DNA decoded: 4,800-year-old ancient Egyptian reveals secrets

The individual likely lived between 4,500 and 4,800 years ago

- STEPHEN N R, Senior Associate Editor

In a major scientific milestone, researchers have sequenced the entire genome of an ancient Egyptian individual, revealing unprecedented insights into the ancestry of a man who lived during the era when Egypt's first pyramids were being built.

The man's remains were found buried in a sealed ceramic funerary pot in Nuwayrat, a village more than 150 miles south of Cairo. His body was carefully positioned with knees curled to his chin and lay undisturbed for thousands of years, according to a report in CNN.

Excavated in 1902 by British archaeologists from a tomb carved into a limestone hillside, the individual likely lived between 4,500 and 4,800 years ago, placing him in the late Early Dynastic to early Old Kingdom periods — the era that saw the rise of the "Age of the Pyramids".