A necropolis spanning from the Predynastic Period to the Greco-Roman Period, alongside a settlement from the Second Intermediate Period, has been uncovered at Kom El Khelgan in Dakahlia Governorate, offering new insights into life in the eastern Nile Delta over thousands of years.

According to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the discoveries shed light on changing settlement patterns, burial customs and daily life across multiple historical periods, with excavations continuing at the site.

The earliest discoveries date to the Lower Egyptian Culture, specifically the Buto I and Buto II phases in the first half of the fourth millennium BC. Archaeologists uncovered oval pit graves containing burials accompanied by handmade pottery vessels and seashells, with the density of the graves indicating a sizeable population during the period.

The mission also uncovered a settlement and cemetery dating from the Second Intermediate Period through the New Kingdom, including mudbrick buildings, grain silos, ovens, hearths and distinctive sinusoidal walls. Pottery, stone tools and large quantities of fish, bird and animal bones provide evidence of the inhabitants' diet and daily life.

Evidence of Hyksos-era occupation was confirmed through tombs dating to the 15th and 17th Dynasties and the beginning of the New Kingdom. Grave goods included jewellery, amulets, scarabs, bronze tools and weapons, pottery vessels and distinctive Tell el-Yahudiya ware. Archaeologists also uncovered an early 18th Dynasty mudbrick tomb and, from the Ptolemaic Period, simple burial pits including a child interred inside two reused amphorae.

Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Sherif Fathy said the discoveries deepen understanding of the Delta's history while highlighting the scientific expertise of Egyptian archaeological teams.