Sarcophagus of Ramses the Great Discovered Over 3,000 Years After the Pharaoh's Death

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Archaeologists have discovered a long-lost sarcophagus that belongs to the most powerful pharaoh of ancient Egypt.

They re-examined a granite burial beneath the floor of a religious center in the east-central area of Egypt and found that it belonged to Ramses the Great.

Sarcophagus of Ramses the Great

Ramesses II, who has also been referred to as Ramses the Great, reigned from B.C. 1279 to B.C. 1213. This period saw the stemming of massive statues and buildings in what was known to be the last peak of the imperial power of Egypt.

Originally, a high priest's remains were discovered in the sarcophagus. However, the newer discovery suggested that the pharaoh's mummy and coffin were removed in order for the burial to be reused.

Frédéric Payraudeau, an Egyptologist, researcher, and teacher from Sorbonne University, discovered this just this month after examining a granite fragment that was found in Abydos in 2009.

Payraudeau found that the five-feet-long and three-inch-thick stone had an overlooked engraving of the inscription "of Ramses II himself." The Egyptologist shared that upon reading these findings, he was filled with doubt. He asked his American colleague to re-examine it, considering the case's complexity.

The Egyptologist's colleagues thought that the cartouche was preceded by the word "king," which designated the Menkheperre high priest who ruled over south Egypt in B.C. 1000.

However, the cartridge was actually from an earlier engraving. Therefore, it designated the earlier owner.

The sarcophagus also apparently featured engravings of the Book of Doors, which is an initiatory story that was meant for kings during Ramses' time.

Payraudeau explained that the royal cartouche has Ramses II's coronation name that is specific to him. However, this was apparently masked by the stone's condition and by another engraving that was added during the burial's reuse.

For a long time, archaeologists have known that Ramses II was kept in a golden coffin that was stolen within Antiquity. He was also moved to a sarcophagus of alabaster that was destroyed later on.

A thousand pieces were placed within the huge granite sarcophagus that Menkheperre stole 200 years later for the burial's reuse.

Payraudeau explained that the discovery shows that during this time, the Valley of the Kinds was focused not just on looting but on funerary object reuse.

ALSO READ: Visualizing Ramesses II: Researchers Digitally Disect Remains To Know How the Greatest Pharaoh Could Have Looked Like

Ramses the Great

Ramses the Great was considered ancient Egypt's most celebrated and powerful ruler. His successors refer to him as the "Great Ancestor." Ramses II was the 3rd ruler of Egypt's 19th Dynasty.

The ancient pharaoh led various military expeditions and expanded the Empire of Egypt to go from Syria to Nubia.

In 2022, scientists from England and Egypt recreated the ancient ruler's face with a 3D model of his skull. They then reversed his aging by nearly a century to show the prehistoric ruler's face when he was at the peak of his power.

Such a result served as the pharaoh's first scientific facial reconstruction based on his skull's CT scan.