Greek Statue Fragments Found in Southern Turkey

ADANA PROVINCE, TURKEY—According to a report in the Daily Sabah, pieces of a limestone statue of the Greek goddess Hygieia and the god Eros have been found in the ancient city of Anavarza. Nedim Dervişoğlu, director of the Adana Museum, said the statue is thought to date to the third or fourth century B.C. Hygieia, the goddess of hygiene, was one of the six daughters of Asclepius, the god of health. Dervişoğlu explained that Anavarza was known for the development of medicine and the home of Dioskurides, a pharmacologist during the Roman period. Excavators will continue to search for the statue’s missing heads. To read about another discovery in Turkey, go to “Figure of Distinction.”