Two of Egypt's oldest pyramids reopened to tourists for first time in more than 50 years

Egypt has opened two of its earliest pyramids to visitors for the first time since 1965.

Located about 25 miles (40 kilometres) south of the capital Cairo, the ceremony in Giza on Saturday was attended by Egyptian officials and foreign diplomats.

The Dahshur necropolis area is home to what is considered to be some of the earliest pyramids, including Sneferu's Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid.

The Bent Pyramid is considered a transition phase in pyramid construction, which comes between step pyramids and complete pyramids.

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Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anany told reporters at the site on Saturday that Egyptian archaeologists had also uncovered a collection of stone, clay and wooden sarcophagi, some of them with mummies, in the Dahshur royal necropolis.

He said archaeologists also found wooden funerary masks along with instruments used in cutting stones, dating to the Late Period (664-332 B.C.).Mostafa Waziri, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said further excavations of the site would take place next month.

Egypt hopes such discoveries will spur tourism, which is partially driven by antiquities sightseeing hit hard by political turmoil following the 2011 uprising.