Rare Cache of 225 Ushabti Found in Tanis Tomb
A cache of 225 small green funerary figurines (ushabti) was uncovered inside a royal tomb at Tanis in Egypt's Nile Delta on October 9, in a discovery that archaeologists say resolves a long-standing question about the tomb's occupant.
Discovery and Excavation
Frédéric Payraudeau, director of the French Tanis excavation mission, told reporters the find is unprecedented at Tanis since 1946 and — apart from Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922 — is virtually unknown elsewhere because many ancient burials were looted. The team had already cleared three corners of a narrow chamber containing a large granite sarcophagus when they noticed several figurines grouped together.
"When we saw three or four figurines together, we knew right away it was going to be amazing," Payraudeau recalled. The team extended the workday, set up lights and worked through the night; it took 10 days to extract all 225 ushabti carefully.
Arrangement, Composition and Significance
The figurines were positioned "in a star shape around the sides of a trapezoidal pit and in horizontal rows at the bottom," Payraudeau said. Ushabti were intended as ritual servants to accompany the deceased into the afterlife. Remarkably, more than half of the figures are female — an uncommon feature that may offer fresh insight into funerary practices of the period.
Who Was Buried Here?
Royal insignia on the ushabti identify Pharaoh Shoshenq III, who reigned from 830 to 791 BC. This identification helps solve a long-standing archaeological mystery, because another large sarcophagus and the walls of a different tomb at Tanis also bear Shoshenq III's name.
Payraudeau noted the puzzle: why would a pharaoh's name appear on multiple monuments and sarcophagi? He observed that building a tomb was a gamble for ancient rulers, since political upheaval or a successor's decisions could change burial plans. Shoshenq III ruled during a turbulent period marked by internal conflict between Upper and Lower Egypt — a context that may explain tomb reuse, relocation of burial goods, or later protective reburials after looting.
Outstanding Questions and Next Steps
Archaeologists remain uncertain whether Shoshenq III was originally interred in another tomb (possibly associated with Osorkon II) and later moved, or whether funerary material was transferred to protect it from theft. Payraudeau also said it is difficult to imagine a 3.5-by-1.5-meter granite sarcophagus being reinstalled in the cramped chamber, leaving room for further investigation.
The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities praised the find as "a decisive step in solving a long-standing archaeological mystery." Dr. Mohamed Ismail Khaled, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the discovery "confirms that the Tanis site still holds many secrets that have not yet been discovered." Mohamed Abdel-Badii, head of the Egyptian Archaeological Sector, added that the mission uncovered previously unknown patterns in the chamber that shed light on burial methods of the period.
After conservation and study, the figurines will be displayed in an Egyptian museum. The announcement comes weeks after the official opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum, one of the largest museums in the world dedicated to a single civilization.
Why This Matters
Beyond the immediate excitement of intact artifacts, the find provides new data on burial arrangement, gender representation among ritual figures, and the political and funerary history of the Third Intermediate Period. Continued study of the ushabti, their inscriptions and the tomb context should refine our understanding of how and why tombs were reused or altered during times of instability.
