Restoration of the Edfu Temple has revealed ancient Egyptian paintings from thousands of years ago.
According to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Edfu temple is dedicated to the worship of the god Horus. According to sources, construction of this temple on the west bank of the Nile began during the reign of Ptolemy III and was completed during the reign of Ptolemy XII. It was built between 237 BC and 57 BC.
In more recent years, restoration work has been underway on the temple in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and Germany's University of Würzburg.
In Egypt, the remains of bright and colorful paintings were discovered after careful cleaning of the walls of ancient temples. (Martin Stadler / University of Wurzburg)
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It has long been known that Egyptian temples once shone with gold and bright colors. During the restoration of the Edfu temple, the remains of ancient art were discovered.
According to a September 2024 press release, the reliefs (a type of ancient Egyptian sculpture) and paintings were cleaned by a restoration team under the direction of Ahmed Abdel Nabi.
Dust, bird droppings and soot were carefully removed from the sandstone reliefs, from which the remains of ancient art began to peek out.
According to a press release from the University of Würzburg, restoration of the Edfu temple has been underway since 2016. (Victoria Altmann Wendling/University of Wurzburg)
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According to a press release from the University of Würzburg, the discovery of these ruins is a rare discovery, as most ancient Egyptian temples have minimal or no preservation of paintings.
Gold-leaf ornaments were also found inside the temple, another rare find in Egyptian temples, “because they are fragile,” according to a press release. In the Edfu temple, most of the gold ornaments were found on the high walls of the temple.
“The gilding of the figures probably served not only to symbolically immortalize and deify them, but also contributed to the mystical atmosphere of the room,” said project manager Victoria Altman-Wendling. “It will be done,” he said. It must have been very impressive, especially when the sunlight was shining through it.
Unusual traces of gold have been discovered in paintings inside an ancient temple. (Victoria Altmann Wendling/University of Wurzburg)
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“The fact that the gods were completely gold-plated is of particular interest. We find this in literary sources that describe the bodies of the gods as being composed of gold,” Altmann-Wendling said. said in a press release.
Additionally, a dipinti with ink graffiti was also found at the temple, according to the press release. It is written in demotic script and serves as a “direct testimony of the priest who entered the temple.”
