Ptolemaic Temple Entrance Discovered in Egypt

An entrance to what may have once been a sanctuary was found by researchers among the cliffs of Athribis in a small Egyptian village near present-day Sohag, roughly 124 miles north of Luxor.

Arthribis was once a hub for the worship of the god Min-Re; his wife, lioness goddess Repyt; and their son, the child-god Kolanthes. It spans more than 74 acres and includes a temple complex, a settlement, a necropolis, and ancient quarries.

Researchers from Germany’s University of Tübingen, with support from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, identified a pylon or two towers flanking the main entrance to a larger structure.

Excavations over the last few months have focused on the northern tower. At the entrance gate, the team uncovered reliefs of a king offering sacrifices to Repyt and Kolanthes. Hieroglyphic inscriptions showed that the king Ptolemy VIII, who ruled during the 2nd century BCE, was responsible for the decoration and likely the construction of the pylon.

Ptolemy VIII was known for his political acumen and the military rivalry he had with his older siblings. During his reign, he sometimes ruled alongside solo and at other times with others.

The team also discovered a previously unknown chamber measuring roughly 20 feet long and 10 feet wide. It was found within the pylon’s north tower, and is thought to have been used for the storage of utensils and subsequently amphorae.

The entrance was decorated with reliefs and hieroglyphs depicting Repyt; a door frame on the opposite side depicts the fertility god Min alongside two rarely shown decans, or stars that measure the passage of time at night, as well as a falcon and ibis heads. The second door on the pylon’s facade, leading to a previously undiscovered staircase, would have gone at least four flights up to another floor that was destroyed. A exterior corridor leading through the pylon to the chamber made it possible for researchers to access the room.

The original complex would have been 167 feet wide. The towers of the temple entrance would have each stood at 59 feet high, but only 16 and a half feet of it exist today as a result of quarrying. A coin indicated that the stone was removed around 752 CE.

Excavations have been ongoing since 2012 in an effort to identify a temple that was believed to have been erected between 144 BCE to 138 CE. Experts have been working to uncover a large stone temple since 2022. They believe the entrance to a temple is located in the rock under untouched piles of rubble.

This month, new excavations will focus on the area behind the python, where researchers hope to identify the remains of the temple. The smoothed limestone blocks and cobra frieze already found at the site may be hiding such an entrance.