LUXOR, EGYPT—Ahram Online reports that fragments of statues of the lioness goddess Sekhmet have been unearthed at the King Amenhotep III funerary temple by a team led by archaeologist Hourig Sourouzian. Mostafa Waziri of the Supreme Council of Antiquities said the tallest of the 27 black-granite statues would have stood more than six feet tall. The surfaces of those that had been deep underground were damaged by water and salt, but the statues that had been closer to the surface are well preserved, in some cases only missing the base and feet. More than 280 statues of Sekhmet have been unearthed in the temple since the excavation began in 1998. The walls and columns of the King Amenhotep III funerary temple were toppled by an earthquake in 1200 B.C. “The sculptures are of a high artistic quality and of the greatest archaeological interest,” Sourouzian said. The statues will be cleaned and desalinated and eventually returned to the temple when it has been restored. To read in-depth about ancient Egypt, go to "The Cult of Amun."
