An American archaeological mission has unearthed the remains of more than 2,000 mummified ram heads at a prominent temple in southern Egypt.
The mission from New York University's Institute for the Study of the Ancient World also uncovered a building dating back almost 4,000 years to the rule of ancient Egypt’s sixth dynasty (2345-2181BC).
The discoveries were made on the grounds of the Rameses II temple in the ancient city of Abydos, in the Upper Egyptian province of Sohag.
The temple is one of several across the country that are dedicated to Rameses II, whose reign from 1279BC to 1213BC is regarded by many as the height of Egypt’s power and glory.
Mostafa Waziri, secretary general of Egypt’s antiquities council, which conducts and oversees archaeological digs, said the discoveries were quite important because they “lift the veil off important details about the life and history of Rameses II’s temple at Abydos and the surrounding area.”
“The find contributes greatly to our understanding of the temple and all the life it witnessed over 2,000 years from the time of the sixth dynasty to Ptolemaic Egypt,” he said.
The building that the mission uncovered predates the reign of Ramses II by about 1,000 years to the final epoch of Egypt's Old Kingdom, and is architecturally quite different from the temple structure, with particularly thick walls about five metres in depth.
It is expected to shed some much needed light on the architectural traditions of the Old Kingdom, which is the least understood era of ancient Egypt.
The pyramids of Giza are among only a handful of relics that remain from the Old Kingdom.
The ram heads, which date back to the Ptolemaic period from 305-30BC, were found in a recently discovered storage room in the northern portion of the temple, along with the remains of other mummified animals, including ewes — which were differentiated from the rams by their lack of horns — dogs, wild goats, cows, gazelles and mongooses.
The ram heads are believed to have been laid there as votive offerings to a god, a common practice in ancient Egypt, according to Dr Sameh Iskandar, the head of the American mission. He said using rams in worship rituals was relatively unheard of during the Ptolemaic period.
He suggested the heads could have been used as a reverence to Rameses II, which would suggest the legendary pharaoh remained exalted even 1,000 years after his death.
Fragments of statues, papyruses and the remains of ancient trees were also uncovered by the mission, which will continue its excavation at the temple in coming months.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Day 1 results:
Open Men (bonus points in brackets)
New Zealand 125 (1) beat UAE 111 (3)
India 111 (4) beat Singapore 75 (0)
South Africa 66 (2) beat Sri Lanka 57 (2)
Australia 126 (4) beat Malaysia -16 (0)
Open Women
New Zealand 64 (2) beat South Africa 57 (2)
England 69 (3) beat UAE 63 (1)
Australia 124 (4) beat UAE 23 (0)
New Zealand 74 (2) beat England 55 (2)
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
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Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
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Match info
Australia 580
Pakistan 240 and 335
Result: Australia win by an innings and five runs
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Match info
Arsenal 0
Manchester City 2
Sterling (14'), Bernardo Silva (64')
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Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
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The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
