Nearly 30 years ago, a unique find was made at Saqqara by an Australian Centre for Egyptology team lead by Prof. Naguib Kanawati. A large cemetery of modest burials, many dated to the mid-18th Dynasty (c. 1400 BC), exposed a snapshot of the Memphite population from this time.
Relative to elite cemeteries, the burials of ordinary Egyptians have received far less attention over many decades. Owing to the clarity of the stratigraphy, the variety of burial customs, well-preserved human remains, and the tight dating of the material, the cemetery was an unparalleled opportunity to study a population cohort of nearby Memphis from the mid-18th Dynasty. Many carved and decorated coffins were well-preserved, but there were few inscriptions telling us the names and role of their occupants. The character of the material suggesting a lower stratum of society, with some unusual characteristics in the burial preparations and use of the cemetery landscape. Thanks to a grant from the White Levy Program for Archaeological Publications, the cemetery is finally being prepared for publication.