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Ancient Egyptian Tomb of ‘Morning Secret Keeper’ Uncovered in Aswan

Tourists pose for a photo at Saqqara area near Egypt's Saqqara necropolis. (Reuters)
Tourists pose for a photo at Saqqara area near Egypt's Saqqara necropolis. (Reuters)
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Ancient Egyptian Tomb of ‘Morning Secret Keeper’ Uncovered in Aswan

Tourists pose for a photo at Saqqara area near Egypt's Saqqara necropolis. (Reuters)
Tourists pose for a photo at Saqqara area near Egypt's Saqqara necropolis. (Reuters)

The tomb of a prominent statesman who lived in the era of the Fifth Pharaonic Dynasty has finally been opened, revealing the belongings of its owner, who worked as a royal supervisor.

A Czech archaeological mission operating in Abusir, north of the Saqqara region in Giza announced that it has uncovered a huge limestone and brick tomb for a man identified as Kaer S, dating back to the eras of King Nyuserre Ini and King Neferirkare Kakai.

Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Mostafa al-Waziry said that the tomb's engravings showed that Kaer S had several titles, including the "Supervisor of the King’s affairs", "Morning Secret Keeper" and the "his master's beloved."

Adel Okasha, director of the Central Department of Antiquities of Cairo and Giza, said that the mission found a rose granite statue in the main well of the tomb, broken into two parts.

The statue represents Kaer S sitting on a small backless chair, while wearing a short beret and a wig.

The seat also featured the name and titles of its owner.

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Varieties

Scientists Unearth ‘Cute’ but Fearsome Ancient Whale 

In this photo taken on August 5, 2025 and released by Museums Victoria on August 13, 2025 shows Museums Victoria Researcher Ruairidh Duncan posing with an ear bone and partial fossil skull of Janjucetus dullardi, along with a reconstructed skull (L) and the fossil skull of Janjucetus hunderi (R) in Melbourne. (Tom Breakwell / Museums Victoria / AFP)
In this photo taken on August 5, 2025 and released by Museums Victoria on August 13, 2025 shows Museums Victoria Researcher Ruairidh Duncan posing with an ear bone and partial fossil skull of Janjucetus dullardi, along with a reconstructed skull (L) and the fossil skull of Janjucetus hunderi (R) in Melbourne. (Tom Breakwell / Museums Victoria / AFP)
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Scientists Unearth ‘Cute’ but Fearsome Ancient Whale 

In this photo taken on August 5, 2025 and released by Museums Victoria on August 13, 2025 shows Museums Victoria Researcher Ruairidh Duncan posing with an ear bone and partial fossil skull of Janjucetus dullardi, along with a reconstructed skull (L) and the fossil skull of Janjucetus hunderi (R) in Melbourne. (Tom Breakwell / Museums Victoria / AFP)
In this photo taken on August 5, 2025 and released by Museums Victoria on August 13, 2025 shows Museums Victoria Researcher Ruairidh Duncan posing with an ear bone and partial fossil skull of Janjucetus dullardi, along with a reconstructed skull (L) and the fossil skull of Janjucetus hunderi (R) in Melbourne. (Tom Breakwell / Museums Victoria / AFP)

Australian scientists have discovered a razor-toothed whale that prowled the seas 26 million years ago, saying Wednesday the species was "deceptively cute" but a fearsome predator.

Museums Victoria pieced together the species from an unusually well-preserved skull fossil found on Victoria's Surf Coast in 2019.

Scientists discovered a "fast, sharp-toothed predator" that would have been about the size of a dolphin.

"It's essentially a little whale with big eyes and a mouth full of sharp, slicing teeth," said researcher Ruairidh Duncan.

"Imagine the shark-like version of a baleen whale -- small and deceptively cute, but definitely not harmless."

The skull belonged to a group of prehistoric whales known as the mammalodontids, distant smaller relatives of today's filter-feeding whales.

It is the fourth mammalodontid species ever discovered, Museums Victoria said.

"This fossil opens a window into how ancient whales grew and changed, and how evolution shaped their bodies as they adapted to life in the sea," said paleontologist Erich Fitzgerald, who co-authored the study.

Victoria's Surf Coast lies on the Jan Juc Formation -- a geological feature dating to the Oligocene epoch between 23 and 30 million years ago.

A string of rare fossils have been unearthed along the scenic stretch of beach, a renowned site for the study of early whale evolution.

"This region was once a cradle for some of the most unusual whales in history, and we're only just beginning to uncover their stories," said Fitzgerald.

"We're entering a new phase of discovery.

"This region is rewriting the story of how whales came to rule the oceans, with some surprising plot twists."

The species was named Janjucetus dullardi, a nod to local Ross Dullard who stumbled across the skull while strolling the beach in 2019.

It was described in the peer-reviewed Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society.