Rare wooden statue of ancient scribe found in Egypt

0 Comments | AFP, February, 2007

CAIRO (AFP) — Archaeologists have found a rare double wooden statue of an ancient Egyptian scribe and his wife near a pyramid in Saqqara, south of Cairo, the country's supreme council of antiquities said.

The double statue of Ha-Kay and his wife Spri-Ankh was found in a "mud brick tomb dating back to the late fifth dynasty and early sixth dynasty", or around the middle of the 24th century BC, said a statement.

"It is a unique statue," said antiquities chief Zahi Hawass. "In general double-seated statues are made of limestone and are rarely carved in wood."

The writer of sacred records and his wife were buried in a necropolis near the pyramid built for Teti, the first pharaoh of the sixth dynasty, the statement said.

The site was discovered by a team...