April 15 (Bloomberg) -- Archaeologists in Egypt next week begin excavating sites that may contain the tomb of Cleopatra and Mark Antony, whose doomed love story has inspired writers and filmmakers for decades.

A radar survey last month of the temple of Taposiris Magna near the Mediterranean Sea found three deep shafts inside the temple that were possibly “the tombs of important people,” the Supreme Council of Antiquities said in an e-mailed statement today.

The expedition has also found a bust of Cleopatra made of alabaster, 22 coins bearing her image, as well as a mask believed to belong to Mark Antony, said the statement.

“The finds from Taposiris reflect a charm that could have captured the hearts of Julius Caesar and Mark Antony,” the statement quoted archaeologist Zahi Hawass, the secretary- general of the Supreme Council for Antiquities, as saying.

The queen ruled Egypt between 51 B.C. until her suicide in 30 B.C., following Mark Antony’s naval defeat against Caesar’s adopted son Octavian at Actium in the Mediterranean Sea. Mark Antony had killed himself before Cleopatra.

Their love story inspired the 1963 Oscar-winning movie, “Cleopatra,” starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.

Discovering their tomb could be a more significant find than that of King Tutankhamen and his famous golden mask in 1922, said Kathleen Martinez, a scholar from the Dominican Republic who is leading the expedition with Hawass.

In three years of excavations at the temple, archaeologists have unearthed a large cemetery outside the temple’s enclosure, with 27 tombs and 10 mummies.

“The discovery of this cemetery indicates that an important person, likely of royal status, could be buried inside the temple,” the statement said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alaa Shahine in Cairo at asalha@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 15, 2009 12:34 EDT