4,300 Year-Old Pyramid Discovered In Egypt

Earlier this week, archeologists discovered a 4,300 year-old pyramid that they believe was the tomb of Queen Sesheshet, the mother of Pharaoh Teti, the founder of ancient Egypt's sixth dynasty. The pyramid was found in Saqqara, an ancient burial ground, close to Egypt's capital Cairo .

The discovery is the third known connection to Pharaoh Teti. Two other pyramids belonging to the Pharaoh's two wives, have been found earlier - one a hundred years ago, the other in 1994.

This find was a surprise as archeologists had thought the area had been pretty well excavated.

Though only the foundations of the pyramid remain today, archeologists estimate that when built, the pyramid, at 46 feet was nearly five stories tall and 72 feet wide at the square base.

While it took the scientists a long time to find this tomb, it seems that tomb robbers have discovered and looted it, entering via a passageway to the queen's funeral chamber. The archeologists therefore do not expect to find the Queen's mummy in the burial chamber, when they get there a few weeks from now. However, they are hoping to find inscriptions that will provide them with more information about the Queen.

Archeologists are very excited with the find as Queen Sesheshet, was one of the few powerful women rulers during the ancient times, and while they had found ancient papyrus texts referring to her, until now, they had been unable to find her tomb.

Sources: BBCNews, National Geographic, VOA news