A private tomb thought to be more than 4,000 years and built for a senior official from the 5th dynasty of pharaohs has been discovered in Egypt.

Antiquities minister Khaled al-Anani announced the find in Saqqara, just west of Cairo, which is also home to the famed Step Pyramid.

Egypt Antiquities
Mostafa Waziri, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, inside the tomb (Amr Nabil/AP)

Brightly painted relief statues were part of the “exceptionally well-preserved” treasures found in the tomb of a priest called Wahtye who was involved in royal purification during the reign of King Nefer Ir-Ka-Re about 4,400 years ago.

Mr Anani said the tomb contains scores of statues of different sizes and colours.

Egypt Antiquities
Relief statues in the tomb (Amr Nabil/AP)
Egypt Antiquities
Photographers film inside the recently uncovered tomb in Giza (Amr Nabil/AP)

In recent years, Egypt has heavily promoted new archaeological finds to international media and diplomats in the hope of attracting more visitors to the country.

The vital tourism sector has suffered from the years of political turmoil since the 2011 uprising.