COURTESY SZYMON POPŁAWSKI, BERENIKE PROJECT
Archaeologists excavating the forecourt of a Roman temple in the Red Sea port of Berenike in southeastern Egypt have discovered a beautiful marble statue of Buddha. The 2-foot-tall statue depicts Buddha standing next to a lotus flower with a halo behind his head.
Interestingly, the piece does not appear to have been imported from India. Rather, the marble probably came from western Turkey, and the carving was likely the work of a local craftsman at the behest of an Indian individual residing in Berenike. Although it is impossible to date the statue precisely, experts suggest that its placement in the temple likely occurred in the early Roman period (c. 31 BCE–330 CE) and speaks to the religious pluralism of the Roman Empire.
Other artifacts recovered from the temple also highlight Roman Egypt’s international connections at the time. Two second-century CE coins from the Indian dynasty of the Satavahanas and a third-century Sanskrit inscription point to sustained contact between Egypt and South Asia throughout the imperial period.
Archaeologists excavating the forecourt of a Roman temple in the Red Sea port of Berenike in southeastern Egypt have discovered a beautiful marble statue of Buddha. The 2-foot-tall statue depicts Buddha standing next to a lotus flower with a halo behind his head. Interestingly, the piece does not appear to have been imported from India. Rather, the marble probably came from western Turkey, and the carving was likely the work of a local craftsman at the behest of an Indian individual residing in Berenike. Although it is impossible to date the statue precisely, experts suggest that its placement in the […]
