Egyptian Archaeologists Continue Searching for Ancient Treasures in Minya

 A handout picture released by the Egyptian Ministry of
Antiquities on Sept. 20, 2020, shows one of 14 2,500-year-old
sarcophagi discovered in a burial shaft at the desert necropolis of
Saqqara, south of the capital Cairo. (Reuters Photo)
A handout picture released by the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities on Sept. 20, 2020, shows one of 14 2,500-year-old sarcophagi discovered in a burial shaft at the desert necropolis of Saqqara, south of the capital Cairo. (Reuters Photo)
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Egyptian Archaeologists Continue Searching for Ancient Treasures in Minya

 A handout picture released by the Egyptian Ministry of
Antiquities on Sept. 20, 2020, shows one of 14 2,500-year-old
sarcophagi discovered in a burial shaft at the desert necropolis of
Saqqara, south of the capital Cairo. (Reuters Photo)
A handout picture released by the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities on Sept. 20, 2020, shows one of 14 2,500-year-old sarcophagi discovered in a burial shaft at the desert necropolis of Saqqara, south of the capital Cairo. (Reuters Photo)

Egyptian archaeologists have been searching for four years to find more pharaonic treasures in al- Ghoreifa area, Minya province (Upper Egypt).

Excavations carried out in the three past years helped unearth antiquities that belong to prominent statesmen from the Late Period of ancient Egypt and the Ptolemaic dynasty.

The Egyptian mission, headed by Dr. Mostafa Waziri, secretary-general of the supreme council of antiquities, launched its fourth excavation season with the discovery of belongings of Jahouti Umm Hoteb, supervisor of Thrones in the 26th dynasty (664-525 B.C.) that ruled 2,500 years ago.

The antiquities ministry announced Monday that the mission found his sarcophagus in a well at a depth of 5 meters in Tuna el Gebel archaeological site, in al- Ghoreifa. It was found in good condition near a collection of Ushabti statues made of faience, said Waziri noting that "the excavations in the region are ongoing to unearth more treasures and secrets."

The first examinations indicate that this person was called Jahouti Umm Hoteb from the 26th dynasty; he was the supervisor of Thrones and his father was Guarda East, whose coffin was revealed by the mission in its first excavation season in 2018.

According to Jamal al-Samastawi, director-general of Middle Egypt Antiquities, "Al-Ghoreifa region is an expansion of the Tuna el Gebel archaeological site. It's an ancient cemetery in the 15th province of Upper Egypt."

"When the mission started its excavations in the area, it targeted the cemeteries of prominent statesmen of the New Kingdom and the Late Period of ancient Egypt. Over three seasons, it managed to unearth sarcophagus that belong to statesmen and priests from the Late Period of ancient Egypt and the Ptolemaic dynasty, and it is currently searching for antiquities from the New Kingdom," he told Asharq Al-Awsat.

"The mission has launched the fourth excavation season in early August and found a stone sarcophagus from the 26th dynasty. The excavations are expected to continue in the region within the next five years because it is a promising area rich in Egyptian treasures," Samastawi concluded.



Dogs Prove Invaluable in Search for Los Angeles Fire Victims

San Francisco firefighter Joshua Davis from the National Search and Rescue Response System and his dog Bosco take a break in the search of rubbles of houses destroyed by the Pacific Fire along the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California, on January 16, 2025. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP)
San Francisco firefighter Joshua Davis from the National Search and Rescue Response System and his dog Bosco take a break in the search of rubbles of houses destroyed by the Pacific Fire along the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California, on January 16, 2025. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP)
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Dogs Prove Invaluable in Search for Los Angeles Fire Victims

San Francisco firefighter Joshua Davis from the National Search and Rescue Response System and his dog Bosco take a break in the search of rubbles of houses destroyed by the Pacific Fire along the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California, on January 16, 2025. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP)
San Francisco firefighter Joshua Davis from the National Search and Rescue Response System and his dog Bosco take a break in the search of rubbles of houses destroyed by the Pacific Fire along the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California, on January 16, 2025. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP)

In the ashes of what was once a luxury home on Malibu's Pacific coast, an energetic dog runs from spot to spot, searching for victims of one of the huge wildfires that ravaged Los Angeles.

Tulla, a sandy-colored Labrador retriever, stops next to a crusted gas canister that was once perhaps part of a barbecue, and begins to bark furiously, AFP reported.

To the human eye, there is nothing there, but Tulla's powerful sense of smell says otherwise.

Moments later, handlers bring in another dog, which also homes in on the same spot, offering a strong indication that the body of one of the dozens still missing from the massive blazes may finally be found.

Marco Rodriguez, of the Los Angeles County Fire Department, says the dogs are "critical" to the search effort.

"We have thousands of homes here in this area that have burned and approximately 15 people that have been reported missing.

"We're doing our best, and the dogs are an integral part of that," he told AFP.

For thousands of firefighters doing 12- or even 24-hour shifts, the last ten days have been back-breaking; hard physical work made even more difficult for those who have seen swaths of their city burned to the ground.

But for the dogs, it is something of a game, says Joshua Davis, who has deployed with Bosco -- a black Labrador -- from his base in San Francisco.

"They're used to crawling on rubble. They enjoy it," he said.

While there's no emotional toll on the animals, there are physical dangers that require special protective boots to safeguard their paws.

"There's a lot of sharp glass and a lot of nails and debris out there that can injure the dogs," said Davis.

- 'Like every other firefighter' -

The dogs in the search and rescue unit have routines similar to the humans they work alongside, said Davis.

"Every day we go to work, he gets fed, just like every other firefighter," he said.

"He gets training on various things and we do daily exercises with him, so he knows how to run on a treadmill and he can climb ladders."

When he's not on operations, Bosco keeps his skills up with a weekly session in a dummied-up practice disaster area, where trainers hide scents for him to find.

Bosco was originally trained to be a guide dog but "failed miserably" because he had too much energy, said Davis.

But that energy makes him perfect for searching -- where the dog has learned to associate the discovery of a scent with the chance to play with his favorite toy.

In Bosco's case, that's a piece of fire hose.

"When they find the scent, they'll bark at it. I'll get to the victim and/or the source where they're barking at, and then I'll reward Bosco," said Davis.

The dogs are not infallible and there are false alarms, but on the whole they drastically reduce the amount of work that humans have to do.

"A lot of the dogs here today can cover a building that has been collapsed in five minutes or less," said Davis.

"It can take four to five firefighters 10 to 20 minutes to cover a location."

For Bosco, who has worked alongside Davis for three years searching countless properties, it's not all serious labor.

In his downtime, he has a successful Instagram feed, where followers can see what he has been up to.

This week, one of his stories showed Bosco sitting in a car, looking enthusiastically through the window with an apt caption: "Ready to work, boss!"