Giant Pharaoh Statue Emerges from Underground + Photos | Head Stands 1.6 Meters Tall

A chance discovery of a stone in front of a house in Egypt led to the identification of the remains of two massive royal statues and a fragment of pink granite inscribed with the name of Ramesses II, one of the most powerful pharaohs of ancient Egypt. Archaeologists believe the king's original statue, including its base, stood about 8.5 meters tall.

A chance discovery of a stone in front of a house in Egypt led to the identification of the remains of two huge royal statues and a piece of pink granite with inscriptions related to Ramesses II, one of the most powerful pharaohs of ancient Egypt. Archaeologists believe that the main statue of this king, including the base, was about 8.5 meters high.

According to Ambassador Arjan, the accidental discovery of a stone in front of a house in Egypt led to the identification of the remains of two huge royal statues and a piece of pink granite with inscriptions related to Ramesses II, one of the most powerful pharaohs of ancient Egypt. Archaeologists believe that the main statue of this king, including the base, was about 8.5 meters high.

Faradid | The story started from the village of Behbit al-Hajar in the Gharbiya province of Egypt. Where one of the residents, while working on his land, noticed a stone with an inscription in front of his house. Instead of manipulating the work further, he informed the local antiquities authorities. This action led to the beginning of the rescue explorations, which had results beyond expectations.

According to Faradid's report; According to the announcement of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, an archaeological team from the Supreme Council of Antiquities during these excavations discovered the remains of two huge royal statues and a piece of pink granite containing hieroglyphic inscriptions related to Ramesses II.

The most important find of this exploration is the head of a 1.6 meter high statue of Ramses II wearing the double crown of Egypt. A crown that was a symbol of his rule over Upper and Lower Egypt.

Archaeologists also recovered part of the statue's back pillar, which is inscribed with the king's Horusi name, "Hoor Ka Nakht Meri Ma'at". This inscription links the identity of the statue to Ramesses II; Pharaoh who ruled from 1279 to 1213 BC.

According to Hisham Al Laithi, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities of Egypt, the dimensions of the head of the statue indicate that the complete statue, including the base, was probably about 8.5 meters high.

Near this work, archaeologists also discovered a major part of another royal statue, whose remains are about 2.4 meters long. The legs and base of the statue are gone, but the face is still recognizable and the traditional Nemes striped headband is clearly visible.

The great similarity of this statue to the first statue raises the possibility that it belongs to Ramesses II; However, its identity has not yet been definitively confirmed.

The third find was a piece of pink granite about 1.3 meters long, which was discovered approximately one meter north of the second statue. The surviving part of its hieroglyphic inscription contains two royal titles of Ramesses II: "Nasu Biti", meaning King of Upper and Lower Egypt, and "Sa Ra", meaning son of Ra, the ancient Egyptian sun god.

The sum of these works shows that once there were great royal monuments in this part of the Nile Delta. However, it is still not clear whether the statues were erected in this place or were transferred to this area at a later time.

The importance of this discovery goes back to the history of Behbit al-Hajr ancient site. This area is best known for the remains of a huge temple dedicated to Isis, one of the most important goddesses of ancient Egyptian religion.

The remaining ruins of the temple consist mainly of large granite fragments scattered around the sacred precincts. The major part of the existing monument belongs to the reign of Nectanbu II in the 4th century BC, and the Ptolemaic rulers completed and expanded its decorations in later periods.

This temple had become one of the important religious centers of the Nile Delta and was associated with the worship of Isis and Osiris. However, new findings suggest that the history of this area is much older than the known temple building.

Ramesses II ruled about 9 centuries before the construction of the main part of the Isis memorial temple. Therefore, the discovery of royal statues belonging to his era raises the question of what other buildings and religious activities existed in this area before the formation of the present temple.

Previous studies have also provided signs of such a background. In a 2017 study, two Egyptologists, Mahmoud Imam and Ehab Abd al-Zaher, examined two pieces of architecture bearing the royal name of Ramses II that were recovered during infrastructure operations near the temple.

These researchers had assumed that the said pieces belong to a building belonging to the era of Ramses II or even an older period; The building that existed before the formation of the temple complex in this place.

The discovery of new sculptures has added other evidence to this archaeological picture. However, it is still to be determined whether these works belonged to an old structure in Behbit al-Hajar or were transferred to this place in later periods, during the re-use of materials and relocation of works.