Mysterious 2,100-year-old gate believed to hide ancient Egyptian god of fertility’s secret temple is unearthed

Archaeologists have discovered a massive 2,100-year-old entrance in an ancient Egyptian village.

Originally standing up to 60 feet (18 meters) tall, the secret entrance is located in the old town of Athribis, close to the present-day city of Sohag.

It leads to an undiscovered room that researchers think might be the entrance to a long-gone temple.

According to archaeologists Dr. Marcus M.ller and Professor Christian Leitz of the University of T. Bingen, the entrance to a temple in the rock is thought to be beneath the undiscovered masses of debris behind it.

A second door on the pylon’s front is unique in Egyptian temple construction. It connects to an unidentified stairway that led up to four flights to the upper floor, which is now damaged, and where further storage spaces can be built.

There may be a door behind it, as indicated by the more than three-meter-high find and features that are typical of a temple’s top end, including a cobra frieze.

However, more excavations will be needed to demonstrate this.

After a 20-ton ceiling block that had fallen over time was removed, the chamber—which is about 6 meters long and 3 meters wide—was found.

The tiny space was probably used to store amphora, which are oval containers used for wine, oil, and resin, as well as utensils.

On the finding, Leitz and Mller have been collaborating with Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

The two further mentioned that since 2012, excavations have been conducted to reveal an ancient temple district constructed between 144 BCE and 138 CE.

The towers of the imposing temple entrance were each 18 meters high, and the complex was 51 meters broad overall.

Only about 5m are left today. The others became victims of quarrying.

The exterior facade and interior walls of the gateway are adorned with elaborate carvings and Egyptian inscriptions.

According to the hieroglyphics, the pylon was built by Ptolemy VIII in the second century BCE.

The Egyptian fertility deity Min, his wife Repit, who is frequently portrayed as a lioness, and their son, the child-god Kolanthes, are all shown in the inscriptions.

The fertility deity Min is shown on the door frame across from the goddess Repit, who is once more visible. She is accompanied by two infrequently seen creatures, decans (stars that allow time to be counted at night), who have the heads of an ibis and a falcon, respectively, according to Leitz and Mller.

In one inscription, a king—whom the scholars believe to be Ptolemy VIII from the second century BC—is offering sacrifices to these Egyptian deities.

The political and military rivalry between Ptolemy VIII and his elder siblings were well-known.

Throughout his administration, which lasted from 170 to 164 BCE, he alternated between ruling alone and with others.

The first expedition of its kind was funded by Ptolemy VIII in 117 and traveled to India via the Indian Ocean and Red Sea.

Egypt became interested in the spice trade as a result of this mission.

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