*The Egyptologist has entered the chat room* Sit down a spell, y'all. I need to talk about this viral video, and give you some context. Been working in Egypt for 20+ years+ I know the people involved in this discovery. Thread (or in this case Mummy Linen). Spoiler: NO CURSE 1/? https://twitter.com/VisuallySt/status/1313078675777216512

This discovery, just announced by @TourismandAntiq , is a spectacular one. Found near Djoser's Step Pyramid at Saqqara, there is an intact tomb from the Late Period with (to date) 59 well-preserved mummies in an 11m deep burial shaft with other material culture. 2/?

Let's talk about the "curse" aspect. This is largely orientalism and fetishization of ancient Egyptian beliefs/practices. *Yes* there were curses but NOT in the "oh my god we're all going to die or be eaten by the mummy" sense. That is called HOLLYWOOD 3/?

YES ancient Egypt did have "curses" on tombs, but they were...polite. Like "please don't disturb this place, if so you'll stub your toe" (not exactly but that close). Think of a "no trespassing" sign. Tons of info in this link: 4/? https://blog.nms.ac.uk/2017/06/23/ancient-egyptian-tomb-warnings-curses-and-ghosts/

"The weird voodoo magic practiced by the people with dark skin will leave us all dead and cursed" is called RACISM. Stop for a second and have a think. Who is telling you it is cursed? How many other religions have had those accusations. The TRUTH is far more interesting 5/?

Yes we know a LOT about ancient Egyptian burial practices. We have tens of thousands of texts (many religious), thousands of excavated tombs, millions of pieces of material culture. We've been putting it together for 200+ years to tell the great story of ancient Egypt 6/?

This is why the discovery shared by my colleagues at the Ministry of Antiquities is so fascinating. Typically these tombs have been looted in antiquity (often multiple times), so to find this many well-preserved mummies in a single burial shaft is super rare. 7/?

I have SO many questions. Are the individuals in the burial shaft all related? They look like priests coffins to me- so could they all have worked in the same temple near to Saqqara? We have a lot of Late Period burials in the area. It was sacred for 3000+ years! 8/?

The Egyptian team in charge of this excavation is world-class. Egypt has so many talented archaeologists, and I'm thrilled that they are getting a chance to shine on the world stage. The mummies and all the material culture will be conserved immediately in top labs 9/?

I'm amazed at the preservation of the mummies themselves. They look like they were wrapped yesterday. Seeing that level of preservation is also very rare. Now, did a single event cause the deaths of all 59 individuals? Probably not. Mummies added over time (likely) 10/?

This is why analysis of human remains (bioarchaeology) is painstaking. What were the ages, sex, health, stature, diseases, class of the deceased individuals? We have so much we can learn by studying their mummies- and now, non-invasively (via CAT scans). 11/?

That work will take months, maybe years. For now, we can appreciate the great discovery, which shows us just how many amazing things are left to find in Egypt. It's worth getting excited, this Egyptologist thinks the discovery is glorious. 12/?

Stop saying that archaeology can cause horrid things to happen today via curses. Archaeology has many problems- racism, sexism, colonialism, bigotry- however, cursing an already crap year ain't one. Blame the people today, not the people from thousands of years ago 13/?

If anything, the people who lived long ago have so much to teach us about how to live and survive in times of great crisis- climate change, corrupt leaders, economic downturns, and yes, even pandemics. Archaeology teaches us about our great resilience 14/?

These discoveries should be celebrated. They help advance our knowledge about amazing peoples who lived and survived so much, and made extraordinary art, music, architecture, and stories. They were all human, like us. They should give us great hope in dark times. Not fear. FIN

PS A lot of folks seem to have Very Strong Opinions about this tomb being opened. I recommend you read Renfrew and Bahn's Archaeology: Theories, Method, and Practice before you decide to cancel an entire field with a single tweet. Please show respect to the Egyptian team.

As per always, watching a 45 second video, you only get about .0000001% of the story. Everyone next to the coffin has a PhD in Egyptian archaeology and decades of experience excavating. Have you ever even been to Egypt? If you have questions, happy to recommend books.