A French archaeological mission led by Joachim le Bomin, in collaboration with Lyon University and the French Institute of Eastern Archaeology in Cairo, has uncovered a remarkable marble statue head from the Ptolemaic period at the ruins of a 7th-century AD house in Taposiris Magna, located 45 km west of Alexandria. The discovery was announced by Egypt’s Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Sherif Fathy.
The statue head, measuring approximately 38 cm in height, is larger than life and appears to have been part of a grander statue originally placed in a significant political structure, rather than a private residence. This suggests the statue once stood in a prominent public building, likely during the Ptolemaic era, a period marked by the flourishing of realistic portraiture.
Mohamed Ismail Khaled, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), emphasized that the size of the head points to its important role in public or political life. Mohamed Abdel Badie, Head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the SCA, noted that the head is expertly sculpted with remarkable attention to detail, reflecting the realistic style that emerged in the late Hellenistic period.
Initial analysis of the statue’s features suggests that it depicts an elderly man with a shaved head, a stern expression, and signs of illness, indicative of his prominent status. While it is clear the figure was important, preliminary studies suggest he was not a king, but a notable public figure—a finding that underscores the significance of Taposiris Magna from the time of Ptolemy IV onward.
Joachim le Bomin, head of the excavation mission, remarked that the team would continue investigating why such a statue head was found in a house built centuries after its creation. The team is also conducting further studies to uncover the identity of the figure depicted and will begin restoration and conservation work on the artefact.
