Iufaa
Encyclopedia
Iufaa was an Egypt
ian priest and administer of palaces who lived around 500 BC. His mummy
was discovered in an unmolested tomb by Czech archaeologists including Ladislav Bares in February 1998. The discovery of an unmolested Egyptian tomb of this significance is a very rare occurrence. The mummy was in a state of advanced decomposition due to the proximity of the water table
, however many of the tomb's artifacts were in good condition.
archaeologists from the Czech Institute of Egyptology at Charles University in Prague
, directed by Miroslav Verner
, began investigating a second large shaft tomb at Abusir
in Egypt
. In 1996, they located a burial chamber at the bottom of the shaft, 80 feet (24.4 m) below the desert. As they excavated they found tunnels that had been previously built by looters; these tunnels ended a few meters (yards) above the burial chamber. The shaft had been built through weak, brittle clay, and the team took the precaution of building a protective roof of reinforced concrete over the burial chamber to prevent a collapse of the shaft. The tomb and its vaulted roof were created from white limestone blocks, and a white limestone sarcophagus
almost filled the chamber. The contents of the tomb were intact, making this the first unrobbed shaft tomb found in Egypt since 1941. The researchers dated the tomb to the late 26th dynasty (before 525 BC).
The sarcophagus was surrounded by 408 ushabti
s, symbolizing servants for the dead, and the tomb also contained stone vessels, wooden furniture, pottery, and papyri scrolls. Some of the pottery had been imported from the Aegean
. The walls of the tomb were covered with texts from the Book of the Dead
, and inscriptions in the tomb identified the man buried as Iufaa, a high-ranking priest and palace official.
The team of researchers opened the sarcophagus of Iufaa in February 1998. The sarcophagus contained a black-grayish basalt mummiform sarcophagus. Inside this was a wooden coffin which contained the mummified
remains of Iufaa, covered in a net of blue beads. The chamber was located almost at groundwater level, which resulted in high humidity. The humidity had caused the soft tissue and wrappings on the mummy to disintegrate, leaving only a preserved skeleton, which was "more or less complete". The papyri scrolls were also in poor condition.
. The team speculated that Iufaa "suffered from some unknown long-lasting disease" which caused the osteoporosis and led directly to his death.
.
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
ian priest and administer of palaces who lived around 500 BC. His mummy
Mummy
A mummy is a body, human or animal, whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness , very low humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs, so that the recovered body will not decay further if kept in cool and dry...
was discovered in an unmolested tomb by Czech archaeologists including Ladislav Bares in February 1998. The discovery of an unmolested Egyptian tomb of this significance is a very rare occurrence. The mummy was in a state of advanced decomposition due to the proximity of the water table
Water table
The water table is the level at which the submarine pressure is far from atmospheric pressure. It may be conveniently visualized as the 'surface' of the subsurface materials that are saturated with groundwater in a given vicinity. However, saturated conditions may extend above the water table as...
, however many of the tomb's artifacts were in good condition.
Discovery
In 1994, a team of CzechCzech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
archaeologists from the Czech Institute of Egyptology at Charles University in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, directed by Miroslav Verner
Miroslav Verner
Prof. Dr. Miroslav Verner, DrSc. is a Czech Egyptologist, who specializes in the history and archaeology of Ancient Egypt of the Old Kingdom....
, began investigating a second large shaft tomb at Abusir
Abusir
Abusir is the name given to an Egyptian archaeological locality – specifically, an extensive necropolis of the Old Kingdom period, together with later additions – in the vicinity of the modern capital Cairo...
in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. In 1996, they located a burial chamber at the bottom of the shaft, 80 feet (24.4 m) below the desert. As they excavated they found tunnels that had been previously built by looters; these tunnels ended a few meters (yards) above the burial chamber. The shaft had been built through weak, brittle clay, and the team took the precaution of building a protective roof of reinforced concrete over the burial chamber to prevent a collapse of the shaft. The tomb and its vaulted roof were created from white limestone blocks, and a white limestone sarcophagus
Sarcophagus
A sarcophagus is a funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone. The word "sarcophagus" comes from the Greek σαρξ sarx meaning "flesh", and φαγειν phagein meaning "to eat", hence sarkophagus means "flesh-eating"; from the phrase lithos sarkophagos...
almost filled the chamber. The contents of the tomb were intact, making this the first unrobbed shaft tomb found in Egypt since 1941. The researchers dated the tomb to the late 26th dynasty (before 525 BC).
The sarcophagus was surrounded by 408 ushabti
Ushabti
The ushabti was a funerary figurine used in Ancient Egypt. Ushabtis were placed in tombs among the grave goods and were intended to act as substitutes for the deceased, should he/she be called upon to do manual labor in the afterlife...
s, symbolizing servants for the dead, and the tomb also contained stone vessels, wooden furniture, pottery, and papyri scrolls. Some of the pottery had been imported from the Aegean
Aegean Islands
The Aegean Islands are the group of islands in the Aegean Sea, with mainland Greece to the west and north and Turkey to the east; the island of Crete delimits the sea to the south, those of Rhodes, Karpathos and Kasos to the southeast...
. The walls of the tomb were covered with texts from the Book of the Dead
Book of the Dead
The Book of the Dead is the modern name of an ancient Egyptian funerary text, used from the beginning of the New Kingdom to around 50 BC. The original Egyptian name for the text, transliterated rw nw prt m hrw is translated as "Book of Coming Forth by Day". Another translation would be "Book of...
, and inscriptions in the tomb identified the man buried as Iufaa, a high-ranking priest and palace official.
The team of researchers opened the sarcophagus of Iufaa in February 1998. The sarcophagus contained a black-grayish basalt mummiform sarcophagus. Inside this was a wooden coffin which contained the mummified
Mummy
A mummy is a body, human or animal, whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness , very low humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs, so that the recovered body will not decay further if kept in cool and dry...
remains of Iufaa, covered in a net of blue beads. The chamber was located almost at groundwater level, which resulted in high humidity. The humidity had caused the soft tissue and wrappings on the mummy to disintegrate, leaving only a preserved skeleton, which was "more or less complete". The papyri scrolls were also in poor condition.
Family
In 2001, the team investigated east of Iufaa's tomb and found two smaller shafts, with a sanctuary between them. Three bodies were buried in those two shafts. According to inscriptions, the other mummies were of Imakhetkherresnet, Nekawar, and Padihor. Tests showed that Imakhetkerresnet, who was between 35 and 45 at her death, and Nekawar, aged 55 to 65 at his death, were biologically related to Iufaa. It is likely that Imakhetkerresnet was Iufaa's sister, as inscriptions in both tombs identified them as having a mother named Ankhtisi, and Nekawer is probably either Iufaa's father or his brother. The other man, Padihor, aged 28–32 at death, was not biologically related to the others.Life and death
Examination of Iufaa's skeleton revealed that he was 25 - 35 years old at his death. He had very serious tooth decay and "advanced fusion of cranial sutures". His skeleton also showed severe biparietal thinning, a rare condition that today occurs in Europe in only 0.4–1.3% of people. Iufaa also had slight arthritis and suffered from severe osteoporosisOsteoporosis
Osteoporosis is a disease of bones that leads to an increased risk of fracture. In osteoporosis the bone mineral density is reduced, bone microarchitecture is deteriorating, and the amount and variety of proteins in bone is altered...
. The team speculated that Iufaa "suffered from some unknown long-lasting disease" which caused the osteoporosis and led directly to his death.
Further reading
The story of the tomb's discovery was described in the November 1998 National GeographicNational Geographic Magazine
National Geographic, formerly the National Geographic Magazine, is the official journal of the National Geographic Society. It published its first issue in 1888, just nine months after the Society itself was founded...
.