Egypt's antiquities ministry says that a Spanish archaeological mission has discovered a nearly 4000-year old funerary garden in the southern city of Luxor, The Associated Press reports.

In a Wednesday, May 3 statement, the ministry said the rectangular-shaped garden was found during excavations in an open courtyard of a rock-cut tomb belonging to the Middle Kingdom of ancient Egypt.

The garden is divided into four squared sections. Each covers 30 square centimeters and is believed to have contained different kinds of plants and flowers.

The head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities Sector, Mahmoud Afifi, says the discovery is the first of its kind in the area.

In mid-April, Egyptian archaeologists discovered six mummies in a 3,500-year-old tomb near Luxor.

The tomb, discovered in the Draa Abul Nagaa necropolis near the famed Valley of the Kings also contained colourful wooden coffins and more than 1,000 funerary statues.