NARRATOR: In Cairo, Egyptologist Dr. Yasmin El
Shazly is investigating the mystery
of a newly discovered pyramid.
Fragments of wood found in the burial chamber
have been pieced together.
They form a coffin lid with a beautifully carved face.
Coffins normally had features that were similar to the owner,
but idealized, because that's what they
would look like for eternity.
NARRATOR: The restoration has revealed something astonishing.
This isn't a king.
It is, in fact, a mystery woman.
DR. YASMIN EL SHAZLY (VOICEOVER): She's wearing
the Hathor wig that was very popular
during the Middle Kingdom and was only worn by women.
NARRATOR: The answer may lie with another object
found in her grave.
A chest decorated with hieroglyphs.
Could they reveal the mystery woman's name?
What's extremely important about this chest is that we
know that it belonged to a princess,
because, here, it says, [NON-ENGLISH],,
daughter of the king.
And then, it would be followed by the name.
The name is the most damaged area,
which is very frustrating.
The ancient Egyptians believed that the worst
thing you could possibly do to anyone was erase their name.
If we manage to find her name and say it again,
then she would achieve immortality.
NARRATOR: It's not just her name that's a mystery.
Discovering a princess in a pyramid is highly unusual.
This kind of pyramid design is specific to a king.
It's not what you'd expect a junior member
of the royal family to be in.
Normally, a princess would simply have a shaft, tomb,
and a chamber at the bottom of it, which makes
the whole thing a real mystery.
NARRATOR: To understand more about the princess,
the team must investigate the age she lived in,
Egypt's Middle Kingdom.
These models from the time give us a window into her world.
Stretching from 2030 to 1650 BC, it's
known as Egypt's classical age.
It produced the first historical novel called
"The Story of Sinuhe" and new techniques
of working with gold to create the finest
jewelry of the ancient world.
Locked in Cairo Museum are the treasures of another Middle
Kingdom princess.
DR. YASMIN EL SHAZLY: We have, here, the crown of Princess
[INAUDIBLE] from Dahshur.
It's made out of gold and inlaid with semiprecious stones.
And here, at the front, you have a branch with very, very
intricate leaves and flowers.
This necklace is very delicate and very intricately decorated.
This, for example, is the symbol of life the ankh.
And this one, this is a very famous amulet as well.
It's the Eye of Horus that helps protects the wearer.
The newly discovered tomb probably
contained material very similar to this, a lot of gold,
which is probably why it would've
been robbed a long time ago.