Egypt’s newly discovered tombs hold mummies, animal statues

SAQQARA, Egypt — A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals and birds.

Mostafa Waziri told reporters Saturday that the discovery at Saqqara also includes mummies of scarabs, the first ever to be found in the area.

Of the statues found, those depicting cats were the majority, reflecting the reverence ancient Egyptians showed the felines, whose God Bastet was worshipped. Other statues depicted a lion, a cow and a falcon.

Egypt has been whipping up publicity for its new historical discoveries in the hopes of reviving a devastated tourism sector still recovering from the turmoil following a 2011 uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

Archaeologists work on statues and artifacts inside a tomb, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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Archaeologists work on statues and artifacts inside a tomb, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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An archaeologists works on an artifact inside a tomb, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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An archaeologists works on a statue inside a tomb, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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Mummified cats inside a tomb, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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A worker carries an artifact out of a tomb, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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Papyrus on display in a glass case, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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Artifacts on display in a glass case, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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Cat statues on display, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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A bronze cat statue on display, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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Artifacts on display in their glass case in front of newly discovered tombs, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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The leader of the excavation holds a statue found in a newly discovered tomb, at an ancient necropolis near Egypt’s famed pyramids in Saqqara, Giza, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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