Cairo - A grave believed to belong to courtiers or servants of King Aha, the first king of ancient Egypt's first dynasty, was uncovered by an American excavation mission in Abydos in Upper Egypt, a culture ministry statement said on Sunday.
The enclosure found in Abydos contains "a very well-preserved chapel surrounded with six subsidiary graves belonging to courtiers servants intended to serve the king in the afterlife".
The enclosure lies about 1,5km away from the tomb of King Aha, discovered in 1900 by British archaeologist Flinders Petrie.
Judging from skeletons found in the grave, the archaeologists concluded that the servants were most likely sacrificed to be buried near King Aha.
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Expedition co-director David O'Conner said the discovery was significant because the reign of Aha is associated with major changes in royal architecture.
"The form and plan of Aha's enclosure as well as the chapel within is set as the model followed by all subsequent royal enclosures at Abydos," O'Conner said.
The archaeologists also uncovered another enclosure of an unknown first dynasty king that included three graves.
"Unusually, these did not contain human burials but were packed with bodies of ten donkeys which are intended to meet the king's transportation needs in the afterlife," said Zahi Hawwas of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
The culture ministry statement said the discoveries were initially detected by a "sub-surface magnetic survey". - Sapa-DPA
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