Artefacts discovered amid submerged ruins of cities of Thonis-Heracleion and Canopus to be unveiled in major Paris exhibition

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Spectacular ancient Egyptian treasures are to be exhibited for the first time having been discovered underwater in the submerged ruins of the near-legendary cities of Thonis-Heracleion and Canopus.

A finely sculpted statuette of a pharaoh and a golden-eyed depiction of god Osiris are among antiquities to be unveiled in a major exhibition in Paris from next month.



Facebook Twitter Pinterest Bronze statuette of a pharaoh. Photograph: Christoph Gerigk

The cities were almost erased from mankind’s memory after sinking beneath the waves in the eighth century AD following cataclysmic natural disasters including an earthquake and tidal waves.



Across a vast site in Aboukir Bay near Alexandria, the seabed has been giving up secrets from a lost world in an excavation led by Franck Goddio, a French marine archaeologist.



Founding head of the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology in Paris, Goddio is working with the Oxford Centre for Maritime Archaeology at the University of Oxford, and the Egyptian authorities.

He told the Guardian: “There will be many important artefacts which have never been seen before, even in Egypt, as they have been discovered recently during our underwater missions.”



Dr Damian Robinson, the Oxford Centre’s director, described the finds as extremely important.



The submerged site spans about 40 sq miles (110 sq km), he said: “Within that, there are probably two submerged cities, maybe three. Franck has mainly concentrated [on surveying] the area to find out what the topography looks like, [with] small surgical excavations to clarify research questions. We’ve probably excavated only 1% or 2% of the site – possibly less.”

Goddio’s initial discovery of the site in 2000 was one of the greatest archaeological finds of recent times. Colossal statues, jewellery and coins revealed an opulent civilisation frozen in time.



Facebook Twitter Pinterest Granite head of a priest, Ptolemaic period. Photograph: Christoph Gerigk

Thonis-Heracleion, its Egyptian and Greek names, was once a prosperous city. Founded around the eighth century BC, it had a network of canals and its port was a vital gateway to Egypt for foreign ships. The discovery of more than 700 ancient anchors and 60 wrecks dating from the sixth to the second century BC revealed the intensity of maritime activity, Goddio said.



Facebook Twitter Pinterest Ceramic depicting the god Bes raising a dagger. Photograph: Christoph Gerigk

Until his discovery, the city’s memory had been preserved through ancient writings. Herodotus, the fifth century BC Greek historian, wrote of a great temple and of Helen’s visit with her lover Paris before the Trojan war. The nearby city of Canopus also inspired classical authors. Nicander, the second century BC poet, wrote that Menelaus’s helmsman, Canopus, died there, bitten by a viper on the sands of Thonis.



It was famous for sanctuaries dedicated to Osiris and other gods, drawing pilgrims from afar with its miraculous healings. Osiris was killed by his brother Seth, who threw his body into the Nile, having cut him into 14 pieces. Osiris’s sister-wife Isis magically reassembled and resurrected him to conceive their son Horus. After defeating Seth, Osiris was worshipped for bringing new life to death.



Goddio said that the discoveries have confirmed details within ancient texts and inscriptions including the Decree of Canopus, a 238BC stela, which describes donations, sacrifices and a procession on water.



An oil lamp used during ceremonies honouring Osiris and the remains of animal sacrifices are among ritual artefacts that have been found around a temple site and along the two-mile channel linking Thonis-Heracleion and Canopus.



Goddio said that there are also unique artefacts “not known before and not represented in any museum,” such as ritual ceremonial barges. Other finds include a highly realistic black granite priest’s head, and a ceramic depicting the fearsome god Bes, who protected against evil forces with grotesque dances and grimacing.

The exhibition, titled Osiris, Sunken Mysteries of Egypt, will feature more than 290 artefacts. It will be staged at the Arab World Institute in Paris – headed by Jack Lang, France’s former minister of culture – from 8 September until 31 January.

Film footage will recreate the underwater atmosphere of the sunken sites. “It will be a very special experience for the visitor,” Goddio said.