Descubren nuevas tumbas de trabajadores que construyeron la gran pirámide de Keops

Foto: A view of the tomb with the Great Pyramid in the background. © (AP Photo/Supreme Council of Antiquities). Para el secretario egipcio del Consejo de Antigüedades, un veterano arqueólogo, es uno de los mayores descubrimientos en dos siglos. Los enterramientos hallados no corresponden a esclavos, sino a trabajadores acomodados del Delta, que no pagaban impuestos. La necrópolis excavada está datada en tiempos de la IV dinastía. Vía: EFE, El Cairo | 20minutos.es, 10 de enero de 2010 Un equipo de arqueólogos egipcios ha descubierto varias tumbas de trabajadores que participaron en la construcción de la gran pirámide de Keops y que arrojan nueva luz sobre la vida de estos 'obreros' de la antigüedad. Según anuncia el ministro de Cultura egipcio, Faruk Hosni, en un comunicado difundido este domingo, el origen de las tumbas halladas se remonta al gobierno del faraón Keops (2609-2584 antes de Cristo), el segundo faraón de la IV dinastía. Asimismo, algunos enterramientos pertenecen también a trabajadores que participaron en la erección de la pirámide de Kefrén, que reinó durante los años 2576 y 2551 a.C. Según el secretario general del Consejo de Antigüedades, Zahi Hawas, "esta es la primera vez que se hallan tumbas como las desenterradas en los 90, que pertenecían a la IV dinastía y a la V". Para el veterano arqueólogo, el descubrimiento es uno de los más importantes de los últimos dos siglos, al arrojar más luz sobre el primer periodo de la IV dinastía. Zawas apunta que con este descubrimiento se despejan las dudas sobre el origen de estos trabajadores, que según el arqueólogo no eran esclavos. "Estas tumbas fueron construidas junto a la pirámide del rey, lo que indica que de ningún modo esta gente era esclava. Si hubieran sido esclavos no hubieran podido construir sus tumbas junto a la de su rey",asegura Hawas.

Foto: Dr. Hawass in one of the tomb shafts. © (AP Photo/Supreme Council of Antiquities). La nota explica que la más importante es la tumba de un trabajador identificado como Idu, que tiene forma rectangular y una cubierta exterior de adobe recubierta de yeso. Asimismo, tiene varios nichos recubiertos con caliza blanca. El supervisor de las excavaciones, Adel Okasha, explica que la parte superior de la tumba de Idu tiene forma abovedada, lo que simbolizaría la eterna colina en la que comenzó la creación, de acuerdo con la tradición religiosa de Menfis, capital de Egipto. Para Okasha, esta forma es una de las evidencias que permiten datar las tumbas en la primera época de la IV dinastía, ya que también se encuentra en los enterramientos hallados junto a la pirámide de Snefru, el primer gobernante de la IV dinastía, en Dahshur, al sur de las pirámides de Guiza. Según el comunicado, estas tumbas fueron descubiertas en un extremo de una necrópolis de un kilómetros de longitud descubierta en 1990. Hawas sostiene que, basándose en los descubrimientos que se han hecho en esta necrópolis, los trabajadores pertenecían a familias acomodadas del Delta del Nilo y del Alto Egipto que enviaban a las obras 21 búfalos y 23 ovejas diariamente para alimentar a los trabajadores, que rotaban cada tres meses. Según el arqueólogo, dichas familias no pagaban impuestos sino que participaban en uno de los proyectos nacionales del país. ... New Discovery in Workmens tombs By © Zohra Bamoussa. A collection of tombs that belong to workers who built Khufu’s pyramid has been discovered in the area of the workmen’s tombs on the Giza plateau, Culture Minister Farouk Hosni announced. Hosni added that the tombs were found by an Egyptian excavation team led by Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA). Dr. Hawass said that the tombs are dated to the 4th Dynasty and belong to workmen who built the pyramids of Khufu (2609-25840 BC) and Khafre (2576-2551 BC). “This is the first time to uncover tombs like the ones that were found during the 1990’s, which belong to the late 4th and 5th Dynasties (2649-2374 BC),” asserted Hawass, pointing out that this group of tombs can be considered one of the most important discoveries of the 20th and the 21st centuries, as they shed more light on the early period of the 4th Dynasty, as well as contradicting rumors that the pyramids were constructed through slavery. “These tombs were built beside the king’s pyramid, which indicates that these people were not by any means slaves. If they were slaves, they would not have been able to build their tombs beside their king’s,” concluded Hawass.

Foto: Pottery and bones found in one of the tomb shafts. © (AP Photo/Supreme Council of Antiquities). The most important tomb is the one belonging to Idu. It is rectangular in structure with a mud brick outside casing covered with plaster. It has several burial shafts cased with white limestone, as well as niches in front of each shaft. Adel Okasha, supervisor of the excavation, said that the upper part of Idu’s tomb had a vaulted shape, symbolizing the eternal hill from which the human creation began, according to the Memphis religious tradition. This shape, said Okasha, is strong evidence that this tomb dates to the early 4th Dynasty. This shape is also similar to those of tombs located beside Snefru’s pyramid in Dahshur. On the western side of Idu’s tomb, the mission uncovered another collection of workmen’s tombs as well as the remains of coffins, while on its southern side another large tomb has been found. It is a rectangular shaped tomb built of mud brick with several burial shafts, each one containing a bent skeleton along with sherds of clay. The area in which the new tombs were found is the beginning of the one kilometer long necropolis, and Dr. Hawass pointed out how this discovery highlights the religious life of ancient Egyptian workers who built the pyramids. Evidence uncovered also revealed that the families in the Delta and Upper Egypt sent 21 buffalo and 23 sheep to the plateau every day to feed the workers. Hawass pointed out that the families who sent these were not paying their taxes to the Egyptian government, but rather they were sharing in one of Egypt’s national projects. The number of workers did not exceeded 10,000, said Hawass, contradictory to Herodotus, who recorded that the number of workers reached 100,000. Hawass said that this discovery demonstrates that the workers came from top families of the Delta and Upper Egypt. Workers rotated every three months, and those who were buried there died during the construction process.

Foto: Bones and pottery found in another tomb shaft. © (AP Photo/Supreme Council of Antiquities). Dr. Hawass asserted that according to science and archaeology we cannot fix a time for the construction of the pyramid. Limiting it to a specific season is wrong as it was based on incorrect information that the construction process was only executed during the three months of the flood. The transportation of the granite, basalt and limestone blocks used in the construction was only conducted during the flood season, but the construction work was not limited to this season, and lasted for the whole year. The blocks used in the construction of the body of the pyramid were brought from the Giza plateau itself. The discovery of the cemetery of the pyramid builders occurred in 1990 when a horse was stumbled on top of a mud brick structure ten meters far of the necropolis located to the south of the wall. The necropolis is composed of two levels connected by a ramp. It is composed of different shapes and styles of tombs, some are pyramid shaped while others are vaulted and some contain false doors. ... VIDEO: Tombs of the Pyramid Builders In August 1990, an American tourist was riding a horse, when it stumbled over a mud brick wall. Investigation led to one of the most important recent discoveries in Egypt: the tombs of the pyramid builders. This video is an extra scene from the upcoming Nova special on the “Riddles of the Sphinx,” and talks about my discovery of these important tombs that tell us about the Egyptians who built the pyramids. Recently we found what we believe to be some of the earliest of the tombs of the pyramid builders. ... Dr Mark Lehner Searches for Information on the Pyramid Builders (http://heritage-key.com) Dr Mark Lehner, has given an exclusive video interview to Heritage Key in which he explains what he and his team are doing in their latest excavation - Dr Lehner wants to know the answer to questions that rarely gets asked - where and how did the workers who built the pyramids live?