Uncover the Secrets of the Tombs of Muzzawaka at Dakhla Oasis

Far off into the Sahara is Dakhla Oasis, one of Egypt’s seven oases in the Western Desert and home to a plethora of under documented ancient ruins that presents it as a place of constant discovery. These ancient sites are rarely visited by tourists, and one of them – namely the forgotten Tombs of Muzzawaka – gets to flaunt an odd feature shared by almost no other site in Egypt: discarded mummies. 

The Muzzawaka tombs were first discovered in 1972 and were considered the star attraction of the Muzzawaka necropolis with its 300 tombs (with more being discovered over the years). 

Several open rock-cut tombs are literally littered with mummified corpses which in any other country would be displayed in a museum. However, with Egypt’s over-abundance of mummies, the Muzzawaka corpses are categorized as of little to no archeological significance. The mummies date back to the Roman period and are clustered in family tombs belonging to non-wealthy residents – given away by the lack of decorations.

You’d think that these ancient humans may be less notable than the mummies of pharaohs and ministers, but then again, you’re still reading about them centuries after they’ve passed. The Muzzawaka tombs are one of the few spaces where non-scientists are presented with the chance to get up close and personal with mummies in their original resting place.