Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announces the discovery of a colossal statue during the work of the Egyptian archaeological mission affiliated with the Supreme Council of Antiquities at the Tell Faroun site in the Husseiniya district of Sharqia governorate.
The statue, which is missing its lower section including the legs and base, is likely to depict King Ramses II.
Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Hisham el-Leithy confirmed that the discovery is of considerable importance, as it sheds light on aspects of religious and royal activity in Egypt’s eastern Delta.
He added that it enhances understanding of the practice of relocating and reusing royal statues during the New Kingdom period, particularly in relation to the connection between regional sites and major royal centres.
He explained that the statue is of substantial size, weighing between five and six tonnes and measuring approximately 2.20 metres in length.
Despite its relatively poor condition, the remaining fragments display clear artistic and royal features, suggesting it may have formed part of a triad, similar to examples previously found in Sharqia Governorate.
Head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities Professor Mohamed Abdel-Badi stated that preliminary studies indicate the statue was transported in antiquity from the city of Pi-Ramesses to Tell Faroun, formerly known as Imt, for reuse within a religious complex.
This highlights the enduring religious and historical significance of the site over time. For preservation purposes, the statue was immediately transferred from the temple complex to the museum storage facility in San El-Hagar, where it will undergo careful and urgent restoration in accordance with the highest scientific standards for the conservation of antiquities.
It is also noted that in September, a stone tablet was discovered bearing a new version of the Canopic Decree issued by King Ptolemy III in 238 BC, when senior priests of Canopus, east of Alexandria, gathered to honour King Ptolemy III, his wife Berenice, and their daughter, and to distribute the decree to major Egyptian temples.
