The excavation of the site of Helwan is located southwest of Maasara and north of Ezbit-el-Walda. It is fifteen miles south of Cairo and two miles west of the Nile River. The excavation area lies just outside the Eastern Desert and close to the present town of Al Fayyum. The site dates back to the first and second dynasties. Thus, the site is approximately five thousand years old. The director of these excavations was Zaki Y. Saad. He worked in connection with the Department of Antiquities of the Egyptian government.
The first season of excavations began July 8,1942 and lasted until May 27, 1954. By the end of the last season, a total of 10,258 tombs were excavated. The tombs varied in size and composition. According to Saad, wealthy and revered men had large tombs with numerous chambers and sometimes staircases. Poor men were more often buried in simple graves, but still were accompanied by a variety of objects that would be needed in the afterlife. Many of the tombs for the wealthy were built using mud bricks and/or limestone.
The artifacts found in the tombs were indicative of the industry and technology of the First and Second Dynasty. Flint, one of the most difficult materials to modify, is utilized in several ways ranging from armbands to long knives. Some of these flint knives were up to 50 centimeters in length, an accomplishment of the craftsman from that time period. Ivory was also found in the tombs. It was used for vases, statuettes, utensils and decorative ornaments and jewelry boxes. Another material found was copper, from which they made mirrors, needles, saws, knives and other household objects.
The excavations at Helwan shed light on the lifestyles of ancient Egyptians during the First and Second Dynasties. It showed that the ancient Egyptians had the expertise of constructing tombs of stone before the building of the pyramids. It also showed that they were expert craftsmen of copper, flint, ivory, and several other materials. The excavations at Helwan also improved Egyptologists' understanding of ancient Egyptian technology, dress, customs, religious beliefs, and written tradition.
