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Egypt lost city

3,000 Year Old ‘Lost City’ Discovered in Egypt


The long lost Egyptian city of Aten has reportedly been unearthed in a ground-breaking discovery that could rewrite the history books. According to a new report in The Washington Post, archaeologists attempting to find King Tutankhamen’s mortuary temple stumbled across the remnants of a much larger and thought-to-be-lost relic of days gone by.

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Egypt lost city 1

Image: Bloomberg

According to Egyptology professor and member of the mission Betsy Bryan, the city, known as the “The Rise of Aten,” dates to the reign of Amenhotep III which began around 1,390 BC, and was later used by successors including Tutankhamun. Naturally, Amenhotep named the city, which is believed to have been the largest administrative and industrial hub in the world for the time, after himself.

“The discovery of this lost city is the second most important archaeological discovery since the tomb of Tutankhamun,” Bryan said in a statement following the discovery.

The excavation has reportedly been six months in the making, kicking off in September with the goal of unearthing King Tutankhamen’s abode. But like most great discoveries, things quickly escalated. “Within weeks, to the team’s great surprise, formations of mud bricks began to appear in all directions,” the statement said. “What they unearthed was the site of a large city in a good condition of preservation, with almost complete walls, and with rooms filled with tools of daily life.”

For history buffs, the discovery of Aten provides a snapshot into a time period that has gone unrecognised for thousands of years. Archaeologists have been attempting to piece together a timeline of rule through hieroglyphic inscriptions found on daily items such as runs, scarabs and pottery. Amazingly, because the city has gone untouched for so long, these priceless artifacts are in incredibly well-preserved condition.

The announcement of the discovery comes less than a week after Egypt staged a grandiose parade to move 22 royal mummies to a new Cairo museum. The over-the-top production was viewed as a homage to the great rulers of the past, was carefully choreographed to bolster interest in Egypt’s important tourism industry. A new long-lost city is certain to get the ball rolling.

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