An ancient city that dates back more than 5,000 years, containing houses, tools, pottery and huge graves has been unearthed in Egypt.

The city lies by the river Nile, close to the Temple of Seti the First in Abydos.

According to experts, the size of the 15 newly discovered graves indicates the high social standing of those buried.

Image source Wikimedia

It is believed the city was home to important officials and tomb builders and would have flourished during early-era ancient Egyptian times.

Archaeologists say the discovery could be a boost for Egypt’s struggling tourism industry which has been in the doldrums since President Hosni Mubarak was overthrown in 2011.

They have made a range of finds in the newly-discovered city including buildings, shards of pottery and tools.

It is believed that this location was home to important officials and tomb builders who may have been engaged in the construction of royal graves in the nearby sacred city of Abydos – a place of many temples, and a capital in an early period of ancient Egyptian history.

The discovery comes at a time when Egypt is trying to re-energize its hugely important tourism industry, which has suffered badly as a result of protracted political turmoil.

Officials quoted in the Egypt Independent said the discovery was made by an archaeological mission that belongs to the country’s Antiquities Ministry, and not a foreign group.