The Egyptian-Dominican mission led by archaeologist Kathleen Martínez in the Egyptian temple of Taposiris Magna has found a small white marble figurine of a woman with the royal diadem which, according to the director of the excavations, represents Cleopatra VII, the legendary pharaoh of great cunning and charm who seduced Julius Caesar and Mark Antony.
Beneath the southern wall of this temple complex located west of Alexandria, archaeologists have discovered foundational sites with a notable collection of artifacts and ceremonial itemswhich provide new information about the history of this region during the late Ptolemaic era.
Among the finds, the secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mohamed Ismail Khaled, highlighted in a note the importance of a limestone bust of a king adorned with the headdress of Nemes and that small statuette that has sparked debate among experts.
Kathleen Martínez, who has been searching for the lost tomb of Cleopatra in this site in northern Egypt for 13 years, is convinced that she is the last ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty. However, many Egyptologists disagree because facial features differ of the known representations of the famous queen. They consider it more likely that the figure represents another royal woman or princess.
Other significant discoveries from the latest excavations, in which the Pedro Henríquez Ureña National University (UNPHU) collaborates, include 337 coins, many with the image of Cleopatra VIIas well as ceramic ceremonial vessels, oil lamps, bronze statues, a limestone container for cosmetics and a scarab amulet inscribed with the phrase: “The justice of Ra has arisen.”
The research team also found a bronze ring dedicated to the goddess Hathor and ceramic fragments that date the temple to the end of the Ptolemaic period and confirm that its construction dates back to the 1st century BC.
Some of the artifacts found in the latest excavations, a Cleopatra coin and submerged structures
Martínez also reported the discovery of the remains of a Greek temple from the 4th century BC. c.which was destroyed between the 2nd century BC. C. and the beginning of the Roman period, indicates the statement from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. This temple is located near an intricate system of deep tunnels that extends from Lake Mariout to the Mediterranean Sea.
Furthermore, it was unearthed a large necropolis with 20 catacombsalong with an underground tomb beneath the ancient lighthouse of Taposiris Magna. The tomb consists of three chambers, one of which contained nine white marble busts and other artifacts.
Preliminary underwater excavations in the submerged sections of Taposiris Magna have revealed man-made structures, human remains and vast quantities of pottery. “These finds highlight the historical and cultural significance of the site,” say the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, which has praised these discoveries as “essential to expanding our understanding of the late Ptolemaic period and its architectural, cultural and ceremonial practices.”
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