Egyptian Archaeologists Unearth Remains of Coptic Church Dated Back 1600 Years

Restoration work being conducted at the Avenue of Sphinxes in the southern city of Luxor, Egypt. A 1600-year-old Coptic Church was recently discovered in the area.
Originally uploaded by Pan-African News Wire File Photos

Archaeologists unearth remains of 1600-year-old church in Egypt

May 11, 2010, 9:27 GMT

Cairo - Archaeologists in Egypt have unearthed the ruins of a 1600-year-old church and a nilometer, an ancient instrument used to measure the level of the Nile River, the Ministry of Culture said Tuesday.

The discovery was made during work to restore the 2700-metre-long Avenue of Sphinxes, which connects the Luxor and Karnak temples, in the southern city of Luxor.

The Coptic-era church was built with limestone blocks that originally belonged to Ptolemaic and Roman temples, Zahi Hawass, the head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) said.

The blocks are engraved with scenes depicting Ptolemaic and Roman kings offering sacrifices to ancient Egyptian deities.

The archaeologists also unearthed foundation stones which were used to install the sphinx statues that used to be found along the Avenue of Sphinx.

Since the beginning of restoration work at the Avenue of Sphinxes, some 128 sphinx statues have been unearthed. They are to be displayed in their original positions along the avenue.