Archaeologists Unearth 43,000 Ancient Egyptian Receipts, Notes, and 'To Do' Lists
By Gayoung Lee
Published on March 16, 2026.
Archive archaeologists from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and the University of Tübingen in Germany have discovered over 43,000 pieces of ostraca, pottery shards or limestone flakes used by Egyptians for casual note-taking. The discovery was made between 2005 and 2026 in the Athribis complex, located near the Temple of Ptolemy XII. The ostraca fragments were found during excavations at the site, which were part of a joint archaeological mission by the Egyptian ministry of Tourism, and the university of Tugbingen. The material is an important source for a comprehensive social history of the region. The most recent texts, written in Arabic, were from the 9th and 11th centuries AD. The team expects more discoveries to be made.
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