During excavations in El-Fayum oasis located 100 kilometers from Cairo 57 tombs have been discovered. Many of them have remained in very good condition and include a painted wooden sarcophagi.
They are of the eighteenth dynasty that ruled Egypt and the oldest of these tombs is 2750 BC. In this oasis, archaeologists have found items that may shed new light on the beliefs of the ancient Egyptians.
One of the oldest tombs proved to be virtually untouched by thieves. Mummies in all newly discovered tombs are covered with canvas.
The tomb was decorated with religious texts of the famous "Book of the Dead" and the scenes featuring ancient Egyptian deities, whose purpose was to help the deceased to undergo such tests of the afterlife.
One of the best preserved texts of the Book of the Dead refers precisely to the time of the eighteenth dynasty, when this work had intervened in a new stage of development.
Then the texts were moved on to the papyrus sarcophagi. Most of the papyrus texts from the mysterious book have been discovered in the tombs at Thebes. This caused the Book of the Dead to be called The Book of Thebes.
The papyrus was richly decorated with fine paintings that depicted scenes and burial containers in the afterlife. Researchers shared a special interest in the 125th page of the book, which describes the court of Osiris, who judged the deceased.
Osiris was the king and judge in the world of the dead, he was seated on a throne with the signs of kingship - crown, scepter and scourge. Above him is depicted, the god 42.
These are probably the gods of the different Egyptian regions. In the center of the room stood a statue of God Gore and God Anubis, it was a symbol of the soul of the ancient Egyptians.
In one part of the statue is the heart, mild or burdened with sins is the other - a reality in the form of the goddess Mahath. If a person has led a righteous life, his heart was with the severity of the statuette.
If he was wrong, the heart was more severe. Excuses from the deceased would go to paradise after death, but the sinner is eaten by the monster Amato, which constitutes a lion with a crocodile head.
Book of the Dead is a religious collection in which moral certainties are intertwined with ancient magic. In this collection there are prayers, songs and spells associated with the cult of the afterlife.
This colorful mix is explained by the fact that probably the Book of the Dead was edited and enriched for several centuries. Ancient texts have traditionally remained until recent times, although their content is to remain uncertain for the new generations.
