Egyptian archaeologists carrying out excavations at the site of a planned youth centre have found 14 tombs dating back to the third century BC, including one with a female mummy covered in jewellery.

The Greco-Roman tombs, in Bahariya Oasis, 300 km (190 miles) southwest of Cairo, were discovered during probes that indicated they may be part of a much larger necropolis.

Director of the Oasis monuments Khaled Salah announced: "We have found in this tomb a mummy for a Roman lady, who is very beautiful, with inlaid eyes, wearing a Roman dress and a shawl, holding a shawl in her hand, and wearing some jewellery, and we discovered golden pieces in the site as well, and pottery pots and other stuff, so the site will add a great value".

A 97cm-tall female mummy, found in the stair-lined interior of one of the rock-hewn tombs, was cast in colored plaster inlaid with jewelry and eyes.

Bahariya Oasis is home to Egypt's famed Valley of the Golden Mummies, where a collection of 17 tombs with about 254 mummies was discovered in 1996.