Egyptian archaeologists have found fifty mummies dating back to the Ptolemaic era (305-30BC) the antiquities ministry says.

The mummies, of which 12 were children, were found in four burial chambers 9m (30ft) deep in the Tuna El-Gebel site in Minya, south of the capital Cairo.

Some were wrapped in linen, others were in stone coffins or wooden sarcophagi.

Although officials said their identities were unknown, but they were likely to have held important positions.

Egypt';s antiquities minister said the newly discovered tombs may have been a familial grave for a well-off middle class family.