Mummies with 'golden tongues' uncovered in Egypt

Archaeologists in Egypt found 2,000-year-old mummies in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, with gold foil amulets in the shape of tongues in their mouths, the country's Antiquities Ministry said on Tuesday night.

The poorly preserved mummies, dating from the Greek and Roman eras, were found in 16 rock-cut burial shafts at Alexandria’s Taposiris Magna temple.

The amulets represent a ritual designed to enable the dead to speak before the court of the god Osiris in the afterlife. According to ancient Egyptian beliefs, Osiris was the lord of the underworld in the afterlife.

It was customary in ancient Egypt, even under Greek and Roman rule, to bury the dead with items thought to equip and prepare them for their afterlife journey.

These included food, wine, small boat-shaped structures and jewellery.

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An image of Osiris also appeared in gilded decorations on the material encasing one mummy found in the burial shafts, while the material wrapped around another mummy’s head depicted a crown, horns and a snake, said archaeologist Kathleen Martinez of the University of Santo Domingo, who was involved in the dig.

Egyptian archaeologists made a series of stunning archaeological discoveries in recent months, mostly in Saqqara, a sprawling complex of pyramids, tombs and temples in the desert west of Cairo.

Among those discoveries were dozens of sealed wooden sarcophagi dating back about 2,500 years.

Egypt hopes that archaeological discoveries and the media attention that surround them will spur tourism, a sector devastated by years of turmoil since an uprising in 2011 and more recently by the coronavirus pandemic.

Experts believe the intense media attention the discoveries attract helps keep Egypt on the minds of potential visitors for when better times return.

Egypt was a top travel destination in 2019 and made a promising start in 2020 before the pandemic struck.

THE BIO

Age: 33

Favourite quote: “If you’re going through hell, keep going” Winston Churchill

Favourite breed of dog: All of them. I can’t possibly pick a favourite.

Favourite place in the UAE: The Stray Dogs Centre in Umm Al Quwain. It sounds predictable, but it honestly is my favourite place to spend time. Surrounded by hundreds of dogs that love you - what could possibly be better than that?

Favourite colour: All the colours that dogs come in

Key facilities

Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
Premier League-standard football pitch
400m Olympic running track
NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
600-seat auditorium
Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
Specialist robotics and science laboratories
AR and VR-enabled learning centres
Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills

Opening day UAE Premiership fixtures, Friday, September 22:

Dubai Sports City Eagles v Dubai Exiles
Dubai Hurricanes v Abu Dhabi Saracens
Jebel Ali Dragons v Abu Dhabi Harlequins

RESULT

Manchester City 1 Sheffield United 0
Man City: Jesus (9')

Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion

The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.

Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".

The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.

He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.

"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.

As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.

MATCH INFO

Barcelona 2
Suarez (10'), Messi (52')

Real Madrid 2
Ronaldo (14'), Bale (72')

ELIO

Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett

Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina

Rating: 4/5

While you're here

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Results for Stage 2

Stage 2 Yas Island to Abu Dhabi, 184 km, Road race

Overall leader: Primoz Roglic SLO (Team Jumbo - Visma)

Stage winners: 1. Fernando Gaviria COL (UAE Team Emirates) 2. Elia Viviani ITA (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) 3. Caleb Ewan AUS (Lotto - Soudal)

Normcore explained

Something of a fashion anomaly, normcore is essentially a celebration of the unremarkable. The term was first popularised by an article in New York magazine in 2014 and has been dubbed “ugly”, “bland’ and "anti-style" by fashion writers. It’s hallmarks are comfort, a lack of pretentiousness and neutrality – it is a trend for those who would rather not stand out from the crowd. For the most part, the style is unisex, favouring loose silhouettes, thrift-shop threads, baseball caps and boyish trainers. It is important to note that normcore is not synonymous with cheapness or low quality; there are high-fashion brands, including Parisian label Vetements, that specialise in this style. Embraced by fashion-forward street-style stars around the globe, it’s uptake in the UAE has been relatively slow.

Tomorrow 2021

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