1600 Years B.P. Church along the Avenue of the Sphinxes

… but it seems more interesting what that church is made of:

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 on 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, about 128 sphinx statues have been unearthed. They are to be displayed in their original positions along the avenue.

via 1600-year-old church’s remains found in Egypt | IOL.

Photos please!!!!

This Day in Ancient History: ante diem v idus maias

Detalle do fresco cos Lares.
Image by DivesGallaecia via Flickr

ante diem v idus maias

  • Lemuria (day 2) — a private and public appeasement of the dead; the Roman paterfamilias would rise at midnight to conduct a ritual involving beans and bronze
  • rites in honour of Mania — a Roman divinity who was considered the goddess of the dead; she was also the mother of the Lares
  • 14 A.D. — Augustus’ last official census comes to an end
  • 330 — Constantine renames Byzantium and makes it his capital
  • 1988 — death of E.T. Salmon (Samnium and the Samnites)