Nine mummies were discovered by Spanish experts in an intact funeral chamber in the tomb of governor Haqaib III, which dates back to the Middle Kingdom (2050-1750 BC), in the southern Egyptian city of Aswan, Indo-Asian News Service reported.

"The team has found the tomb of a Middle Kingdom governor for the first time in 100 years," said project director Alejandro Jimenez.

The excavation of the governor's tomb was completed this year by a group of experts from the University of Jaen in Spain and Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities.

The tomb had been discovered previously, but this expedition brought together "all the pieces" to confirm that this was the tomb of Haqaib III.

According to IANS, pictures of the governor had also been found on Elephantine Island in the Nile River near the city of Aswan.

However, the representations of his appearance were revealed to have been altered in later studies.

The high official suffered from scoliosis, or lateral curvature of the spine, and had an early death at age 30 in living conditions the archaeologist described as "very tough".

Judging by some personal possessions that were found, including a dagger made with the technique used by that ethnic group in southern Egypt, the deceased governor was of Nubian origin.

In that same tomb, located in the Qubbat al-Hawa area, the experts found a chamber with sarcophagi containing nine mummies of the Late Period of Ancient Egypt (724-343 BC), according to IANS.

"These were the mummified bodies of eight humans and a crocodile," Jimenez said.

Two months ago, remains of about 50 royal Egyptian mummies were also discovered in a huge tomb in Egypt's Valley of the Kings in Luxor.

According to Live Science, studying the newfound mummies and their scattered grave goods could shed light on the lives of people in the pharaohs' royal court.

Since the Arab Spring, Egypt has failed to secure ancient sites and stop theft from museums, mosques, stores and illegal excavations. But antiquities have been vital to Egypt's tourist trade despite the insecurity and political chaos in the past three years.