only about three years, at a time when Egypt was entering a period of decline. In fact, the chronological evidence for this period is so complex that scholars are still debating the order of the 13th Dynasty kings. 

Sobekhotep I’s tomb was constructed from limestone brought from the Tura quarries near modern Cairo, while his burial chamber is made from red quartzite. The burial was originally topped by a pyramid. Among the further finds are a 60-ton quartzite sarcophagus, a stele bearing the name of the king, an image of Sobekhotep I enthroned, parts of the canopic jars that once contained the pharaohs internal organs, and funerary objects.

Excavation at the tomb is ongoing, though Egypt’s antiquities chief, Mohamed Ibrahim, hopes to open the site to the public, once the tomb has been restored.

This is not the only discovery of an ancient Egyptian site since the New Year. Working at Luxor, a team from Japan’s Waseda University uncovered the tomb of Khonsu-em-heb, an overseer of granaries and beer-brewers for the goddess Mut during the Ramesside Period (1298BC-1069BC). The tomb walls are painted with many beautiful scenes that illustrate religious ceremonies and show the tomb’s owner, Khonsu-em-heb, with his wife and daughter, who were both chantresses of Mut. The Japanese team uncovered the tomb while clearing the courtyard of another nearby burial site.