A joint A US and Egyptian archaeological team say they
have found the largest funerary complex yet dating from the
earliest era of ancient Egypt, more than 5,000 years ago in
the Kom al-Ahmar region, around 600 km (370 miles) south of
the capital, Cairo. Inside the tombs, the archaeologists
found a cow’s head carved from flint and the remains of
seven people. They believe four of them were buried alive
as human sacrifices. The complex is thought to belong to a
ruler of the ancient city of Hierakonpolis in around 3600
BC, when it was the largest urban centre on the Nile
river.