Egyptian mummies were frequently embalmed using repurposed bits of papyrus with religious texts and other spiritual passages written on it. Amid the ruins of an ancient city roughly 120 miles south of Cairo, archaeologists have identified the first Greco-Roman papyrus fragment used in burial rites. It’s no obscure piece of writing, either. According to researchers at the University of Barcelona, a 1,600-year-old mummy includes a passage from Homer’s famous epic, The Iliad.

This isn’t the first time researchers noted Greek papyri incorporated in a mummification process at the site. However, previous examples were “mainly magical,” according to Adiego.

The team’s recent discovery rewrites this narrative, so to speak. Excavation work inside a funerary complex of three limestone chambers yielded mummies from Oxyrhynchus’ Roman era housed in wooden sarcophagi. Although many of them were badly damaged due to looting, at least one remained in decent enough condition for a detailed examination.

This is an important discovery because it proves that the texts of Homer we have today are almost identical to those that were read 2,000 years ago.