teti I and Teti II
    "The cemetery is dated to Dynasty four, about 4,200 years ago, and this could be the oldest tombs of a dentist ever found in Egypt," said Dr. Hawass.
    The proximity of the cemetery to other royal tombs is an indication of the high stature given to physicians in ancient Egypt, Dr. Hawass said, and also an indication that the dentists treated the Pharaohs and their families inside the nearby royal palaces.
    The tomb of the chief dentist, Ea Meri, is also protected from trespassers by a curse inscribed into the entrance of the dentists' tomb.
    "An Egyptian expedition under me discovered for the first time a cemetery for dentists," said Dr. Hawass. "Three dentists were buried in this cemetery. One was called Ea Meri, and this was the chief of the dentists, he was the head of the dentists, and the other was called Ka-Em Misu, and this guy was a dentist, and other was Sikhem-Ka. The tomb of Ea Meri is a beautiful tomb because at the entrance to the tomb is found for the first time a curse inscription. The man put an inscription to say that anyone who will enter my tomb he will be eaten by a crocodile and a snake. And he wanted to protect this tomb, the beautiful daily life scenes has been shown in this cemetery. The cemetery date back to dynasty five, 4,200 years ago," Dr. Hawass added.
    In addition to the containing the tomb of the chief dentist, the cemetery also contains the tombs of two other dentists, Ka-Em Misu, and Sikhem-Ka, none of whom were related to each other.
    Dr. Hawass pointed out the dangers that awaited those who trespass.
    "Showing the crocodile on the side and above him is the snake, and this is, always the curse inscription they showed it at the entrance to the tomb because anyone who will enter from here he will be eaten by the crocodile and he will be eaten by the snake," said Dr. Hawass.
    Fortunately, the curse appears to have worn off, and none of Hawass's team was devoured by either a crocodile or a snake during the course of their excavations.
    Because the dentists buried in the tomb are not thought to have been related it is believed that their burial in the same complex indicates that some kind of dentists guild existed at the time.
    The dentists' tombs contain intricate wall carvings depicting daily life in the old kingdom and some of the finest inscriptions found yet dating from that time.
    Dr. Hawass hopes that the unique discovery can shed light on the position of dentists in ancient Egypt.
    "This discovery can that dentists were important for the king, they worked on the teeth of the king and the family of the king in his palace and they were buried beside here," he said. "And the second important thing that we can learn is that dentists and physicians were not really an upper class in ancient Egypt, because their tombs were built from mud, brick and limestone," added Hawass.
    The tomb complex, which was discovered by accident according to Dr. Hawass, lies in the shadow of the step pyramid of the Pharaoh Djoser, which is the oldest pyramid in Egypt, dating from nearly 5000 years ago.
    While the tombs unveiled today are not believed to be related to the step pyramid, their discovery in spite of the dentists' curse, could well illuminate an important part of life in the earliest days of civilization in ancient Egypt.
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