Statue of Ramses II uncovered in Tel Basta (Sharqiya)

Statue of king Ramses II, flanked by the goddess Hathor and the god Petah. On the backside a hieroglyphic text and the cartouche of the king are engraved.

A German-Egyptian excavation mission in the Nile Delta town of Tel-Basta has unearthed a life-size statue of the 19th Dynasty King Ramses II carved in red granite. The statue is 195cm high and 160cm wide and was found in the so-called Great Temple area's eastern side, inside the temple of cat goddess Bastet in Sharqiya's Tel-Basta. It is thought that the discovery, in addition to previous finds in the area, may indicate that Tel-Basta was once home to a New Kingdom temple dedicated to King Ramses II.


The Tel Basta excavation is a project that yielded more interesting finds in the past, like pottery and smaller statues. Last year a similar statue of a king flanked by deities was found. That one was also carved in pink granite, but smaller and less well preserved. The picture shows how it was removed to an open air museum by a crane. .