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 A painted hieroglyphic text found on the eastern wall of an Egyptian tomb's burial chamber refers to Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities 
 
 CAIRO — A previously unknown pharaoh and his burial place have been unearthed amid the tombs of other Egyptian kings, and archaeologists say the find could lead to still more royal discoveries. 
 
 The pharaoh's name, Senebkay, was found inscribed on the wall of a burial chamber that's part of the Abydos archaeological site, near the southern city of Sohag. Fragments of the name appeared on one list of Egyptian kings and queens, but no other trace of Senebkay had been found until now, said Ali Asfar, head of antiquities for the Egyptian government. 
 
 "This was the first time in history to discover the king," Asfar told NBC News on Wednesday. 
 
 He and other archaeologists say Senebkay lived roughly 3,650 years ago, during the second intermediate period of ancient Egyptian history. That was an era when several rulers vied for power — setting the stage for the rise of Egypt's New Kingdom around 1550 B.C. 
 
 
 
 'Lost dynasty' 
 
 Senebkay's tomb was found earlier this month by a team of archaeologists led by the University of Pennsylvania's Josef Wegner. They came upon the structure while excavating the adjacent tomb of an earlier pharaoh, King Sobekhotep I. 
 
 
 
 The newfound tomb contains what appear to be the plundered remains of a royal burial, including the pharaoh's pulled-apart skeleton. Senebkay was apparently 5-foot-10 and died in his mid- to late 40s, archaeologists said. 
 
 Wegner told NBC News that the find could point the way to a previously unknown pharaonic dynasty. 
 
 "We discovered an unknown king plus a lost dynasty," he said. "It looks likely that all of the 16 kings are all buried there. ... We now have the tomb for first or second king of this dynasty. There should be a whole series of the others.” 
 
 The photo at left shows decoration in the burial chamber of Senebkay. At right, archaeologists examine Senebkay's skeleton. He was originally mummified, but his body was pulled apart by ancient tomb robbers. Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities 
 
 Shades of King Tut 
 
 He described his team's entry into the tomb's decorated burial chamber as an experience similar to what archaeologist Howard Carter might have felt when he found Tutankhamen's tomb in 1922. 
 
 
 
 “It unfolded over a couple of days," Wegner said. "It was a little bit like King Tut, in that we found the entrance first and it led us down to a burial chamber. We reached a painted limestone chamber with cartouches and the titular of a pharaoh. ... In Abydos there is lots of sand, and everything is deeply buried. You can dig day after day, and then this….We were standing there looking dumbfounded at the colorful wall decoration.” 
 
 The discovery of a reused burial chest helped him date the discovery. 
 
 “Tomb robbers had stripped it, but it still had the prescription of Sobekhotep on the wood," Wegner said. "The fact that they were reusing wood would suggest that it was relatively soon after the earlier tomb of Sobekhotep.” 
 
 Archaeologists surve the tomb of a previously unknown pharaoh, Senebkay, and its surroundings at the Abydos site. Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities 
 
 The reuse of materials from previous reigns and the relatively rustic artistry suggest a lack of stability and wealth, Wegner said. “It suggests that the king had economic challenges, which has to do with the period of struggle and fragmentation of kingdom.” 
 
 Wegner believes he will find much more when he returns to excavate in the spring. 
 
 "Where there are king’s tombs, there are also queen's tombs, and tombs of high officials of the royal court,” he told NBC News. “The discovery has given an interesting look at a period of fragmentation and political conflict, struggling with rival kingdoms of the north and south.” 
 
 Charlene Gubash is an NBC News producer in Cairo. ||||| The tomb of a previously unknown Egyptian pharaoh has been discovered by Egyptian archeologists. 
 
 The remains date back to about 1650 B.C. and belong to King Seneb Kay, who may have been the first to rule Egypt at the beginning of the 13th Paranoiac dynasty. The discovery was made near the southern city of Sohag, about 300 miles south of Cairo. 
 
 The archeological team from the University of Pennsylvania was able to decipher hieroglyphics on the wall, which uncovered the king’s name, the Associated Press reports. While there is not much information about the king, ministry official Ayman El-Damarani said Saneb Kay “ruled Egypt for four years and a half, the longest rule at this time." 
 
 Mohamed Ibrahim, a minister from Egypt’s Ministry of State of Antiquities, says the discovery may shed light on how local families lived during the Second Intermediate Period, considered one of the most pivotal phases in the country’s ancient history, Ahram Online reports. 
 
 “This adds to our pharaonic history, and sheds light on an era about which we knew very little previously,” Head of Antiquities Ali al-Asfar told the AP. 
 
 The king, who reigned more than 3,600 years ago, was laid to rest in a white sheet. His tomb was discovered in a badly damaged state with no roof. "He was originally mummified but his body was pulled apart by ancient tomb robbers,” said a caption that accompanied one of the photos of the tomb. 
 
 "No funerary furniture was found in the tomb, confirming it had been robbed in the ancient pharaonic ages," Ali al-Asfar was quoted in the statement. 
 
 Early excavation of the tomb reveals that it was built with blocks used in tombs from the Middle Kingdom. The sarcophagus, which was made from wood, still contained the skeleton remains of the king. Preliminary tests show the king was roughly six feet in length, El-Asfar said. 
 
 Joseph Wagner, an archeologist from the University of Pennsylvania who was involved in the excavation, said the surrounding tombs belong to the Abydos dynasty from the 13th century. The tomb’s poor shape sheds light on the state of the country during that time -- central authority collapsed and small kingdoms emerged. 
 
 Earlier this month, the tomb of an ancient Egyptian brewer was found on the west bank of the Nile. Excavation on the site began in December 2007, but it was only recently that an archeological team uncovered that tomb, National Geographic reports. 
 
 It was tomb that belonged to the chief “maker of beer for gods of the dead,” who was also the head of a warehouse. When the discovery was announced, Ibrahim said the tomb contained “fabulous designs and colors, reflecting details of daily life ... along with their religious rituals.”
– Amid fresh upheaval in Egypt, archaeologists are still making finds that shed light on the country's past. In the latest discovery, an American and Egyptian team has unearthed the tomb of a previously unknown pharaoh who ruled during troubled times 3,600 years ago, reports the AP. King Seneb Kay—whose name was determined from hieroglyphics on the tomb wall—ruled when the country was divided among several rulers, and Egypt's head of antiquities says the find will provide new insight into a complex and little-known era. But while the find will provide knowledge, grave robbers appear to have made off with everything else of value thousands of years ago, the International Business Times reports. No funerary furniture was found in the badly damaged tomb, and even the body of the king, who had been mummified and laid to rest in a wooden sarcophagus, had been pulled apart. An archaeologist involved with the dig says the terrible state of the tomb reflects the state of Egypt at the time, when central authority had collapsed. (Click for another recent archaeological find—related to Aztec human sacrifice.)