Two 5,000-year-old tombs discovered in Egypt shed light on monumental funerary architecture origins

On June 23, 2026, Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Sherif Fathy announced on Facebook the discovery of two monumental tombs at Gabal El-Teir in Minya Governorate. Dating to the Early Dynastic Period (3100–2686 BCE), the tombs predate the pyramids and reveal sophisticated construction techniques. One tomb features tapered walls—thicker at the base and thinner at the top—improving stability and reducing weight, a technique later seen in the Step Pyramid of Djoser and the smooth-faced pyramids of the 4th Dynasty. Wooden supports used during construction were also found. The second tomb, nearly identical but located further south, retains its full height. Hisham El-Leithy, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, noted similarities to the tomb of King Den (1st Dynasty) at Abydos, which introduced a monumental staircase. The site also yielded multiple individual and collective burials with bodies in crouched positions, decomposed plant mats, black-topped pottery characteristic of Naqada II and III, and degraded wooden coffins. The necropolis shows continuous use from the late Predynastic period through the Early Dynastic period, making it a key site for studying the transition to monumental architecture. A first excavation campaign in 2010 led by Mustapha al-Bakri had already uncovered burial pits, and archaeologists believe Gabal El-Teir may yield further insights into this formative era.