A joint Egyptian-German mission in the Aswan necropolis has announced the discovery of an untouched tomb belonging to a high-ranking Middle Kingdom official. The occupant, identified as the 'Overseer of the Royal Elephant-Hunts,' was responsible for leading high-risk expeditions into the southern cataracts to secure ivory and exotic animals for the pharaoh's court. The burial chamber remains in pristine condition, featuring a painted limestone sarcophagus and a suite of funerary furniture.
The tomb is particularly notable for its rare ivory-inlaid reliefs, which depict the logistical challenges of transporting large fauna by river barge. These murals provide the earliest known detailed artistic evidence of how the 12th-Dynasty Egyptians captured and managed elephants. The discovery is expected to rewrite our understanding of Middle Kingdom trade relations with Nubia and the deeper African interior during the 20th century BCE.