Gaby
A joint Egyptian-American archaeological mission has unearthed the upper part of a statue of Ramses II near the city of El-Ashmunein, at the site of the ancient city of Hermopolis in Minya Province. The discovery was announced by Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.
The artifact was found nearly a century after the lower part of the statue was discovered. The relic is over 3,200 years old, according to Arkeonews.
Ramses II, also known as Ramses the Great, was one of Ancient Egypt’s most powerful and celebrated pharaohs. He ruled for about 66 years during the 19th dynasty of the New Kingdom (1279–1213 BC). He was famous for military campaigns and for building monumental structures such as the temples of Abu Simbel and the Ramesseum, and he is also remembered as a skilled diplomat.
According to Mustafa Waziri, head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities in Egypt, the limestone bust, which stands 3.8 meters tall, matches the lower part of the statue that was discovered in 1930.
Leaders of the archaeological mission — Bassem Jihad of the Supreme Council of Antiquities and Jovana Trnka of the University of Colorado — also commented on the find. The statue shows Ramses II seated on a throne, wearing the pharaonic nemes headdress topped by the double crown bearing the royal cobra. On the column behind the statue, researchers found hieroglyphic inscriptions of the pharaoh’s titles and texts that indicate when the sculpture was made.
Archaeologists have begun cleaning and conserving the statue. The next steps include further research and the final reconstruction of the relic.
According to the ministry’s statement, once the two pieces are joined the complete statue will stand seven meters tall. Previously, we reported that scientists reconstructed the legendary pharaoh’s face for the first time.
