An ancient Egyptian statue of the Egyptian goddess of love and fertility Hathor has been uncovered during excavations near Cairo.
The statue, of the goddess Hathor, was discovered in a plot of land 2km southeast of the Mit Rahina area south ofGiza in Greater Cairo, Egypt, after the country’s Supreme Council of Antiquities started excavations in late July.
Hathor is the ancient Egyptian goddess of the sky, love, beauty, happiness, music, and fertility.
In ancient times, she was symbolised by a cow on the Narmer Palette, an archaeological find containing some of the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions ever found.
Dr Mustafa Waziri, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, stated that the statue is made of a single block of black granite with hieroglyphic writings engraved on the back.
He added that the statue was about 95 centimetres (37.4 inches) tall and 45 centimetres (17.7 inches) wide, and that excavation work is continuing to uncover the remaining pieces and possible further items.
The team have also found a statue of King Ramses II, the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt and a number of statues of different gods such as Sekhmet and Ptah. They have also uncovered engraved pink, black granite and limestone blocks and statues dating back to the King Ramses II era (1304 BC to 1214 BC).
They also found blocks of limestone dating back to the Coptic era (3rd to 7th centuries AD), which indicates the reuse of the area in later periods of history.
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Story By: Basant Essam, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Real Press
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