Twenty miles south of Cairo, on the Nile's west bank, where river-fed crop fields give way to the desert, Untouched 4,400-year-old tomb discovered at Saqqara, Egypt The stunning tomb displays clues to the life of a royal official, with more discoveries likely.

The ancient site of Saqqara is marked by crumbling pyramids that emerge from the sand like dragon's teeth. Most striking is the famous Step Pyramid, built in the 27th century B.C. by Djoser, the Old Kingdom pharaoh who launched the tradition of constructing pyramids as monumental royal tombs. More than a dozen other pyramids are scattered along the five-mile strip of land, which is also dotted with the remains of temples, tombs and walkways that, together, span the entire history of ancient Egypt. But beneath the ground is far more—a vast, extraordinary netherworld of treasures.