Archaeologists opened 2,000-year-old giant black sarcophagus and made gruesome discovery inside

After what happened to Brendan Fraser in The Mummy, you'd think it was common knowledge not to disturb the dead, especially if the dead could potentially be a cursed high priest with supernatural powers.

But, archeologists with Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities decided to ignore the very clear warnings set out in the film franchise and opened up a 2,000-year-old giant black sarcophagus.

And what they found inside was pretty gruesome.

The granite sarcophagus is the biggest to ever be found in the Sidi Gaber district of Alexandria, measuring in at a whopping 2.5 metres (almost nine feet).

And naturally, people were pretty curious as to what was inside.

Experts estimate that the sarcophagus dates back to Egypt's Ptolemaic period (323-30 BCE), the period of time between the death of Alexander the Great and the Roman invasion.

Ministry of Antiquities

A layer of mortar between the lid and sarcophagus body suggested that it had never been opened. Until now, that is.

Luckily for us, no evil spirits were released into the world when archeologists opened the coffin. Instead, they found a gooey, sludgy mess.

Information shared by the Ministry on Facebook says that it was filled with sewage that seems to have leaked in from a nearby road.

The stench of the sewage was reportedly so bad that the team had to leave the sarcophagus to air out for an hour before examining its contents further.

Ministry of Antiquities

Lying in the sewage were three skeletons that Shaaban Abdel Moneim, a specialist in the study of mummies and skeletons, said are all male based on initial examinations.

He said the bodies are most likely officials, possibly members of the military, or maybe a priest, but experts have ruled out the possibility of the sarcophagus belonging to a king or emperor as it does not have any inscriptions.

Ministry of Antiquities

It has been reported that the skeletons will be transferred to the Alexandria National Museum for restoration and further study, with investigations set to take place into their cause of death as well an approximate date.

However, getting the sarcophagus out of its resting place will prove to be a great challenge.

Waad Abul-Ela, head of the Projects Sector at the Ministry, told Egypt Today that they plan to lift the coffin in a two-part process.

First, they will fill the area around the sarcophagus and then after they will lift it with a tow truck 'in a scientific way that does not harm the antiquity.'

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