The tomb, south of Saqqara, a vast necropolis south of Cairo, belongs to a senior official named Khuwy who is believed to have been a nobleman during the Fifth Dynasty, which ruled over Egypt about 4300 years ago.

"The L-shaped Khuwy tomb starts with a small corridor heading downwards into an antechamber and from there a larger chamber with painted reliefs depicting the tomb owner sitting at an offerings table" said Mohamed Megahed, the excavation team's head, in an antiquities ministry statement.

Flanked by dozens of ambassadors, antiquities minister Khaled al-Enani said that the tomb was found last month.

It is mostly made of white limestone bricks.

Ornate paintings boast a special green resin throughout and oils used in the burial process, the ministry said.

The tomb's north wall indicates that its design was inspired by the architectural blueprint of the dynasty's royal pyramids, the statement added.