An Egyptian Was Buried With Homer. Two Thousand Years Later, We're Still Reading the Same Book.

What Happened

Archaeologists have discovered an Egyptian mummy buried with a copy of Homer's Iliad. The text, written in Greek, was found alongside the mummified remains, suggesting the deceased — likely from the Greco-Roman period of Egypt — valued the epic poem enough to carry it into the afterlife.

Historical Context

The Iliad is approximately 2,700 years old, composed around the 8th century BC. Egypt fell under Greek influence after Alexander the Great's conquest in 332 BC, creating a Hellenized culture where Homer was considered foundational literature — the ancient equivalent of being buried with a Bible. This is not the first ancient text recovered from Egyptian burial sites: the Egyptian Book of the Dead was routinely placed with the deceased for millennia, and Greek papyri have been found at sites like Oxyrhynchus (excavated 1896–1907), yielding thousands of literary fragments. Finding Homer in a tomb is rare, but the impulse — to bring beloved words into death — is as old as humanity itself.

What's In Your Control

Whether you take five minutes today to read a passage of the Iliad. It has survived 2,700 years. It will survive your busy schedule.

Does This Require Action?

No action required. Pure wonder, freely available. If this story prompts you to finally read Homer, that is a side effect the archaeologists would probably approve of.