More than 2,000 mummified ram heads from the Ptolemaic period (332 B.C. to 30 B.C.) as well as a massive structure from the Sixth Dynasty have been discovered by the American archaeological mission affiliated with New York University while working near the King Ramesses II temple in Abydos, southern Egypt.
The discovery is significant because it provides more information about the history of the Temple of King Ramesses II in the Abydos Sohag governorate and the surrounding area, according to Mostafa Waziri, secretary-general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, an organization tasked with safeguarding Egyptian heritage.
Together with the rams' heads, the expedition, according to him, also turned up a number of other mummified creatures, including ewes, dogs, wild goats, cows, deer, and mongooses.
They were located in one of the recently uncovered storage spaces inside the temple's northern section.
The mummified rams are believed to have been used as votive offerings in Abydos during the Ptolemaic era, according to the mission's leader, Sameh Iskandar.
The enormous exposed structure, which originates from the Sixth Dynasty, has a distinctive architectural style.
It is characterised by massive, five meters broad walls that are quite thick.
Iskandar claimed that studies being done on the practices and architecture of the Old Kingdom in Abydos would benefit from an examination of this structure.
The mission was also successful in revealing portions of the northern wall of the structure encircling the temple and its accoutrements, according to Mohamed Abdel Badei, head of the central department of Upper Egypt Antiquities at the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
Also, the crew discovered statue parts, papyri, ancient tree remains, clothes, and leather shoes.
The Temple of Seti I and the Temple of Ramses II are just two of the significant buildings in Abydos, one of Upper Egypt's earliest ancient cities.
